A very sad day for intellectual freedom
December 13, 2010
Liu Xiaobo, serving an 11-year prison sentence, was not permitted to travel and accept his Nobel Peace Prize. It was the first time in 74 years the prestigious $1.2 million Nobel Peace Prize was not handed over.
A quote from Kahill Gibran (Lebanese poet and novelist 1883-1931) eloquently captures the gravity when voices are silenced.
“You can muffle the drum, and you can loosen the strings of the lyre, but who shall command the skylark not to sing?”
A Nobel Laureate and his love for children’s literature
December 10, 2010
One of my favorite images is I.B Singer, along with other writers at the Garden Cafeteria in NYC, discussing the purpose of literature while eating mountains of rice pudding and countless cups of coffee. I.B.Singer (Nov 21-1902- July 24, 1991) was the recipient of the 1978 Nobel Laureate in Literature. His acceptance was delivered in […]
The author of Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes will be missed
December 3, 2010
Eleanor Coerr, author of Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes, died on November 22, at the age of 88. During a writing career that spanned 25 years, Coerr published several books for children, but is best known for Sadako. First published by Puffin in 1977, the novel is based on the life of Sadako Sasaki, […]
Reading books with children to build bridges and break down borders
December 3, 2010
Being in the company of educators from around the world at the ECIS conference in Nice, France gave me renewed energy and faith in the ability of language—specifically literature, to bridge the cultural divide. Those of us who work in education have an amazing opportunity and responsibility to offer children all forms of literature that […]
The (brilliant) pedagogy of Grandmothers
December 1, 2010
Having just returned from presenting at the European Council of Independent Schools in Nice France, I want to share with you some thoughts from the conference keynote speaker, Professor Sugata Mitra. Professor Mitra’s work is in the field of Cognitive Science, Information Science, and Educational Technology. Early in the morning as I sat alongside bleary […]
