Monday, December 10, 2012

Conversations on New Possibilities for the Future : A Virtual Interview with Viviane Gosselin, PhD.

Interview by Cynthia Wallace-Casey,
PhD Candidate
University of New Brunswick (Fredericton)

Last spring, I had the opportunity to engage in a “virtual chat” with the curator of contemporary issues at the Museum of Vancouver, Viviane Gosselin.  Viviane is also author of chapter 12 in New Possibilities for the Past: Shaping History Education in Canada (2011).
During the interview, Viviane chats about her current curatorial project, “Sex Talk in the City”, as well as the role of historical narratives in presenting alternative perspectives upon the present.  She provides great insight into the eclectic nature of museum work – rebounding between curatorial meetings, telephone conversations, conference presentations, and family commitments. Near the end of the interview, Viviane shifts her attention towards historical thinking in museums and writes of the necessity for “porous narratives” within museum exhibitions.

I began our e-mail conversation by discussing the THEN/HiER “unconference” that had just taken place at the Museum of Vancouver in conjunction with the America Education Research Association Conference:

 We'll start by chatting about your busy schedule. How did the "unconference" go during the AERA Conference?
Good lord, 3 telephone conversations later – here I am . . .



Friday, December 7, 2012

5 Things Really Smart People Do

By Kevin Daum (The Huffington Post):

Most people don't really think much about how they learn. Generally you assume learning comes naturally. You listen to someone speak either in conversation or in a lecture and you simply absorb what they are saying, right? Not really. In fact, I find as I get older that real learning takes more work. The more I fill my brain with facts, figures, and experience, the less room I have for new ideas and new thoughts. Plus, now I have all sorts of opinions that may refute the ideas being pushed at me. Like many people I consider myself a lifelong learner, but more and more I have to work hard to stay open minded.In Intellectual Character I made the case that it is not about "being" smart, it is about "acting" smart. Here are some tips to help us act smarter.

Source:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/05/5-things-really-smart-peo_n_2243995.html