Week 10: Storylab TedEd

A New Theory of Human Intelligence: (Web Link)

Scott Barry Kaufman shared his personal story of how he grew up with a disability. This disability made his teachers believe he was incapable, so held him back a couple grades and put him in special education. Kaufman's passion is to use psychological science and creativity to help measure someone's potential, rather than just solely relying on IQ tests.

His focus for his new theory of human intelligence:
Four C's model:
Capacity
Competence
Commitment
Creativity

Although IQ does correlate with capacity, Kaufman believes that there is more to capability than standardized tests. Intelligence is the dynamic interplay of engagement and ability in pursuit of personal goals. He emphasizes that the more motivated we are, the more likely we are able to achieve, and the more engaged we are. Students fall between the cracks in terms of the standard society has set because of IQ tests and ACT scores. He figured out a strategy using his creativity and commitment to put himself in a position, allowing him to finally pursue his passion and hopefully create a change in the system.

(Kaufman)

Week 10: Reading Notes Cherokee Nation Part B

The Owl Gets Married

This story is part of the Cherokee Myths unit. Story source: Myths of the Cherokee by James Mooney (1900).

First off, I was intrigued by the title of this story. It made me want to focus on both the plot of this story and the owl character of this story. This story begins with a widow and her daughter and the mother giving advice to her daughter on what kind of man to marry. She insisted that she has to marry a man that is a good hunter. Without any hesitation, the daughter promised her mother she would marry a man that was a good hunter. Conveniently a man arrived at their home and asked for the daughter's hand in marriage. The widowed mother was very skeptical and asked if he was a good hunter, because that was the only man her daughter could marry. He said he was just that, so he and the daughter lived in their own home. The next morning the husband said he would go out hunting, however changed his mind and said fishing. I take from this interaction that he isn't really a hunter. He returned that evening with only two fish and he was gone all day. This happened a couple more times, then he changed his mind and said he was going hunting instead of fishing. He returned that night with a handful of scraps that some hunters had cut off a deer. The daughter being suspicious decided to follow her husband when he went off to hunt. Before her own eye she saw him turn into an owl. Later that day when he returned home she asked where all the food was. He answered that there was none because an owl scared it all away. She confronted him and said, "I think you're an owl"and sent him away where he lived alone in the forest. 

(owl)

Week 10: Reading Notes Cherokee Nation Part A

Cherokee: The Journey to the Sunrise

This story is part of the Cherokee Myths unit. 
Story source: Myths of the Cherokee by James Mooney (1900).

The Journey to the Sunrise tells the story of a group of men who want to know the sun and see what it's like. I want to focus on the plot of this story and hopefully fill some of the gaps with my own ideas. The group of men started their journey by gathering supplies they would need. They grabbed bows and arrows, corn, extra moccasins, and headed east. I like how the the author added the detail of what direction they were heading. The sun rises in the east and sets in the west. On their adventure they ran into other tribes. Some they knew of, but never met, for instance the root eaters and the acorn eaters. They learned that in the acorn eater tribe if a man became sick his wife is buried in the same grave as him. So in a morbid, but respectful way, the group of men waited for the man to die. They buried him and his wife, and then they continued on their journey. The men travelled until they finally met sunrise, where the sky and the ground meet. (This is where it gets tricky for me) 

"They found that the sky was an arch or vault of solid rock hung above the earth and was always swinging up and down, so that when it went up there was an open place like a door between the sky and ground, and when it swung back the door was shut. The Sun came out of this door from the east and climbed along on the inside of the arch. It had a human figure, but was too bright for them to see clearly and too hot to come very near."

By the end of their journey the men left were so old. They were now at the end of the world, so started back home again. 

(sunrise)