You Decide

Think about a major, life-changing decision you made recently.  (where to go to school, taking a job, breaking up with someone, a major purchase, reconciling with someone, etc.)  How did you make that decision?  Did you carefully sift through all the options, maybe doing some research or a pro/con list?  Or did you just impulsively decide?  

How did it work out for you?  

What do you think of Gladwell's claim that "On straightforward choices, deliberate analysis is best.  When questions of analysis and personal choice start to get complicated--when we have to juggle many different variables--then our unconscious thought processes may be superior." (267)?

Implicit Association Test-What are your hidden biases?

Here's a link to the IAT website Gladwell talks about in chapter 3.  I can't figure out how to take a specific test.  It generated two random tests for me, which I took.  One measured my preference for the past or the future, and the other one measured my preference for capitalism or communism.  

Fun!

www.implicit.harvard.edu

Faculty Summer Reading

So I finished reading the book Dr. Beedy gave us, A Whole New Mind. Yes, I'm a nerd. But I got my copy early! I thought it was great, but maybe that's because my strengths lean toward the right-brained. One of my favorite quotes from the book is: "perspective is more important than IQ" (136). Another, in the same chapter: "The key to success is to risk thinking unconventional thoughts. Convention is the enemy of progress" (137). These ideas, and really the whole book, present us with the challenge to shift the way we teach and assess our students.

First Responses to Blink

What's your first impression of Blink?

My husband grabbed it from the counter the day I brought it home & promptly started reading it. He likes it, but now he's paranoid about my facial expressions. I guess I'll figure that out when I read the book.