Monthly Archives: October 2023

Halloween fun (again)

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Last year I shared my Halloween Fun post about the high school principal’s costume contest. The theme was TV shows/sitcoms from the 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s. Well our Carol Burnette Show lip sync of a skit was the clear winner, and so this year my team got to pick the theme. We chose Super Heroes.

We lost a principal, Rissa, to retirement and Judy stepped in. Stephanie, who chose the theme, also chose The Greatest American Hero as our hero. We decided that all 3 of us would play the hero, rather than playing different characters in the show, and yesterday we took a few photos in costume at lunch.

After 20 minutes of photo editing in PowerPoint (where I took the background off of a few pictures), and a few more minutes finding a couple computer screen wallpaper backgrounds to superimpose us onto, I had what I needed to embed us into the opening credits of the show.

When I got home from I spent about 40 minutes in iMovie and came up with this:

A few editing tricks I used were: a simple smashed glass sound byte and an image of a broken glass sticker for the crash; slowing down the video clips of the hero flying; and, reversing the clip of the hero falling back so it looked like he was getting up.

The odds of us winning the contest 2 years in a row is almost zero, and this was far less effort than we put in last year, but we had fun and I think we will get a few laughs with our attempt.

Happy Halloween to you all, enjoy the festivities.

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(Setting this to publish at noon, after our submission to the contest.)

Blind spot

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I saw a Neil deGrasse Tyson video where he described our galaxy as thinner than a pancake. He said it is more like a crepe. Our galaxy is more than 100 times long as it is wide. One result of this is that it limits our ability to see the universe.

We can’t look beyond our galaxy along its length. There are so many stars in our own galaxy that they prevent us from seeing anything beyond it along this thin plane. Essentially our galaxy creates a blind spot for our visible universe.

That doesn’t mean there isn’t a lot to see along this axis. We can look at our closest neighbouring solar systems and explore our own galaxy, we just can’t see beyond our galaxy nearly as well and as clearly as when we view the universe from an angle other than along the plane of our flat crepe galaxy.

It’s interesting because while this flat shape creates a bit of a blind spot for us, it also makes a lot of the universe easier to see, because our galaxy does not get in the way of a lot of the sky. If our universe was more spherical, it would be a greater impairment to the universe beyond. Our blind spot creates an advantage elsewhere.

There is a metaphor there for our own personal blind spots. Blind spots might limit what we see in some areas, but how do they allow us to see more in others? We observe our world from eye level. We can learn more about our surroundings by seeing a bird’s eye view, but it wouldn’t be an advantage for us if that was the only view we had.

We all have blind spots, I just wonder what insightful perspectives they give us compared to if we didn’t have them?

Practice not information or knowing

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I have weekly conversations with my uncle. Most days we talk about geometry, but today our conversation was more wide-ranging. One topic we discussed was meditation. My uncle is a practiced meditator and I am on a journey to a really meditative state that seems elusive to me.

I’m better at naming the experience rather than just embodying the experience. I understand the journey, I haven’t truly travelled it like he has. And the fundamental difference is practice.

I don’t spend enough time practicing. I have travelled the part of the journey from being angry every time my mind drifts or focuses on a thought to understanding that this is a natural part of meditation. However, I have not travelled the next part where I’ve truly experience the letting go, and feeling fully in a meditative state. I’ve knocked on the door, but haven’t stepped in.

What’s preventing me? Practice. Making time, and giving myself time to meditate. Instead of a 10 minute guided meditation that is really 4-6 minutes meditating with a little lesson, I need to give myself more time. I have to practice for longer than the point where all I’m doing is bringing myself back from distractions, back from wondering and wandering thoughts.

I know what I need to do. I’m not lacking information, I’m just lacking time, the time to practice. Until then while I can name the experience I will not truly embody the experience.

The enemy of knowledge

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“The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge.” ~ Stephen Hawking

The illusion of knowledge is more ignorant that just being ignorant. This idea is more relevant today than any time in history. Examples:

1. Every religion starts with the premise that their religion shares true knowledge and all the other religions share illusions. So every devout religious person loves their own illusions, or at the very least believes anyone of a different faith lives in an illusion of ignorance.

2. Anyone who believes in a flat earth, or thinks no one ever landed on the moon lives in an illusion of knowledge. They perceive themselves as more knowledgeable than scientists, experts, and even general employees in the flight and space industry.

