First, remember, with emerging demands for independence, worries about peer acceptance, pressures of school and extracurricular activities, and a continuous search for self-identity, adolescents are on a physical and emotional roller coaster.
Reflections at 71: Life Expectancy, Life’s Expectancies and The Seven Biggest Truths I’ve Learned
(updated December 12, 2013) Where did the time go? I hate clichés like this, but among the things I’ve learned in my 71 years of lurching around life is that these pithy statements became clichés precisely because they are true. Often profoundly so. Looking through the rear view mirror of my life the past feels like a movie played a …
Memo From Michael: Secrets, Surveillance, Trust & Credibility – What’s a President to Do? Take this simple survey illuminating the complex issues involved in the apparent eavesdropping on heads of state of friendly countries.
Take the survey here. I have been disturbed about the shallowness of public discussions concerning the revelation that U.S. intelligence agencies have been and still are conducting extensive surveillance on the phones (and presumably other communications) of heads of state (and presumably other top government officials). I have heard well known and respected pundits and politicians base their opinions (often stated …
Sneak Peek at Results of Educators’ Survey
(updated 12/4/13) Almost 4,500 educators (including 2426 teachers, 616 principals, 411 school counselors, 225 superintendents, and 79 school board members) have already taken the new Josephson Institute survey on the state of education in America. (If you haven’t already, please take the survey here and please share this link https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/JIEducatorSurvey on Facebook, Twitter or elsewhere to encourage others to take it as well — the …
Greatest Quotes on Character, Reputation and Character Education
— The most comprehensive (nearly 300 quotations) yet selective collection of insightful quotations on CHARACTER, REPUTATION &
What Do Educators Think About Education in America? (Preliminary Report #2 on our Survey Results)
Summary. We surveyed more than 2,500 educators (board members, superintendents, principals, teachers, counselors and support staff) and asked them to give their opinions on the trends in education in the past five years. (Are you an educator? Please take the survey here if you haven’t already.) Here are some of the survey results so far. What’s Going Well. Majority of educators believe …
MEMO From Michael: Sneak Peek – Some Surprising Preliminary Results of Our Educators’ Survey
(Updated 11/26/13) Nearly 4500 educators (76 Board members, 225 superintendents, 616 principals, 2414 teachers and 406 school counselors) have already taken the new Josephson Institute survey on the state of education in America. (If you haven’t already, please take the survey here and please share this link https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/JIEducatorSurvey on Facebook, Twitter or elsewhere to encourage others to take it as well — …
Five Birds on a Wire
WORTH SEEING: Poster. There are five birds on a wire. Two decide to fly south. How many are left? The answer: five. Deciding to do something is not the same as actually doing it. Your future is determined by actions, not good intentions.
WORTH SEEING: Watch your thoughts . . .
Watch your THOUGHTS; they lead to attitudes. Watch your ATTITUDES; they lead to words. Watch your WORDS; they lead to actions. Watch your ACTIONS; they lead to habits. Watch your HABITS; they form your character. Watch your CHARACTER CHARACTER DETERMINES YOUR DESTINY
NEW SURVEY: The State of Education in America
The Josephson Institute has just launched a new comprehensive survey for educators (school board members, superintendents, principals and other administrators, teachers and school staff) and parents of children in school. It is designed to be one of the most comprehensive and influential studies of the trends, opinions and actions of administrators, teachers, students and parents. We hope to have at …
WORTH SEEING: How Would You React to Blatant Anti-Muslim Prejudice?
http://youtu.be/ueT79ZPY9IM Wait for the last interaction with an active-duty soldier. It’s worth it. Do you think there is widespread anti-Muslim prejudice? Do you think it is a problem? How do you feel about it?
OBSERVATION: If you were given a wish from an all powerful genie as to one attribute for your children what would you choose. There are lots of candidate’s: honor, intelligence, perseverance, common sense, integrity – I want my kids to have all of this. But if I really could bestow on them one attribute I think it would be optimism.
