future = now

Today's Olympian article outlining the successes of regional online education...

Full-online public schools have become a draw for about 1 percent of South Sound students and their families. The schools, run by private companies, allow students to take on subjects at their own pace and provide instructors to teach subjects to students who previously were home-schooled.

The programs are free to families with a computer and Internet access. Some programs even provide the computer — because the online schools have been funded at the same per-student rate as traditional brick-and-mortar schools since 2005....

In Olympia, 43 students transferred to other districts for online schools — about one-half of 1 percent. The district's own online school, iConnect, enrolled 70 students from Olympia and elsewhere, said district spokesman Peter Rex.

The North Thurston and Tumwater districts both have online classes at their high schools, but neither operates a full-time online school.

Two years ago, Olympia started a fully online school program, called iConnect Academy, out of the Olympia Regional Learning Academy.

...only underscores a point I made a year and half ago.

Traditional brick-and-mortar schooling isn't yet out of style, but it's getting pushed further and further into the back of the closet.

As the state gets ready to cut billions from its budget, look for online education to get another boost.

Resolved: The United States ought to submit to the jurisdiction of an international court designed to prosecute crimes against humanity.

The NFL has released the January / February resolution:

The United States ought to submit to the jurisdiction of an international court designed to prosecute crimes against humanity.

Obviously, one of the most popular values--for good reason--will be justice. National sovereignty, whether as a value or a criterion, will be huge for the Neg.

Oh, and by the way, the current body "designed to prosecute crimes against humanity," implied by the resolution, is the International Criminal Court. That should help facilitate your research.

Though many of the recent resolutions have taken a US-centric stance, at least this one places the US in a global context. I'm going to dig through my archives and see how this relates to the UN resolution from a couple years ago.

More analysis, links, and commentary to follow. As always, post your questions, case ideas, and comments. More dialogue = better debate.

Initial Analysis
Ought the United States cede aspects of its sovereignty and let an international court try American citizens who are charged with "crimes against humanity?" That is the fundamental question for this resolution. It pits notions of universal human rights, international law, and cosmopolitan justice against those of sovereignty and independence. This raises several questions: what constitutes a "crime against humanity?" What is the proper balance between sovereignty and the rule of international law? Why, if at all, should we have an international legal framework? Are human rights universal? Is the United States' refusal to join the ICC a dodge?

Links
1. In late 2002, John Bolton, U.S. ambassador to the U.N., laid out the reasons the U.S. has not signed on to the ICC.
2. Here's a typical article supporting the ICC [pdf], in hopes that it would foster greater protection for human rights and respect for the rule of law.
3. The ICC's website.
4. The SEP on Cosmopolitanism in its various forms.
5. Ilya Somin on world government and its critics. The SEP on the same.
6. Is a temporary tribunal sufficient? Consider the ICTR.

Definitions
1. A thoroughgoing analysis of the phrase "crimes against humanity," specifically, how they are defined in international law, and how they are partially distinct from genocide or war crimes.
2. Should we use the real ICC as the focus of the debate?
3. "Submit."

Deeper Analysis
1. I take a look at the cosmopolitan foundations (and supranational reach) of the International Criminal Court, and the implications for the debate.
2. Value and criterion pairs: an initial list.
3. I discuss a thoroughgoing analysis of the history and constitutionality of the ICC.
4. Sovereignty, sovereignty, sovereignty.
5. Critical theory as an approach to the resolution.
6. Consequentialism as an affirmative criterion is considered.
7. Some considerations of debate strategy.
8. Furthering a human rights agenda is actually a part of US law.
9. What about retribution?
10. Does the U.S. lack the political will to prosecute its own?
11. Some interesting cases I've seen recently. Post your own!

For Beginners
Along with specific analysis, check out these resources: how to construct cases, use a criterion, major philosophers to know, etc.

[The Nov./Dec. felon resolution is available here.]

I had a few dreams

The cold still lingers--perhaps it's a particularly virulent, bird-based strain--which means sleep is fleeting.