3. AI is already generating incredibly persuasive deep fakes and while we used to use a discerning eye to catch a lie, soon we will need to be more discerning to catch the truth. The illusion of knowledge will be more rampant than actual, factual knowledge.

We are moving from an era of knowledge seekers to an era of illusions and ignorance.

The truth is out there… it’s just a lot harder to find, and even harder to defend.

Error correction

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“When you tolerate an error, you rob yourself of learning.

When you ruminate on an error, you rob yourself of happiness.

Notice it, improve it, and move on from it.” ~ James Clear

I really like this quote. It is very insightful. We don’t learn unless we make an effort to adapt, or improve after a failure or an error. But perseverating on our errors isn’t healthy.

Notice, improve, and move on. But how many of us can easily do this?

How many of us repeat mistakes? How many of us spend too much time ruminating and don’t move on? How many of us spend more time worrying about our errors and less time celebrating our successes?

Notice, improve, and move on.

There would be far less learning if we spent more time avoiding mistakes. There would be less improvement, and less to move on from. And so while we are learning from our errors, we need to remember to feel good about the learning we’ve done, and the journey we are on.

Assuming the worst

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It’s reactive rather than thoughtful. It amazes me how many issues today are immediately an 11 on a scale of 1-10. Let’s just bypass the normal scale and make the issue beyond the norm.

There is no room for ‘ooops’. There is no opportunity to reduce the conflict or issue, it’s just a direct inflation to anger and upset. Retribution trumps resolution. The disagreement itself is an offence and the only solution is complete surrender, full admittance of wrongdoing, no opportunity for negotiation or mutual understanding.

People don’t interact with other people perfectly. Communication is an imperfect art. But interactions get worse when the worst interpretations are assumed. When there is an immediate high voltage response to an issue, the conversation continues to stay charged longer than it needs to. Sparks fly, and no one comes out un-singed.

It’s reactive rather than thoughtful. It is a jump to the worst conclusions. And it leads to no one coming out unscathed, unhurt, or even feeling like the resolution was rewarding.

How much could this change if we believed everyone was doing the best they could? If we chose to assume the best? If we started from a place of compassion rather than getting ramped up? If this is where we started I think, I know, a lot of situations would escalate to a 3/10, and never get to an 11/10.

Wouldn’t that be a better place to start?

Playing with Bing copilot

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I asked Bing copilot about myself:

What does David Truss write about on http://davidtruss.com

The response:

David Truss writes about various topics related to education, learning, and technology on his website http://davidtruss.com. He shares his thoughts, experiences, and reflections as an educator, a student, a thinker, and a dreamer. He also showcases his presentations, podcasts, resources, and projects that he has created or contributed to. Some of the themes that he explores on his website are:

  • Inquiry-based learning and teaching
  • Blended learning and distributed learning
  • Leadership and innovation
  • Student voice and choice
  • Global citizenship and social responsibility
  • Personalized learning and professional growth

You can find more information about David Truss and his work on his website 1 or on his blog Pair-a-Dimes for Your Thoughts.

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I followed up more specifically with my daily blog:

What does David Truss write about on http://daily-ink.davidtruss.com?

The response:

David Truss writes about his personal and professional experiences, reflections, and insights on his daily blog Daily-Ink. He describes his writing as his artistic expression, and his keyboard as his brush. He commits to writing daily to feel like an artist. He covers various topics related to education, learning, technology, leadership, innovation, global citizenship, and more. Some of his recent posts are:

  • Rewind: He looks back at the past year of the pandemic and how it changed his life and work. He also rewinds to previous years and how different decisions and events shaped his career and family. He wonders how he will look at February 2021 a decade from now.
  • Headspace: He shares his thoughts on meditation and mindfulness, and how they help him cope with stress and anxiety. He recommends some apps and podcasts that he uses to practice meditation and mindfulness.
  • Cruise ships and education: He draws an analogy between cruise ships and education systems, and how they both need to adapt to the changing needs and expectations of their customers and stakeholders. He argues that education needs to be more personalized, flexible, and relevant for the learners of today and tomorrow.

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I had to update the links to the posts because they all went to my blog’s home page, but those were correct post titles. Also the ‘Headspace’ post made no mention of meditation and mindfulness, though I do mention those frequently in other posts… and that particular post isn’t really typical of the things I write about.

