We interview Lev Moscow who, for the last 14 years, has taught history and economics at The Beacon School in New York City. Lev reflects that advisory, done well, can serve as a venue for students to explore questions of ethics, purpose and happiness. He talks about balancing the history curriculum to include non-European perspectives. Getting students to read more than a few sentences is perhaps today’s teachers’ greatest challenge and Lev explains his approach.
*References, overview and transcript below.
References
Lev refers to John Dewey, Tony Judt, and these resources:
Book “Kids These Days: Human Capital and the Making of Millennials” by Malcolm Harris;
Book “The End of Education: Redefining the Value of School” by Neil Postman.
Lev also hosts a podcast that aims to make economics accessible. It is called A Correction Podcast and you can listen to it on acorrectionpodcast.com
Overview
00:00-00:57Intros
00:58-07:24Advice to new teachers; advisory; Consortium schools (NYC)
07:25-10:47Electronic technology in the classroom
10:48-12:00Advisory and relationships
12:01:17:33Print/reading and digital tech cultures
17:34-19:15HS versus college cultures
19:16-21:31Homework
21:32-27:58Homework (continued): writing, historiography, SQR, short and long-term assignments
27:59-37:37Language of ethics; ethics and morality; “truth” and skepticism; Dewey; existentialism
37:38-40:14De-centering Europe in teaching modern Global History
40:15-41:00Outro
Transcription
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