Which means last night's dreams were doubly weird.

1. My family is hiking in a strange forest, dead trees stacked like cordwood along the trail, a sun and alpine lake glowing red like cranberries. The path descends into an abandoned Forest Service cabin full of bunk beds.

2. As I'm emptying a dryer at a laundromat, the clerk behind the counter flips a switch. Bulletproof glass rises and armor plating swivels into place. "It's a hit," the clerk shouts, and some dude comes busting through the front door, gun blazing. The clerk whips out a .45 and shoots him in the chest.

3. I'm on the roof of some kind of mall, sniper rifle aimed at some dignitary who's sitting at a table at an outdoor food court on a lower level. Quick, clean kill. He slumps over. My radio squawks, "Get the Kennedy team in place." Moments later, a group of dark suits with walkie-talkies wheels out the corpse on a gurney.

4. Having landed an interview for a "president" position at a law firm, I'm beside myself with excitement, so much so that I've forgotten to wear a suit and tie. I walk into the office, chatting up the secretary, who seems surprised that I haven't learned anything about the firm until now. "Here," she says, and hands me a yearbook. "You'll be our student body president if you land the job." Confused, I look at a picture of some feathered-hair golden boy, the prez from decades past, and see that the salary is only $6500 annually. I am stricken with disappointment.

5. I live in a bizarre house with wooden floors that can be removed, like trap-doors, to reveal extra storage spaces. In one, a disassembled wooden pipe organ sits, and I decide to try and put it back together and see if it works.

sharing our successes

PTL

Nav 101

accident postpones Capital-Bellevue match

Eight Bellevue football players were injured, none seriously, when a lost ladder caused their charter bus to leave the roadway and flip on its side.

Another witness, Michelle, told said she was one car behind the bus when the accident happened.

"The car in front (of me) got sideswiped... and the next thing I saw it looked like the bus jumped literally 30 feet in the air like you see on TV shows and the bus went sideways, sliding two lanes across the freeway and went into the embankment."

Many of the players and coaches had to escape via the emergency hatch on the top of the bus.

Pratt says none of the 38 people on board was seriously injured -- mostly just a few bumps and bruises. Eight players were taken to a hospital to be checked out as a precaution.

The team was on its way the Tacoma Dome to play in a state semifinal game, and the fact that the players were wearing most of their football pads certainly helped avoid serious injuries, Pratt said.

The game has been rescheduled to Monday night at 7:00 p.m.

Cougars in the paper

The day before the state semifinal versus Bellevue, The Olympian focuses on the new spirit of CHS:

Senior Brenna Peterson expects a victory Friday. "We usually get eliminated pretty soon in the playoffs, so the team is like our heroes now," she said. "We're all pretty proud of them."

Doug Murray, a junior defensive tackle, said the pep rally amped up the team.

"We were already pumped up," Murray said. "I just want to make good plays with all my other brothers on this team."

The noise died down when Coach J.D. Johnson spoke to the students.

Bellevue is one of Washington's high school power programs, but Capital has something else, Johnson said.

"Just a lot of heart is what we have," he said. "Just a lot of heart."

Then Johnson yelled: "We Are!"

The team — and many students — stood and shouted back "Capital!"

Meanwhile, two Capital stars get props from the paper, landing on the All-Area Team: Riley Wall, for pretty much tearing up the WCC/OWL on the ground, and Joseph Ingman, he of the eight interceptions.

Congratulations to the Cougars. No matter how you fare tomorrow, you're the best 9-3 team in the state, and you've worked hard to earn your place among the best.

Oh, and while everybody's excited about football, let's not forget that Capital's other varsity squads have been racking up wins and accolades as well, in swimming, tennis, golf and cross country.

Happy Day Before Black Friday

Thanksgiving tradition I enjoy: blogging about Thanksgiving. A year ago:

Today, when I'm not sneaking glances at the football game on the TV, or looking up electric razors, or gnawing on turkey bones, I'm writing up National Board analyses and letters of recommendation.

