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An Adventure in Excellence: |
E. Todd |
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A Community Portrait |
Revised,1999 |
Public Schools as Civilized Communities
"Because we care . . . public schools
must be civilized communities."
Rationale for Care Statements: . . . . . . . . . .
"If we are to become a civilized community we must be committed to becoming civilized human beings. The responsibilities of civilized behavior belong to everyone whose lives are affected by the public schools." (Todd, 1995).
Definitions: "barbarian..." "civility...." "civil disobedience" "A civilized partner . . . ." "courteous....." "cultural development...." "ignorant....." "peacemaking....." "socialize....." "taste....." "warlike....." "to be civilized....."
Consequences: If the human beings whose lives are affected by the school accept these definitions the following consequences will occur at _______________________:
(A.) . . . .
(B.) . . . .
(C.) . . . .
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"Whatever we do in a public school depends upon what we think civilized human beings are capable of accomplishing in their lives. The goals we seek, the things we do, the judgments we make, even the experiments we are willing to try, are determined by our beliefs about the nature of an individual and his/her capabilities." (Todd, 1985, 1995).
1. A. Belief: If we believe that civilized human beings are uniquely different--in physical growth, in intellectual power, in social maturity, in emotional stability, in aesthetic sensitiveness, in readiness to become caring peacemakers, in any human attribute--then every effort should be made to facilitate civilized growth in those human beings whose lives are affected by the public school. (Todd, 1963, 1995).
B. Needed Actions:
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(2.) . . . .
(3.) . . . .
2. A. Belief: If we believe . . . .
B. Needed Actions:
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(2.) . . . .
(3.) . . . .
3. A. Belief: If we believe . . . .
B. Needed Actions:
(1.) . . . .
(2.) . . . .
(3.) . . . .
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as a Civilized Community
If we are to become a civilized community we must be committed to becoming civilized human beings. the responsibilities of civilized behavior belong to everyone whose lives are affected by the public schools." (Todd, 1995)
A public school has the potential for becoming a civilized community when the following conditions exist:
(1.) The system of educational ideas evolves from (1) care statements, (2) definitions and consequences, and (3) beliefs and actions of civilized human beings.
(2.) Professional and support personnel are employed not only for their professional competence but also for their potential for continued growth as civilized human beings.
(3.) Faculty, administrators, and support personnel not only because of professional competence, but also for their willingness to support and model the ethical behaviors described in the codes of ethics of their professional organizations.
(4.) An effective interacting communication network beween human beings whose lives are affecte by the school is enhanced when the system of educational ideas provides the centrality of purpose fo civilized communities.
(5.) Instructional and administrative decisions affecting educational programs are continuously evaluated with the results systematically applied in improving the quality of educational programs and human performance in civilized communities.
(6.) Human beings whose lives are affected by the school recognize and accept the proposition that cultural diversity among these individuals is a valuable resource that should be continually nurtured in the public school environment.
(7.) Agents of Peace....
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"The curriculum can be defined as the planned educational experiences offered by a school which can take place anywhere at any time in the multiple context of the school, e.g. public schools as civilized communities, as caring communities . . . . (Todd, 1965, 1992).
"The physical boundaries of civilized classrooms exist only in the minds of those human beings whose lives are affected by the public schools." Spontaneous civilized experiences can take place anywhere at any time. The world is open to civilized curriculum designed to prodce scholarly agents of peace who can bring about purposeful change in civilized communities. The universe of the 21st century provides numerous opportunities for civilized experiences of any public school." (Todd, 1999.)
Since we can only speculate about the unlimited possibilities for curriculum activites which could promote peacemaking communities in the third millennium, we believe that a future civilized curriculum can be described as follows:
Elementary Schools:
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Secondary Schools:
(1.) . . . .
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"The curriculum can be defined as the planned educational experiences offered by a school which can take place anywhere at any time in the multiple context of the school, e.g. public schools as civilized communities, as caring communities . . . . (Todd, 1965, 1992).
"The physical boundaries of civilized classrooms exist only in the minds of those human beings whose lives are affected by the public schools." (Todd, 1956, 1995). "Teaching and learning can take place anywhere at any time (Todd, 1963). "The world is the classroom." (Todd, 1969). "The universe is the classroom." (Todd, 1981, 1995).
Since we can only speculate about the unlimited possibilities for educational experiences which could promote civilized behavior in the third millennium we believe that future classrooms can be described as follows:
" . . . . . .
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For a complete model of an Individual Classroom Community Portrait see Appendix D.
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" . . . . . .
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"Imagine all the people whose lives are affected by the school. . . "
(1.) . . . .
(2.) . . . .
(3.) . . . .
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Appendices:
A. Civilized Curriculum Portfolio(s)
B. Member Activities - Home/Workplace/Church/Community/State/Nation Setting
C. Budget Plan for civilized Educational Programs in the Public Schools
Since there are different groups of human beings whose lives are affected by the school, there are political risks for these persons responsible for the development and implementation of the community portrait. These risks are as follows:
(1.) . . . .
(2.) . . . .
(3.) . . . .
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