I then switched from asking questions to clicking on Bing’s copilot suggested questions. The first one was:

What is David Truss’s background?

The response:

David Truss is a Canadian educator and administrator who is currently the principal of three programs in Coquitlam, BC: Coquitlam Open Learning, Inquiry Hub Secondary School, and Suwa’lkh Learning Centre. He has a background in inquiry-based learning, blended learning, distributed learning, leadership, innovation, global citizenship, and social responsibility. He is also a blogger, podcaster, author, and speaker who shares his thoughts and experiences on education, learning, and technology. He has a website Pair-a-Dimes where he showcases his work and resources. He also wrote an eBook called Twitter Edu where he shares his tips and tricks on using Twitter for professional learning and networking.

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This time I didn’t change the links… because I think it’s valuable to mention how wrong they are. The link to my blog, Pair-a-Dimes, above actually goes to a Barbara Bray podcast about me, and the link to my Twitter book actually goes to the Encyclopedia Britannica page for Liz Truss, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The rest of the data is quite accurate (other than I no longer run Suwa’lkh), but it seems copilot has a linking issue.

The next suggested question:

Can you show me some of his projects?

Sure, I can show you some of his projects that he has created or contributed to. Here are some examples:

  • Inquiry Hub Secondary School: This is a high school in Coquitlam, BC, Canada that focuses on independent learning and inquiry-based projects. David Truss is the principal of this school and one of the founders. He also shares his experiences and insights on leading and learning in this innovative environment. You can learn more about this school on its website 1 or on Wikipedia 2.
  • 10 Truss Houses That Brilliantly Blend Architecture With Engineering: This is an article that David Truss wrote for Architizer Journal, where he showcases 10 residential projects that use trusses as a major design element. He explores how these structural systems frame spatial experiences and respond to diverse landscapes. You can read his article here 3.
  • Twitter Edu: This is an eBook that David Truss co-authored with Eric Sheninger, where they share their tips and tricks on using Twitter for professional learning and networking. They explain how to create a personal learning network, find and share resources, and connect with other educators around the world. You can download their eBook here .

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The middle point is not remotely about me, and the last one didn’t link to my e-book. This request was the first one that really deviated from my profile with the Architecture article about truss supports. I had to do a search to find this article, since it wasn’t linked, and the link that it goes to above in the search results is an article about Liz Truss.

I followed one more copilot suggested question:

What is David Truss’s Twitter handle?

This was the response:

David Truss’s Twitter handle is @datruss. He is a Canadian educator, administrator, blogger, podcaster, author, and speaker. He tweets about education, learning, technology, leadership, innovation, global citizenship, and more. He has over 18.5K followers and follows over 10.6K accounts. He joined Twitter in March 2008 and has posted over 55.6K tweets as of April 2023. You can follow him on Twitter to get his latest updates and insights

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Once again the links went to articles about Liz, but the information was correct other than totals for my follows/following, which are both around 13K.

Overall, I’m impressed by the accuracy of copilot, and disappointed by the lack of reliable links. I think of Bing copilot a bit like I think of Wikipedia, it’s a great place to start your research, but not a definitive source to base any answers on. It’s a copilot when you are taking off on a search but once you are in the air, you need to take over the steering and guide the search plane to more credible or primary sources of information.

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One final thought: The html code that pasted onto my blog from copilot was very messy. I’d suggest pasting without formatting and adding the correct links after you have pasted everything… lesson learned!

4-day work weeks

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An interesting article, ‘Employees are so sick of the five-day workweek that most would take a pay cut to make a four-day week happen‘, by Ryan Hogg, states: “In the battle for a four-day workweek employees seem ready to put their money where their mouth is—they’ll take a pay cut if it means having an extra day of free time.”

At a time when inflation and cost of living is extremely high, people would rather sacrifice money for time. This isn’t about a lack of ambition or drive, it’s about wanting balance. It’s about prioritizing wellbeing over profit.

The article continued: “Last year, the U.K. piloted the world’s biggest-ever four-day week trial, made up of more than 60 companies and nearly 3,000 employees. Most businesses maintained or improved their productivity, while the trial also revealed that quit rates among staff plummeted.

Of the businesses involved in the survey, the majority chose to continue with the scheme.“

It can work.

