I remember double-checking my pencil before Scantron tests in school to be sure it was a bona fide no. 2 yellow. I feared what would happen if I had used another kind, a no. 2.5, for instance. Over time I came to believe there was but one kind of pencil with which I must select just one answer—and hope that both were correct.

Whether or not we employ the proper pencil, we can’t choose just one single answer to solve most problems in the real world: A doctor is trying to find what might be causing her patient’s unusual symptoms; Apple is trying to figure out its antenna snafu on the iPhone 4; newspapers are trying to figure out how to stay in business. In each case individuals are tapping into their ingenuity to creatively address problems.

Jacqueline Novogratz, Founder and CEO of the Acumen Fund, is a model of such ingenuity. In 2001 Novogratz established the Acumen Fund to help address a significant problem: global poverty. The Acumen Fund oversees investments of more than $30 million designated for health care, housing, energy and water.

As we enter a new academic year, how are we preparing our children to tap into and express the kind of ingenuity we see in a person like Jacqueline Novogratz? Sadly, we’ll occupy much of students’ time in preparing them to navigate a no. 2 pencil through a field of Scantron bubbles.

Our educational standards should speak to real challenges being addressed by people like Novogratz, Steve Jobs of Apple, and Amory B. Lovins of the Rocky Mountain Institute—a “think-and-do tank” committed to solving energy resource problems. Such educational standards would then be based on “the actual activities of competent, confident learners when they are genuinely engaged in learning,” to quote Neil Postman in Teaching as a Subversive Activity.

Imagine educational standards that:

1. Reward creativity

Irrespective of the outcome, the emphasis of this approach would be on helping students access and exercise their creativity.

2. Reward collaboration

Students would work together, share ideas, sort out conflicts, pool ideas and possible solutions. Real problems require collaboration. That’s what makes solving them fun!

3. Reward failure

Instead of punishing failure and wrong answers we would help students appreciate the instructive power of failure. Failure is among the most potent instructors on earth. Why punish it?

Students entering school this year will bring to the classroom boundless curiosity and problem-solving abilities. Standardized testing is at cross-purposes with the cultivation of these invaluable human resources. In some cases tests are necessary, of course. But we should treat them like holiday decorations; they should gather dust through most of the year. Spend the rest of the time helping students engage with and make sense of life, so they can flourish Novogratz-style. For the groups I’m privileged to serve, this is my resolution for the new school year.

Dear friends, clients, and other acquaintances:

I am excited to announce The 6Teens Project, an ever-expanding trove of short, thematic videos in which teens discuss with candor the people and learning environments they find most helpful. Each video is designed to be a patch of a larger quilt which taken as a whole can help us better understand adolescents and how to serve them. The 6Teens Project is an opportunity for teens to help shape a conversation about what adults can do to better understand and connect with them. I trust you will find their responses as fascinating and inspiring as I do.

It’s simple and free to access The 6Teens Project videos:

1. Watch – Videos are available on The 6Teens Project Channel. You can also watch the videos on YouTube.

2. Subscribe – Receive new episodes as we post them. (Just click Subscribe on Vimeo or YouTube.)

3. Participate – Share this resource with others and let me know how it has informed your work.

In response to The 6Teens Project I have enhanced my training workshops to incorporate not only cutting-edge brain development research but also insights from teens themselves into how to build meaningful, lasting connections with them, as expressed in 6Teens discussions.  If you are interested in learning more about these workshops send me an email.

Enjoy the rest of your summer!

Tags: adolescent health, communicating with youth, connecting with youth, educational reform, prevention education, training

A while ago I noticed that the root of authority is “author.” We often think of authority in terms of power and influence. A principal has authority over her teachers, a manager over his staff and a lion over his lair. But what about when we refer to someone as an authority on a particular subject? Authority in this sense indicates that the person possesses unrivaled knowledge of a particular field.

But there’s more to being an authority than knowing a lot about something. People who have this kind of authority have a particular kind of knowledge. Their ideas, though shaped by others, are not an amalgamation of others’ ideas. These people are the author of their own ideas by virtue of spending a great deal of time interacting with a subject. They want to know it for themselves and are dissatisfied with others telling them about it.

And here’s the kicker: The job of an authority is never done. He continues to interact and explore his subject’s farthest reaches. An authority is not primarily interested in defending his knowledge. He is not fearful of confusion and counter-evidence. Quite the contrary, he views these as gifts along the way to a deeper understanding.

Extensive knowledge does not make one an authority—not if he prefers being right to knowing what is true. Such a person’s knowledge is not personal. It is not part of him. Knowledge in this sense is utilitarian. It has purchasing power. More knowledge translates into power, influence, and prestige.

Becoming an authority is hard work, especially when it pertains to life. But it is a worthy project to adopt. We need to ask hard questions and enter into confusion and investigate evidences that appear to contradict what we believe to be true. We grow by facing into life honestly, equipped with a battery of questions. It is by this appetite for truth, persistent inspection, and willingness to get it all wrong that we grow, gain understanding, and become an Author-ity. As the author we can then offer our own ideas, instead of handing out repackaged ideas that do not belong to us.

Tags: authenticity, authority, lifelong learning, original thinking