Date: Thu, 14 Aug 1997
To: k-12sd@sysdyn.mit.edu
From: Lou Carter <lcar@erols.com>
Subject: Lou Carter introduction
Lou Carter introduction to Systems Dynamics K-12 group
[In addition to the statement below, please refer to the attached
html
document*, which can be read on a netscape or other browsers...
also, please
refer to Carter's company website at: http://www.levcos.com]
Lou is currently the Director of Alliances and Marketing of a
Boston
employee benefits and investment advisory operation. He has a
good deal of
experience consulting for college change projects. During his
work for
Connecticut College, Lou led a group of students that transformed
the
college's course evaluation process. Lou also worked as a consultant
and
research analyst for Dr. Claire Gaudiani, the president of Connecticut
College, improving the college's advising and evaluation systems.
Lou
founded the college's first successful student course evaluation
guide, The
Conn Review. In addition, Lou has worked as an analyst in several
fields
including investment banking, telecommunications(the C4 converging
industries of computers, consumer electronics, content, and
communications), and economic and financial analysis. He is also
an active
member of the Institute for Social Complexity, an organization
that
leverages systems thinking, chaos, complexity, and quantum physics
theories
to help families, communities, and institutions deal with dysfunctional
relationships expressed by violence, bigotry, divorce, neglect,
substance
abuse, and mistreatment.
I am excited to find an e-mail group, such as yours ,that addresses
important and relevant issues within the field of K-12 education.
I
believe that there is a great potential for systems thinking to
reach a
larger group of schools within grades K-12.
The change from traditional schooling to more systems-thinking
oriented
schooling requires a great deal of patience and sensitivity to
resistance.
This can be a long process which requires the help and support
of logical,
analytical, and practical minds that are able to support their
presentations with research, real world examples, systems archetypes
and
models, and personal testimonials. The paradigm shift from traditional
to
more modern education, is by far one of the most complicated change
processes, largely because it involves deep rooted feelings regarding
our
children and the perceived strength of our existing systems.
These deep routed feelings are expressed by several different
parties
including teachers,students,parents,and administration. Issues
such as
intelligence assessment, student potential to "succeed,"
"real world"
student success potential, ability for teachers to be flexible
in their
approach to teaching different intelligence styles, racism, financial
need,
special needs, and others all require sensitivity and understanding
during
systems interventions.
During my work for Connecticut College and during my studies at
Brown
University,I spoke in numerous debates and discussion groups,
supporting a
learner-centered environment, in which the student was placed
at the center
of the educational paradigm. I argued that students should have
the
privilege of assessing the teaching styles of their professors,
and be able
to provide constant feedback within specific categories such as
course
goals establishment, text/reading contribution to student understanding,
instructor sensitivity to student thinking styles, essential
skills/terms/facts learned, integrated understanding of materials
achieved,
and other course-specific and instructor-specific questions. This
argument was met with a large amount of resistance mostly because
professors were defending their occupations rather than their
students.
Most professors would argue that student should not have the privledge
of
evaluating their teaching. Student were thought by many to be
tangential
to the educational system.
Once the system is shifted from a teacher-centered to student-centered
learning environment, we have found that issues such as classroom
performance, "real world" performance, teacher assessments,
and other
evaluative variables improve significantly.
Thank you for your consideration of my introduction to your e-mail
group.
I hope to hear from you soon. Best regards, Lou Carter
Attachment converted: hd:education consulting experience (TEXT/ttxt)
(0000094E)
*Editor's note: Sorry, but this is not available in the Archives.