Thanksgiving Resources

The holiday season is a time of reflection for many.  As we prepare to gather (or not gather) with family and friends, many of us are asking, where are we as compared to where we were last year at this time?  Things certainly aren’t back to “normal,” but for some, the situation is much improved as compared to Thanksgiving 2020.  How we respond to this question is dependent upon so many factors: how we’ve experienced the pandemic, where we are in the country, our financial situation, our political, social and cultural beliefs, and our values.  In many cases, personal perspectives may be different from those of our family and friends, and these differences may indeed come to a head over Thanksgiving dinner.  Some are asking, is it safe (link) to gather?  Others are wondering, how can we reinvent this holiday (link) and honor historical truths?  Meanwhile, still others are wondering how to best budget (link) for the holiday during a time of economic hardship.

With that in mind, we thought we’d share some resources that might help:

1. Arguments happen. The Better Arguments Project (link) tells us not to avoid them and asserts that “we don’t need fewer arguments, we just need better ones.” Explore their methods here (link).

2. Perhaps the disagreements have to do with items in the news, and trying to discern facts from fiction. You might try using this (link) thinking routine from our colleagues at Project Zero.

3. Try one of our Good Project frameworks (like the rings of responsibility (link)) to unpack differences and try to find points of commonality.  For an example, here’s (link) how TGP team member Shelby Clark used an exercise about values (link) in thinking about familial differences at this time last year.  

4. The Family Dinner Project (link) offers resources, advice, discussion starters and games to help approach the “new normal” of Thanksgiving gatherings.

Are there resources you’ve found especially helpful in facing some of these challenges, either in your classrooms or at your tables?  Share them in the comments below!

Navigating Changes Successfully in the Workplace

by Danny Mucinskas

Over the past year, Marga Biller of Project Zero’s Learning Innovations Laboratory and The Good Project’s Danny Mucinskas and Howard Gardner have been involved in a collaboration with the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM). The purpose of the project has been to design a research-based course that combines our expertise in the concepts of “good work” and “unlearning.” Earlier this year, we completed an initial abbreviated offering of the course for a small group of employees at SIM (link to earlier blog here).

This summer, we completed an expanded new version of the course, titled “Navigating Changes Successfully in the Workplace,” for a group of unemployed learners who had previously been working as PMETs (professionals, managers, executives, or technicians). The Singaporean government has been actively involved in encouraging programs that aim to reskill or upskill workers to meet the demands of a changing economy. Certain sectors of Singapore’s economy, including travel and tourism, have been negatively affected recently by the continuing COVID-19 pandemic.

During the sessions, facilitated by Marga and Danny, learners were encouraged to reflect on their perspectives and actively share their views in discussions with one another. Through the use of probing questions and prompts, conceptual frameworks, and case-based dilemmas, the sessions allowed learners to explore their own attitudes, behaviors, and assumptions about their working lives. The development of a habit of internal reflection was especially important for this group, at a time when they were in the midst of moving from one career to another, often after having been laid off.

Similar to the first pilot, this second round of the course explored the meaning of “good work” and “unlearning” in practice, applying these ideas to real-life situations. We asked participants to consider their mindsets deeply, using exercises about the values, identities, and expertise. We then explored processes of habit formation with the goal of forming habits that support the achievement of good work that is excellent, ethical, and engaging. Finally, we looked at the ecosystem of resources and relationships around participants that they could draw upon in their work, as well as how to connect with and bridge misalignments with others.

Post-course feedback was gathered in surveys and interviews and was generally positive, with participants responding that they were highly likely to recommend the course to others. One individual shared, “As the world is constantly facing challenges and changes, I think the ability to learn and unlearn is very important.” Another stated, “My habit of doing things determine[s] the outcome of the things I'm doing. I need to reflect on my goal, focus on [my] desire[d] outcome, and adjust my cycle of habit.”

Overall, participants in this pilot seemed to derive value from the ideas we presented because of the relevance to their current circumstances, namely their job search and the introspection associated with moving career sectors. They also strongly recommended allotting more time for future students to engage even more deeply with the activities, indicating the power of the exercises we shared for sparking group discussion.

Our team looks forward to further developing the course in collaboration with partners from SIM and to learning as we potentially reach new audiences.

Good Resources

by Dr. Shelby Clark

There is so much “good work” happening in the world, that it’s often hard to keep up with it all in this age of information. Each month we share with you our Top 5 articles, but in this vein, we wanted to spend some time sharing with you some of the ways that we are finding out about some of the good work happening in our world, whether that is academic research, practitioner-based, professional, or otherwise. Keep in mind, this is certainly not an exhaustive list and we hope to add to it in the future. Moreover, we hope you’ll send us your recommendations as well!

Newsletters you might want to sign up for… (links in titles)

Vox’s “Future Perfect” 

“Finding the best ways to do good.”

McKinsey Shortlist

“Our best ideas, quick and curated.” 

The Decision Lab

New behavioral science insights in your inbox every month. 

John Spencer- The Creative Classroom

“...weekly tips, tools, and insights all geared toward making innovation a reality in your classroom.”

Podcasts for potential listening… (links in titles)

Speaking of Psychology 

“Speaking of Psychology is an audio podcast series highlighting some of the latest, most important, and relevant psychological research being conducted today.”

A Slight Change of Plans

“Dr. Maya Shankar is a cognitive scientist who studies how our minds work and how we change. There are few things in life that are as complex and messy—and potentially magical—as change. On A Slight Change of Plans, you’ll hear intimate conversations that give an unvarnished look into how people navigate changes of all kinds and use that change to ultimately grow.”

