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I teach basic maths to adults mainly but also a couple of classes of teenagers in a further education college in the UK - the US equivalent is called a communit

I teach basic maths to adults mainly but also a couple of classes of teenagers in a further education college in the UK - the US equivalent is called a community college I believe. This year, I won the timetabling lottery and got classes with fine art, graphics, fashion and media students. Usual distractions (phones: Facebook, various instant messaging services &c). I gave each student a simple cardboard document wallet to keep finished work in and suggested that they put their name on the wallet and 'customise' it. Silence: focussed activity for 15mins. I carry a box with a couple of sets of Sharpies of various colours plus Muji pens and pencils. Grabbed and distributed in a coordinated Mexican wave. Seriously, the full Csikszentmihalyi flow. Now I have to find a way of channelling that into Maths... I'm taking Tufte's books in next week to see what happens. TD;LR Digital natives can concentrate when they want to.

keithpeter 11y ago
Solitary downvoter: care to engage with my argument?
- drfuchs 11y ago
  It wasn't me who down-voted you, but perhaps it was someone else who wasn't familiar with a single one of the capitalized words/phrases in the paragraph: "I carry a box with a couple of sets of Sharpies of various colours plus Muji pens and pencils. Grabbed and distributed in a coordinated Mexican wave. Seriously, the full Csikszentmihalyi flow."
  - keithpeter 11y ago
    OK, thanks for feedback and apologies for specific references, here goes with the definitions... Sharpies: 2mm thick permanent marker pens in bright colours Muji: Japanese stationery shop with a good stock of fine nib gel and ink pens Mihali Csikszentmihalyi is a philosopher who has articulated the concept of flow-state. The relevant Wikipedia page is a good basic guide [1] [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow_%28psychology%29 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow_%28psychology%29
    - drfuchs 11y ago
      "Mexican wave"?
      - keithpeter 11y ago
        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wave_%28audience%29 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wave_%28audience%29 I was using the term as a metaphor for the way that particular group of students just all went for the chance to draw something. Thankyou for engaging.
    - jellicle 11y ago
      I'm going to translate from teacher-ese for you: "While my students normally exhibited a substantial amount of distraction in our class, I was pleased to discover that since they were all artistically-oriented students, an impromptu art activity was able to occupy their full undivided attention for an extended period of time." You're welcome.
ThomPete 11y ago
Sure they can. It's a human ability. What I am talking about is a cultural thing not genetic.

keithpeter 11y ago

Solitary downvoter: care to engage with my argument?

drfuchs 11y ago
It wasn't me who down-voted you, but perhaps it was someone else who wasn't familiar with a single one of the capitalized words/phrases in the paragraph: "I carry a box with a couple of sets of Sharpies of various colours plus Muji pens and pencils. Grabbed and distributed in a coordinated Mexican wave. Seriously, the full Csikszentmihalyi flow."
- keithpeter 11y ago
  OK, thanks for feedback and apologies for specific references, here goes with the definitions... Sharpies: 2mm thick permanent marker pens in bright colours Muji: Japanese stationery shop with a good stock of fine nib gel and ink pens Mihali Csikszentmihalyi is a philosopher who has articulated the concept of flow-state. The relevant Wikipedia page is a good basic guide [1] [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow_%28psychology%29 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow_%28psychology%29
  - drfuchs 11y ago
    "Mexican wave"?
    - keithpeter 11y ago
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wave_%28audience%29 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wave_%28audience%29 I was using the term as a metaphor for the way that particular group of students just all went for the chance to draw something. Thankyou for engaging.
  - jellicle 11y ago
    I'm going to translate from teacher-ese for you: "While my students normally exhibited a substantial amount of distraction in our class, I was pleased to discover that since they were all artistically-oriented students, an impromptu art activity was able to occupy their full undivided attention for an extended period of time." You're welcome.

ThomPete 11y ago

Sure they can. It's a human ability. What I am talking about is a cultural thing not genetic.