Sally asked us to reflect a bit after her Socratic Seminar demo today and to explain how Bacon's piece, "Of Studies," is related to our professional responsibilities and practices. Below is my attempt.
"Studies serve for delight..."
But students are bored,
Forced to sit in a hard desk,
Unable to move around, exercise their minds.
"To spend too much time in studies is sloth..."
Yet students spend their days memorizing,
Practicing for tests they must
Forgetting childhood.
"[Studies] perfect nature and are perfected by experience..."
And though learning molds,
Life challenges and grows,
Leads to questions and (some) answers.
"Read not to contradict and confute; nor to believe and take for granted; nor to find talk and discourse; but to weigh and consider."
But students are force-fed,
Made to read and regurgitate,
Unable to explore and inquire.
"Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested..."
Yet students spend their days following,
Reading from an approved list,
Forgetting hunger.
"Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready man; and writing an exact man."
And though STEM has value,
Humanities create critical thinkers and effective communicators,
Leads to reflection and re-purposed perspectives.
First off, I LOVE the title of your post! And I love that your reflection is a poem! I absolutely adore this, the way you include a meaningful quotation at the beginning of each stanza and then respond with the realities of school and studies today. The lines, "Yet students spend their days following, reading from an approved list, forgetting hunger." really stood out to me. Definitely true and heartbreaking.
ReplyDeleteYour approach to responding to Bacon's words was brilliant! The dialogue totally works for brining out the contradictions between the image of learning that Bacon paints and the realities you (we) face in school. You've also got me thinking about they type of school that Bacon would design if he could....that is, if he even thought the institution was worthwhile.
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting approach to dissect Bacon's work! I've really enjoyed hearing your thoughts on pretty much everything during the institute so far. :)
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