Let's see how things have changed.

Today's football, so far, has been atrocious--the Detroit Lions, losing 47-10, made a strong case for Worst Team Ever--and the upcoming Seahawks game doesn't promise to be any more competitive. Last winter I gave up on the electric razor dream when the blade gave up on my beard. We haven't eaten turkey yet, though it's coming, and fairly soon. I passed the Board, but I'm not including NBCT in my letter-of-rec signature. Not yet.

Thanksgiving tradition I will take no part in: earlybird/doorbuster shopping. And for good reason.

Maybe the sixth day of my cold is making me a little too snarky to be gracious. But I'm grateful. Thanks for being a part of my blogging world.

observed / observer / observed

Powerful Teaching and Learning. Is it just a catchphrase, a clever consulting ploy dreamed up by teachers tired of teaching, or is there something to it?

I'm going to find out. In my first official action as a Board Certified Pedagogue, I'm observing classes at an area middle school tomorrow.

Also, I'm taking on an observer from Evergreen's MIT program. It's time to start giving back.

The teacher-who-became-the-student-to-become-the-better-teacher is becoming the-student-teacher-making-or-breaking-teacher.

Not even a week in, and I'm already mad with power. And nasal drip.

my National Board edge

You can assemble the greatest evidence in the world. You can write and rewrite, revise and re-revise until your printer's out of toner and your brain's out of glucose. You can attend all the workshops and cohort meetings and study sessions you want. But when it all comes down, if you don't have an edge, you're not going to gain National Board certification.

What was my edge?

The ties.

It was all the ties.

grading panacea / grading Pangea

Blog-neighbor The Science Goddess recently gave a talk on standards-based grading at the National Science Teachers of America conference. It was well-attended, which surprised her.

Instead, I had well over 100 people crammed into the room---sitting in the aisles, up at the presentation table and standing in the doorway straining to listen. I'm not sure how many others turned away when they saw the throng...and I know the fire marshal wasn't poking around because the number of people was well over the posted room occupancy. Wowser.

The experience was very validating---not so much for me personally as for the topic itself. Grading has arrived. When I talked to a few of the attendees about their "hardcore" attitude of staying to the end, they said that this was an area of need for them and I was the only one on the schedule talking about it. Others who chose to stay after the presentation to talk to me mentioned that they were trying to do some of these things at their schools---but it was a lonesome experience. It is indeed hard to implement something like this on your own. I got asked about presenting at other schools. Would I come? Would I talk to more than just science teachers? Would I answer the phone/e-mail if there were questions? Of course. But how sad is that people are all out there struggling on their own little islands of grading.

At my school, a miniature book club has met a couple times to discuss progressive grading practices. I get the same sense that TSG does: right now, standards-based grading is an archipelago in a vast, old-school ocean. But as teachers and principals get excited about it, and as word keeps spreading, within a decade I think we'll see a continent born.

Capital edges out East Valley, 20-19

According to The Olympian, the Capital Cougars defeated East Valley (Spokane) this afternoon 20-19. Riley Wall scored three touchdowns.

I'll post a link to a full writeup when it appears on the site.

Update: Solid defense and a little trickery won the day.

Trailing 13-6 early in the fourth quarter, Capital (9-3) pulled off the reverse pitch pass trick play it used last week. Receiver Greg Hibbard took a toss from Joe Tolman off the reverse and fooled the Knights, throwing to Jourdan Weiks who was all alone.

The play covered 53 yards. It set up workhorse back Riley Wall, who juked his way into the end zone from 15 yards out and scored up the middle on a two-point conversion for a 14-13 lead.

"We threw that against Meadowdale last weekend that sparked a big comeback as well," said coach J.D. Johnson, of last week's 14-10 triumph.

(I also note that The Olympian's title is almost exactly cribbed from mine. Sneaky, editors. But not sneaky enough.)

On to Tacoma!

smearing Jeff Kingsbury? stupid plan.

