YES! Magazine Exemplary Essays Project

Parker Palmer's recent interview in YES! Magazine was used as a writing prompt in the YES! Exemplary Essays project.

Students in Professor Victor Nolet and Rosalie Romano's "Introduction to Educational Inquiry" course at Western Washington University's Woodring School of Education read and responded to the YES! Magazine article Know Yourself, Change the World.

Two of the best essays were selected to be published on the YES! website, along with Parker's response.

The essays answered this prompt: Palmer cites a study that found relational trust was the one variable, not money, models of governance, state-of-the-art curriculum, in-service training or technology—that made a difference in improving kids' learning. What do you think goes into relational trust between teacher and student? Teacher and teacher?

The study he cites is published in this book entitled Trust in Schools by Anthony Bryk and Barbara Schneider. What do you think? Do readers who have been to Courage to Teach series have any stories to share about cultivating trust in schools?

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THE BLOG

Parker Palmer

It takes a village to do Courage & Renewal work! The programs of the Center, its affiliates and its 160 facilitators would not have reached 25,000 people over the past decade if they were not embedded in a leader-rich community. This blog reflects the fact that Courage & Renewal work is about "us," not about any one person. So I've invited my colleagues to share in keeping this conversation going, and now we invite you to join us with your thoughts, questions, and stories. As Marge Piercy says in the last stanza of "The Low Road," a marvelous poem about how movements for change unfold,

"it starts when you say We/and know who you mean, and each/day you mean one more.”

If blogs are foreign to you, don’t let that put you off. Last month I had no idea what a blog was, but (with a nod to Stephen Colbert) today I am one -- and so can you!

Parker J. Palmer

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