Community Works Journal Online Magazine

Posted by on July 16, 2012

The latest edition of Community Works Journal Online Magazine is now available at no cost to the educational community. GO TO: http://www.communityworksinstitute.org

As always you will find a wealth of ideas, information, and resources through the writing and reflections of our educator contributors.

Across the U.S. and around the world, the ideals of service-learning, education for sustainability, and place based education resonate through the articles and essays featured in Community Works Journal. As you read these inspiring stories consider your own place and efforts and think about submitting an article of your own. Feel free to contact us if you would like assistance in framing a reflective piece that showcases work in your school or community. (Submission guidelines are available on our web site at: http://www.communityworksjournal.org)

CURRENTLY FEATURED ESSAYS and ARTICLES INCLUDE:

FEATURED ARTICLE
Trust Your Students, They Will Shine
By STEVEN COLANGELI
One of my students who comes from a tough home life, and has a tough exterior became the sweetest most engaging person when teaching elementary students about the respiratory system or how to plant lettuce seeds. Elementary students would hang on her every word and she had them laughing out loud with their full attention. It was as if she was a different person and so the culture of our program during these projects took on an amazingly positive vibe that is difficult to adequately explain or describe.
http://communityworksinstitute.org/cwjonline/articles/aarticles-text/stevec_shine.html

• EVENTS—PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
A reminder that space is limited for Community Works Institute’s (CWI) annual summer series of unique professional development events. Registration is now well underway and these events will fill rapidly. Among the events being offered are CWI’s Summer EAST and WEST Institutes on Service-Learning and our partner Shelburne Farms’ Education for Sustainability Institute. All events are appropriate for K-16 and community educators and administrators. Join with educators from around the world for a week of intense exploration, learning, and practical application.

Register Now, Space is LIMITED for CWI’s Summer EAST or WEST Institutes on Service-Learning: http://communityworksinstitute.org/cwjonline/events.html

FEATURED REFLECTION
Vesting Learners, Facilitating Voice
By IYAUNNA TOWERY-AJIDUAH, M.Ed.
I remember the night before the first day of the Institute I could not sleep. I had gotten this anxious feeling, the feeling that one might get when they knew “something” was about to happen. I really did not know exactly what to expect. Honestly, what could really happen in just a week’s time? Well, I can now say that a lot can happen: inspiration; intensity; purpose; and transformation.
http://communityworksinstitute.org/cwjonline/inst_reflections/text_inst_reflections/iyaunna.html

FEATURED ESSAY—HOW TO LOVE EDUCATION AGAIN
Succotash and Standardized Teaching
By STUART GRAUER, Ed.D.
Like a freight train taking on John Henry, The No Child Left Behind Act and national teaching standards set by The Race to the Top rolled over local educational practices through the first decade of the new millennium.  It would no doubt stun our founding fathers that, eventually, in the new millennium, states that adopted the national standards would win points in the competition for a share of the billions of dollars to be awarded to the most compliant among them.
http://communityworksinstitute.org/cwjonline/essays/a_essaystext/grauer_succstandards.html

LETTER FROM NORMAL
The Art of Knowing and How We Get There
In a course where service projects will be a highlight and a requirement, it is vital that I work on a sense of community from day one. To feel part of a community, we must first know each other by name, and second know something about one another. I went into this semester with high hopes for the service project, anticipating it as the pivotal moment of community development. But I learned that sometimes, it is the simplest of teaching strategies, those “duh” ideas, that mean the most.
http://communityworksinstitute.org/cwjonline/essays/a_essaystext/jami_knowing.html