I read another article, which I can’t find to source right now, and it was mentioning how many big companies are struggling with high absenteeism, with employees taking more sick time than they ever have before. Employees are taking days off in far greater quantities than my generation and our parent’s generation ever did, and these absences are costing companies far more than expected. Apparently this isn’t just an issue if people being sicker, but rather employees taking more time for ‘mental health days’. Essentially just taking a break from the grind of a 5- day work week. A shorter week could work to reduce this.

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I think the 4-day week could work for schools too. Add one hour to each of the 4 remaining school days and you’ve got 2/3’s of the missing school day covered. Add 30 more daily minutes of collaborative/prep time and teachers would be working the same hours, and embedding some needed prep time to their schedules. Same hours of work, close to the same number of hours of class, and so not even a reason to reduce pay.

Doing this, students and teachers would have 4-day weeks and 3-day weekends. I wonder what that would do to student absenteeism? I wonder how well students would perform? This year our senior PE classes start an hour early, and we haven’t noticed an issue with students struggling through a longer school day.

It could be piloted in a high school, but probably not the younger grades because it would be challenging to arrange for child care/supervision on the weekday that students don’t have school. I’d be happy to volunteer my school to try it out… I wonder what teachers, students, and parents would think of this?

Prices up

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I don’t know how some families do it? How do they manage the inflation of prices we’ve had? My wife and I both make good salaries, and while we feel the crunch of significant increases in the price of groceries, we can manage. But a single income family with a job that is financially less rewarding than our double salary household has to be struggling right now.

Add to that the increase in interest rates over the last few years and looking at how much monthly that has gone be up, and there have to be families in financial trouble. We’ve reached a point in Canada where many conveniences have become luxuries. Foods and meals that used to be staples are becoming special treats. I saw a video clip from a European country where inviting friends over for dinner now routinely comes with a bill, their equivalent of a direct deposit request or Venmo. ‘We are happy to have you over, this is what it cost us and this is your share’.

I could never see myself wanting to do that, but if I was in a community of young adults who liked to party and not everyone could host regularly, I could see this as a thing… friends understanding that the hosts are put out more than anyone and so helping them out. While it makes financial sense, I see it as an undermining of the friendship relationship. It puts a price on friendship. Imagine going to party and getting a different bill depending on if you drank more or went for seconds and ate more. That would feel very awkward to me on either end of the transaction.

But it seems that’s how some young people are coping with the inflation of everything around them. They want to be social but don’t have the financial means to do so regularly without splitting the bill. To me, this is an example where high prices are not just affecting our finances, but also our sense of community. It’s a sign that our greater society are coping and not thriving.

At least people are still trying to get together… and sharing the cost is much better than being isolated. It’s just sad that this is, for a growing number of people, necessary.

It’s about the nuances

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Today I ran into a teacher that was a favourite of my two daughters. He brought up a current geopolitical issue that I won’t discuss here, because there is too much nuance and I’m not prepared to write a dissertation of my thoughts… and anything else will only cause me grief. In fact, even a dissertation would cause me grief because I’d be bound to garnish disagreement and even anger. Why? Because no matter what position I hold, no matter how nuanced or not, it will upset people.

We’ve reached an impasse in public conversation when nuance is not part of the conversation. Everything is black & white, and any shade of grey is ‘othered’ to the opposing view. This is unhealthy. Very unhealthy.

It took my conversation today, where we agreed yet were equally reserved, to realize that a more public conversation can’t happen for me. I’m not knowledgeable enough. I haven’t done the hard work to have a strong and well defended view of a sensitive issue. I ask questions that could and would piss off people on either side of the issue.

I’ve said before,

“We want to live, thrive, and love in a pluralistic society. We just need to recognize that in such a society we must be tolerant and accepting of opposing views, unaccepting of hateful and hurtful acts, and smart enough to understand the difference.”

I don’t believe that distinction is being made right now. I don’t see an openness to nuance. I don’t see a way forward where we are moving in the right direction. An upcoming election in the US coupled with AI generated fake news, and the bi-polar positions on the left and right, are going to lead to a shitstorm. It’s going to get ugly, it might get violent, and it will not get better until it gets worse.

We need to find a way to bring back nuanced debate and conversation… where different opinions are met with interest not scorn, with acceptance not ridicule. Discourse can be had without anger, and nuanced opinions will lead to solutions where now we only find conflict.