TACTics Journal

A Publication for and by TOC for Education Practitioners

December 13, 2002

In this week’s issue:

Networking

(1) Justin’ Story, Khaw Choon Ean

(2) The Story of Yani’s Goal (Prologue), Kathy Suerken

Connections

(3) Additional Events, Kathy Suerken

Editors’ Notes

(4) Kay Buckner-Seal, Cheryl A. Edwards

NETWORKING

(1) Justin’s Story

From Khaw Choon Ean, Malaysia

Here’s an uplifting true story for TOC.

In May this year, I was asked to give a mini-session of TOC for Families by some parents. They were my relatives who were impressed by my 10-year-old’s use of TOC in his daily life. They felt that perhaps TOC would also be good for their own kids. Justin was one of them. He comes from a very comfortable background, the younger of 2 boys and a real rascal. He would get into trouble in school (much to the embarrassment of his elder brother, who is a prefect and model student). He would hide any homework given by teachers and tell his mum that he didn’t have any until the truth came out when his teacher would ask for his mum to come to school. He would be getting punishment in the class for disruption, non-cooperation etc.

Well, after the family session, his mum sat with him and together they did Clouds, Negative Branches and Ambitious Targets. She then told Justin that maybe he should put his work up on his room’s notice board to keep them in mind. As soon as she helped him put them up, he removed them and hid them. He refused to talk about anything to do with them. However, two weeks after, Justin’s mum noticed that he had quietly put up his Ambitious Target on “Achieving Good Results for School Exams” on his board and subsequently after that his behavior started improving! He had even, on occasion, come out with a comment like, “Wait, I haven’t achieved my target yet,” when talking about what he was doing.

As a 12-year-old, he had to sit for his major government exam in September.  He had to sit for 7 papers as he was studying in a Chinese-medium primary school. The exam is a kind of national evaluation just before kids enter secondary school. Well, his mum gave him a target of just one “A” grade out of 7 subjects based on his normal school performance. 

Last week, the results of the national exam were announced. Justin not only passed it, he scored 5 A’s. Everyone was so thrilled. That evening, when the results came out nation-wide, Justin turned up at my doorstep and to everyone’s surprise, he said to me, “Thanks, Aunty, for giving me Theory Of Constraints!” Now that was a real surprise as everyone was prepared to solely credit him for his great achievement but unprompted, he himself chose to give credit to TOC.

Well, this is a very nice ending to Justin’s story. Isn’t that wonderful? We were not quite sure how it would go with Justin. Who knows what goes on really in the mind of a kid like him? But obviously something has clicked. He developed a sense of responsibility. And he could finally set himself a goal and he had gone through the process of looking at obstacles and coming out with IOs. I believe it had been an empowering experience for him and, initially, he rebelled by hiding his efforts. But then, he must have thought through and decided to change because he must have realised it was no longer his parents ordering him to, but he himself had arrived at what he could do.

And guess what? Justin took Aunty Ean and her family out to dinner the next day to celebrate the joyful occasion! Hope you all enjoy this true story.

(2) The Story of Yani’s Goal

From Kathy Suerken

Prologue

Yani lives on a beautiful island in the middle of the purple sea. He has many friends there. Yani’s friends like to help him solve his problems and he depends on them to know what to do. Yani loves his little island, but he has always wondered about what lies across the sea…now more than ever.

While on a sea voyage, the ruler of the land, Queen Joanna, has been captured and is being held on the island of Hertt. The keys to freeing her can be found only in the answers to four questions.

1. How can you make sure everyone wins and no one loses?

2. How can you make a wish come true?

3. How can you change your future?

4. Why is a question better than an answer?

Everyone tells Yani that it is just not possible to answer all these questions. For example, they say there is no way to have all sides win at the same time.

However, if the kingdom does not find the keys to answering these questions, Queen Joanna will never return.

That would be such a loss to the kingdom. Whenever the citizens who live there can not get along with each other, she tries so hard to be a leader who is fair to all. This is why everyone loves her, including Yani, who would do almost anything to help his kingdom get Queen Joanna back.

Maybe there is something he can do! Yani has heard stories about the land across the sea where people have learned how to solve all kinds of problems.

If no one in his kingdom knows how to answer the questions, maybe he should seek help over there? And, maybe not.

When Yani asks his friends if he should go, they tell him not to bother. 

“After all,” they tell him, “you aren’t a person who can solve problems on your own.” You always do what other people tell you to do,” they say.

That is why Yani thinks to himself, “I will never be able to solve a problem no-one else can solve.” The situation seems hopeless and yet… Yani’s goal is so important to him he doesn’t want to think he should just give up.

One day toward evening he is walking along the beach when he comes across a little raft tied to a rock at the water’s edge. “With this, I can cross the sea. Over there, maybe I can learn how to find the keys to the questions and make sure everyone wins and no one loses. I would feel so happy if I could free Queen Joanna!”  Without a second thought, he steps onto the raft, picks up the oar and unties the rope. Yani looks at the storm clouds in the sky and, just as he wonders if he made the right decision, the raft drifts out to sea.

CONNECTIONS

(3) Additional Events

From Kathy Suerken

In addition to the events listed in "TOCFE Update" in the November 29, 2002 edition of TACTics:

USA:

Nov. 20

California: National meeting of the Decision Sciences Institute. Danilo Sirias will present: “Using Graphic Organizers to Teach Statistics: A Theory of Constraints Approach”

Netherlands:

Dec. 12

TOC POOGI Club Meeting led by Eleanor May Brenneker

EDITORS’ NOTES

(4) Kay Buckner-Seal, Cheryl A. Edwards

The content of this week’s TACTics is probably one of the most moving pieces we have ever published. Children are amazing!

Due to the up and coming holidays, TACTics will not be published on the following dates: December 20 and 27, 2002.

We look forward to communicating with you on January 3, 2003 of the New Year!

So, feel free to share with us. Send your responses, applications of the thinking processes, lessons, announcements, and etc. by mail to: Cheryl A. Edwards, 2253 S. Hill Island Rd., Cedarville, Michigan 49719, USA. Or send hyperlink to cedwards@cedarville.net or bucknek@earthlink.net.

To view TACTics in its intended formatting, visit our web site at www.tocforeducation.com and click on “What’s New.”