I’m always engaged by Malcolm Gladwell’s essays in The New Yorker, and his most recent one — “How David Beat Goliath: When Underdogs Break The Rules” — is no exception.
I think it contains useful insights for us to communicate to our students, and for those of us who are attempting institutional change within schools.
I don’t have time right now to share additional reflections since I’m taking 100 students on our annual insane one-day field trip to Yosemite National Park, but I’d certainly be interested in hearing yours in the comment section.
Larry,
Thanks for the article and I enjoyed it with my strong morning coffee. Lots of wisdom and insight there. At some time or other, I believe, we are all Davids.
I’d add two aspects to the “David beating Goliath” theory.
One – “You can do a lot, if you don’t know you can’t”. This is the attitude and paradigm that governs all David organization.
Two – Gladwell related a little about this “real time” factor. Goliaths are good at preparation, Davids at spontaneous response. I kept thinking of what Earl the Pearl Washington, to me the greatest player ever, said when asked how he could do his magic – dribbling through each player, faking, dodging – then then layup. A reporter asked, “Do you know what you are doing, before you do it?”. Earl replied, “Hell no, if I know, then they know!”.
In some way, the best teachers are those that “make it up” in the classroom. Thre are spontaneously reactive to the vibrations of their student’s lives. Like a full court press.
Thanks Larry, I’ll have to read more of Gladwell!
David
http://eflclassroom.com