Optimism is the most powerful of the children of positivity (experiencing the world and expressing oneself in positive terms). Its siblings: gratitude, enthusiasm, cheerfulness, hopefulness are other attitudes that not only improve the way we experience our lives, they set into motion actions and reactions that dramatically improve the likelihood of success as well as happiness. People react positively to …
Recent Activities at Josephson Institute
What’s new and exciting at Josephson Institute? Here’s an update: Proposal for Colombia. I worked on a major proposal to the Secretary of Education of Bogota, Colombia. They are seeking bids on ways to help them initiate a comprehensive values education program in their 400 or so public schools. The idea is to integrate into their academic program the teaching …
I’M A TEACHER: I MAKE LIVES By Michael Josephson
(Derived with permission from “What Teachers Make” a poem written by Taylor Mali. To see Mr. Mali’s original version visit www.taylormali.com) The topic of education came up and a business executive proclaimed the problem is with teachers, after all, “those who can do, and those who can’t teach.” A man next to him said, “I’m a teacher and you don’t know …
HOW TO BE A GREAT SON OR DAUGHTER
What kind of son or daughter are you? Are you as good as you could be or should be? Here’s a guide on how to get in the Hall of Fame. Father’s Day is set aside to honor dads, at least those worthy of being honored. But how often do you think about how well you did or are doing …
QUOTE & POSTER: What I’ve Learned From a 13 Year Old.
*I’ve learned that work comes first; fool around later. * I’ve learned that being popular isn’t everything. * I’ve learned that being pretty on the inside is better than being pretty on the outside. * I’ve learned that not everything in life is fair. * I’ve learned that all people want is someone to listen to them. * I’ve learned …
Memo From Michael: Teachers and Tornadoes
Once I got past the awe of witnessing Mother Nature’s astonishing power to wreak devastation in Oklahoma, I was awed by something more positive and uplifting: the instinctive capacity of our species to care about, come to the aid of, and — for those caught in the middle of the calamity — to even sacrifice their own lives for others.
A Letter from Bogota: What Do You Think About CHARACTER COUNTS! in Colombia?
I am writing this post from Bogota, Colombia. I am halfway through a full week of high-level meetings and various presentations to educators, parents and government officials. What am I talking about? Ethics and character, of course. More specifically, I am sharing my thoughts and the Institute’s strategies and programs dealing with character development, parenting, education reform and the corruption …
Memo from Michael: Bittersweet Moments of Fatherhood
When my four daughters were genuinely little girls, every milestone was a new source of joy and pride. Now that they are young women, there’s still great pride as they reach new stages of emancipation, but joy isn’t really the right word. To be honest, it feels more like sadness invoking all the clichés ever uttered about the bittersweet moments …
Memo From Michael: Thoughts on Coaching and Integrity
You’ve doubtless heard about the Rutgers University basketball coach, Mike Rice, who is shown on video in serial acts over two years abusing athletes and, quite simply, acting like a complete jerk. He was shown screaming homophobic slurs at his athletes, grabbing and pushing them and throwing basketballs at them from close range. The conduct was so over-the-top inappropriate that the discussion …
COMMENTARY: The True Meaning of Love – Love Is Not A Mirage
If we can get beyond the corny red heart clichés and commercialism surrounding Valentine’s Day, there’s real value in celebrating the idea of love.
WORTH READING: Four interesting letters with divergent opinions on homosexuality.
Letter 1 Of course every person must be loved and respected but not every behavior/lifestyle must be and it is important to separate these 2 things. The fact that homosexuals are sometimes bullied or hated is very sad and unfortunate and reflects how we as a society still struggle with the concept of loving the sinner (we are all sinners) …
Memo From Michael: Take a Stand on Gay Rights
One thing I’ve learned in the 813 weeks I’ve been writing and posting these commentaries is that some people who love you (or at least say they do) can turn on a dime if you disagree with them on something fundamentally important to them. So I confess I think twice (or more) before I publish a commentary I know will …
COMMENTARY 813.5A: The Ethics of Gay Rights and Same-Sex Marriage
This is one of those commentaries that evokes passionate response and, sadly, a few people will disagree so strongly that they decide to cut me out of their lives by cancelling their subscription or putting me on the “block sender” list. I raise the issue once again because the Boy Scouts decision to defer action regarding their stance on openly …