Via blog-neighbor Emmett O'Connell, word of a story I missed in The Olympian: some idiot* used a mailer to smear Jeff Kingsbury.

The postcard carried a return address for "Kids at Play," a summer theater program run by Capital Playhouse, which Kingsbury founded and operates. The Olympian obtained a copy of a postcard that was postmarked Nov. 18 and mailed to the YWCA of Olympia.

On the front is a picture of Kingsbury and a logo for Capital Playhouse. It reads: "I want your vote for mayor of Olympia, and after that State Senator. As I am destined to be the next Mayor of Olympia I look forward to walking across the street from my business Capital Playhouse Northwest Theater for Youth to my new $35 million dollar City Hall office.

"Lately there has been a bit of an uproar about me calling people 'idiots', what's the big deal, most people are, I am just the guy that's man enough to say it. Just search my name on the local paper's website 'The olympian.com'."

The postcard went on to make suggestive comments about Kingsbury's sexual orientation — he is gay — and his theater program.

There is no race for mayor next year, and Kingsbury abstained from voting on Olympia's planned $35.6 million City Hall, which would be across Fourth Avenue from Capital Playhouse, to prevent the appearance of a conflict of interest.

The reference to calling people "idiots" refers to Kingsbury using his laptop computer during a recent council meeting to post that an Olympia resident addressing the council was an idiot. He later said he was referring to someone at the council meeting who called President-elect Barack Obama a "mulatto" and asked if Obama would "save the white people from the coming great famine." He later said he learned his lesson after the private Facebook exchange appeared on a local blog.

It's not the first time an area councilman has made a blogging faux pas--Lakewood's Walter Neary comes to mind--but the response, maybe even by the same obviously unhinged citizen, is beyond ridiculous.

In the end, this lunatic scheme will backfire. Kingsbury is a good man and a passionate representative for his constituents. He deserves all Olympians' support.




*Yes, the word "idiot" is intentional.

democracy is danged difficult

If you were enthralled by the Rossi-Gregoire recount of 2004, you might also be interested in Minnesota's senate race between Coleman and Franken, which is currently under review. Why? Because it's close, and, simply put, too many voters just don't know how to vote.

[via Jonathan Adler]

ill and tolerating it

1. The post-NBCT letdown, immune-system-wise, has brought a mild cold, my first of the year. Last night I tossed and turned, waking at 2:00 with persistent nasal drip and unable to sleep seemingly because I couldn't remember the author of À la recherche du temps perdu As a result, I spent an hour mentally listing every Frenchman I could remember. Descartes? Clouzot? Camus? Sartre? Montesquieu? Depardieu?) Eventually I hit on Marcel Marceau, which triggered Marcel Proust, and I was able to doze off again.

2. Schadenfreude.

3. Today's football regret: I'm not able to watch the CHS Cougars tackle East Valley. However, I'm going to polish my Mystery Science Theater skills, applying them to the so-bad-it's-gonna-be-great "Crapple Cup," which I predict will go to the Huskies. Later, thee Texas Tech / Oklahoma matchup promises to be excellent. Red Raiders by a TD. Update: Wow. The Huskies lose in double because of a bad kicking day; the Red Raiders get absolutely stomped on the national stage. Didn't see that comin'.

4. Since I so rarely engage in political advocacy, the potential attempt to classify bloggers as lobbyists didn't get too much attention from me. Maybe it should've. Campaign finance reform is about to enter the 21st century, and it's going to be messy. Thanks, McCain-Feingold, and all of your litigal children.

Bergeson's last "state of education" address

"Mend it, don't end it."

I wonder if Bergeson is actually a little glad to be done. Her successor, after all, has to do all the hard work of fixing her mistakes, as well as repairing the funding system she inherited and did little to change.

But I hear a committee is looking into it.

four new letters for my name: NBCT

My buddy (and NBCT) the TRP was right: I just had to hang tough, wait until the crush was done, and check my scores, which I did, trembling a little, at 7:05 this morning.