Work Life with Adam Grant

“Organizational psychologist Adam Grant takes you inside some truly unusual places, where they’ve figured out how to make work not suck.”

Short & Curly

“SHORT & CURLY is a fast-paced fun-filled ethics podcast for kids and their parents, with questions and ideas to really get you thinking. It asks curly questions about animals, technology, school, pop culture and the future.”

Back to School: 5 Articles Worth Sharing

by Kirsten McHugh

The “back to school” season is always a busy time of year for teachers, parents, and students. The load seems particularly heavy this September. Many of us believed the pandemic would be subsiding by now, and yet the Delta variant has left us in much the same spot we were in at this time last year. 

Thankfully, there are a lot of amazing folks out there lending their professional wisdom and perspectives to support good work in education---and to help us push through the not-so-good things happening in the world. Take a look below for some particularly insightful resources and reads from the last few weeks. 

1. The Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues at the University of Birmingham in the UK is well known for their work on character. This fall, their team of researchers has put together two free workbooks on Character Education. One workbook is intended for primary schools, and the other for secondary (link here). You may also wish to listen to their podcast, “Conversations on Character” (link here). In particular, Series 2, Episode 6 focuses on going back to school. 

2. The discussion of mental health on college campuses is hardly new, but COVID restrictions and the threat of closures brings a new level of stress and anxiety. Last week, The Chronicle of Higher Education published a piece examining the impact of COVID on the mental health of college students (link here).

3. The mix of students teachers will welcome into their classrooms at the start of school is never entirely predictable, although experience gives seasoned educators a general sense of what to expect. However, due to the pandemic, students’ educational experiences over the last year and half are all over the map. How are teachers planning to assess their students’ progress and get everyone up to speed? The Atlantic explores this predicament and offers suggestions about how teachers might think about the topics they choose to cover, and which to let go of, as they move through this unprecedented academic year (link here). 

4. Without federal mandates in the US, states and school districts are left to make their own decisions about how to best manage COVID restrictions at school. Superintendents and school board members are finding themselves in the political crosshairs. Facing backlash and sometimes fearing for their safety, many are questioning whether they want to remain in these positions. NPR shares the experiences of board members in two recent articles (links here and here).

5. Many kids have missed out on key social interactions (and growth) due to COVID. It’s safe to say that, in going back to school and interacting with many more peers and adults, big and small mistakes will be made. Instead of resorting to punishment, how might we respond more effectively to difficult situations? Greater Good Science Center suggests a different approach (link here).

Good Work, Compromised Work, Bad Work… And Ego

by Howard Gardner

In late July, I received a message from the USIA. For a brief moment, I thought it might be from the United States Information  Agency or Intelligence Agency, but it was actually from an organization that I had not heard of—The United Sigma Intelligence Association.  USIA informed me that , along with linguist Noam Chomsky and mathematician-physicist Edward  Witten, I was the winner of their annual prize. I don’t consider myself to be modest but I was astounded—and humbled—to be grouped with two of the outstanding scholars of our time.

I googled the USIA. I learned little about the organization online but noted that it had many outstanding figures as advisers—including several whom I knew personally. I wrote back to the agency and asked whether there were any requirements in connection with the award. I immediately heard from the director, saying that there were no ‘asks’—the organization hoped that my work would “inspire other talented people and help them further their love for humanity.” I notified a few organizations to which I belong that I had received this recognition and considered that the end of the matter.

In a few days I had occasion to write on several matters to my colleague and friend Steven Pinker (I entitled the e-mail “Sundry on Sunday.”)  I noted that, along with entrepreneur Jeff Bezos and historian Yuval Harari, Steve had received the USIA award the previous year.  He made light of this recognition and his role as an adviser, saying that he often agreed to lend his name to support organizations.

This past week—an unexpected twist. I had  inferred that the USIA award went only to three persons each year. But two individuals whom I also knew were informed that they had also received the USIA award for this year.  And undertaking more due diligence than I had, they had begun to wonder what was the USIA, where was it housed, how and by whom was it funded, and did it in fact issue the books, podcasts, and other forms of publicity that are mentioned on their website.  And not quickly receiving satisfactory answers, my colleagues so far have not accepted this recognition.

As someone who has studied and written about work—and particularly ‘good work’—for many years, I am left with a conundrum:

Could this be good work—in which case, the organization indeed has undertaken legitimate activities, actually makes appropriate use of its advisers, and reaches young people whom they seek to inspire?

Could this be compromised work—in which case the organization may have good intentions, and hopes to achieve its goals, but has gotten off to a slow start and exaggerated its achievements thus far?

Or is this basically a scam (aka ‘bad work’)—an effort to bring attention to an organization which is not legitimate and which may exploit well-known names in ways that are not sanctioned, not legitimate? 

From my grandson, I have subsequently learned the ‘sigma’ is often used online in a frivolous way—which did not give me confidence in this particular brand of sigma!  Perhaps we are being stigmatized!

And I have to ask myself: Did my own ego prevent me from doing the due diligence that I should have done?

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Updated October 2021

Writing in mid October 2021, after consulting with several individuals, I know a lot more about USIA. It is clear that this is not a genuine organization in the sense that American professionals assume. The leadership is new and is not aware of how USIA has operated in the past. There is no recognized process for adding advisers or choosing award winners. What astonishes me is that new award winners are regularly added as are new advisers—I suspect that, like me, these individuals were flattered to be informed of this award and did not bother to ask probing questions. At this point, USIA is best described as a reputational Ponzi scheme.

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Reference

https://www.amacad.org/publication/compromised-work