tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092053382843096891.post2351065248001593889..comments2024-03-26T12:54:40.055+01:00Comments on Interaction Imagination: The Freedom of SpeechSuzanne Axelsson - Interaction Imaginationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10513322963337168674noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092053382843096891.post-50669226107991221452018-01-08T13:25:21.712+01:002018-01-08T13:25:21.712+01:00it makes complete sense... what we want is for chi...it makes complete sense... what we want is for children to be able to make their OWN INFORMED decisions.Suzanne Axelsson - Interaction Imaginationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10513322963337168674noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092053382843096891.post-61061284843050722262018-01-02T23:00:45.606+01:002018-01-02T23:00:45.606+01:00that is a great example. It may be easy to combat...that is a great example. It may be easy to combat manipulation when you know it is manipulation. Sometimes adults/teachers are manipulative without recognizing it. I remember my son coming home from grade school one day declaring that, from this point forward, he was a vegetarian. We were surprised but said that if that is what he was going to be we would honor his wishes. We later found out that the teacher had brought in an animal rights activist to do a presentation on animal cruelty with graphic videos and pictures. I really had no problem with that, but there was no countervailing point of view presented. And that is what I had a problem with. Not only that, by presenting only one side of the argument, no matter how noble, the teacher and presenter were in essence telling these 2nd graders what to think. There was no effort to have the children construct their own questions and thus their own knowledge. In a way it was a kind of hidden brainwashing or manipulation. We do not want to tell children what to think. And we do not want children to please us by thinking the same way we do. Rather, we want children to know how to think on any given subject. Does that make any sense? Sorry for the tangent. It should not take away from your brilliant post.Tom Bedardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04427750320077815023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092053382843096891.post-46300590826048015762018-01-02T13:44:42.670+01:002018-01-02T13:44:42.670+01:00thank you... it was far from easy to come to this ...thank you... it was far from easy to come to this decision... but it is so important that we create spaces of freedom, openness, equality and respect... and not platforms of hate and prejudice.<br /><br />thank you for your wordsSuzanne Axelsson - Interaction Imaginationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10513322963337168674noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092053382843096891.post-8416314158196070022018-01-02T13:42:46.450+01:002018-01-02T13:42:46.450+01:00yes, children do censor by not playing... although...yes, children do censor by not playing... although even that can take time, I have seen children try and try again to make a play situation work... <br />a lasting memory if of a child who used tears to get their way... and it worked with the child's parents and with most of the children too.<br />I remember one child's frustration with these tears, sick of always having to assimilate to the crying child's will. The child simply threw (the soft) toys at the crying child and shouted "I can't deal with you anymore, have them and play on your own"...<br />The crying child stopped crying and looked in shock... then looked at me, searching for sympathy... I looked back and simply said "this is what I have been trying to explain, the crying will not always work for you, others will get tired of it" - as I had been trying to support this child to find a different strategy to solve problems.<br />The child stopped using tears to manipulate others... only when tears were needed to convey hurt or sadness, as part of real emotions. Children really do teach children... we are adults are mere guides...<br /><br />I wish adults learned in the same way...Suzanne Axelsson - Interaction Imaginationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10513322963337168674noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092053382843096891.post-30410693668718776422018-01-01T23:23:58.965+01:002018-01-01T23:23:58.965+01:00This was a great reflective post. Thanks for writ...This was a great reflective post. Thanks for writing down your thoughts. I was not in on the Facebook discussion so I am writing with very little knowledge of how it transpired. I can imagine, though, that the person's intention was not to engage in dialogue to listen, but to engage in the dialogue to manipulate others to only see that person's point of view. Children censor others all the time when they feel like they are being manipulated and being forced to play by rules someone is using to dominate play. Censor may be a strong word. What they do is stop playing with that person, which is kind of a natural consequence censor. Tom Bedardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04427750320077815023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092053382843096891.post-90254671257691178132017-12-31T16:27:49.334+01:002017-12-31T16:27:49.334+01:00Dear Suzanne,
a lot of soul searching at the end ...Dear Suzanne,<br /><br />a lot of soul searching at the end of the year. I'm sure you did something that needed to be done. It is not OK to spread more disinformation in a community of educators in their search to provide a better education experience for the children they are working with. What I have enjoyed in the communities I followed online in the last year is this constant striving for insight en supporting one another in bringing out best to education. Not providing a platform for those who willingly spread prejudice and misinformation seems to me a civil duty. Thanks for taking that step for many of us. Have a healthy and happy new year.Hilde Stroobantshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17709010505416154261noreply@blogger.com