Review of “A Whole New Mind”

21st January 2006

posted in books, creativity, podcasting |

Josh Thomas’s 12 minute podcast review of Dan Pink’s book “A Whole New Mind: Moving from the Information Age to the Conceptual Age” is well worth listening to.

If you are a teacher, administrator, parent, or otherwise involved or concerned about education, you should read this book. I agree with Josh’s comment that “if you are awake and capable” you need to read it!

Josh is correct that Dan Pink is viewing the world similarly to Thomas Friedman in his book “The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century,” but takes it a step further in providing an answer to the logical question, “What do we do in response to this worldview?”

Rather than become “adapters,” Josh recognizes Dan Pink’s exhortation for us to become “synthesizers” of ideas. This requires different, out-of-the-box thinking! Does NCLB advance this? Sadly, I don’t think so.

The failure of national leaders to understand the vision we need for education in the 21st century shouldn’t hold back classroom teachers, campus principals, district superintendents and parents from helping students develop “a whole new mind.” We can embrace digital storytelling. We can encourage students to create, collaborate, and communicate in meaningful contexts. In the words of David Warlick, we can and should hack the system, but at the grass-roots level where happen to work and play.

There IS hope. Thanks to Josh for a great review of Dan Pink’s ideas and encouraging people everywhere to innovate, create, and play up the importance of using the “left side” of our brains, in both our work and play!

On this day..

Podcast219: Powerful Tools, Powerful Possibilities - 2008
Reflections on Dr. King's Dream - 2008
Using Google Notebook, Google Reader, and Firefox - 2007
Rules for the Revolution (podcasting that is!) - 2007
Architecting School 2.0 - 2007
John Seely Brown on rethinking schools - 2007
Engagement, school fun, and passionless teachers - 2007
Steve Jobs and photo remixing - 2006
Good Learning Theory Articulated - 2006

This entry was posted on Saturday, January 21st, 2006 at 4:13 pm and is filed under books, creativity, podcasting. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.