I passed. I am a National Board Certified Teacher.

Thanks to the TRP for encouraging me to try and for telling me (in generic, ethically sound terms) about what to expect. Thanks to my family for putting up with my stress, especially during the holidays. Thanks to Mike Deakins (who also passed) for offering great criticism and support. Thanks to fellow staff and administrators for always asking when my scores were coming, and never letting me forget that Doomsday was approaching.

Thanks, most of all, to my wife Melissa, who told me time and again, "I know you'll pass," and who helped me organize and mail my award-winning portfolio the day before it was due, and who told me this morning, "I knew you'd pass," because she knew what I refused, for safety's sake, to acknowledge.

Now, back to work.

Thomas Kinkade has a movie!

It's about Christmas! And direct to DVD! And no, I'm not linking to it. If you want to find it, you're on your own.

In other words, it's time to declare a truce to end the War on Christmas. If we all lay down our arms, and walk away without further casualties, at least we can cling to our dignity.

Skeptics Circle reaches 100

And the guy who took it over from Saint Nate hosts, appropriately.

a question for my NBPTS overlords

Why would you release scores on a school day? Why not wait for the weekend?

I mean, if I didn't pass--and that "if" grows larger by the second--I won't exactly be "on fire" tomorrow morning, will I?

Thanks, National Board. Thanks.

the most important philosophers for Lincoln-Douglas debate

When it comes to Lincoln-Douglas debate, everyone knows you should know a little philosophy--okay, more than a little, a lot--but time is precious. How should you focus your energy and effort?

I've arranged groups of philosophers by their potential usefulness to you. The "basic study" group, for example, is composed of the philosophers you are most likely to hear cited in a round. (I almost wrote "encounter," but realized that the more literal-minded members of my audience might have found such language confusing instead of humorous.)

Warning: the following list is based on practicality, not any Platonic standard of LD-oughtness. Also, the list is provisional--a work in progress. I've almost certainly missed somebody important. Suggest names in the comments, and I'll add them.

Last, if you don't know it already, the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy is a great place to meet--encounter--read about many of these philosophers. Check it out.

The Basics

Plato on justice, rights, and the ideal State (hint: not a democracy)
Aristotle on justice, rights, and democracy
Hobbes on the Social Contract, especially regarding sovereignty, punishment, and the State of Nature
Locke on the Social Contract (but understand his foundations in empirical knowledge and natural theology, which grounds rights)
Rousseau on the Social Contract
Kant on rights, duties, and his formulation of morality encompassing both, The Categorical Imperative
Mill on democracy, utility, free speech, and the Harm Principle
Marx on justice, equality, societal values, revolution, and more
Rawls on a new, pluralist approach to the Social Contract and "justice as fairness," including the Original Position / Veil of Ignorance, the First and Second principle of Justice, democracy, neo-Kantianism
Maslow on value, especially his Hierarchy of Needs

Advanced Study

de Beauvoir on ethics and gender
Berlin on ethics (especially pluralism) and politics
Dewey on moral and political pragmatism and democracy
Hayek on freedom
Hegel on Hegel
Hume on the Social Contract
Arendt on democracy and totalitarianism
Dworkin on morality and law
Dahl on democracy
Schumpeter on democracy
Kierkegaard on reason
Aquinas on Natural Law and Just War Theory
Popper on anti-Platonism
Sartre on freedom and ethics
Habermas on democracy and deliberation
Nozick (especially against Rawls) on rights, freedom, and the Social Contract
Foucault on rights and justice (especially concerning criminality and punishment)
Beccaria on criminal justice and punishment
Bentham on Utilitarianism
Rand on Objectivism, especially as it concerns morality and freedom
Added: Josh's List

Kritik Central

Adorno on critiquing the West
Baudrillard on... good luck.
Derrida on deconstruction
Gadamer on hermeneutics
Levinas on ethics and the Other
Nietzsche on anything
Rorty on pragmatism and democracy


[154th in a series]