TACTics Journal

A Publication for and by TOC for Education Practitioners

December 5, 2003

In this week’s issue:

Connections

(1) 8th Annual International TOC for Education Conference, Kathy Suerken

(2) A Small Example to Share, Jeff Rideout

Quote

(3) James Russell Lowell

Editors’ Notes

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

CONNECTIONS

(1) 8th Annual International TOC for Education Conference

From Kathy Suerken <suerken@cox.net>

8th Annual International TOC for Education Conference:

When: May 20-23, 2004 (Thursday-Sunday)

Where: Belgrade, Serbia

What (to date):

· Dr. Eliyahu M. Goldratt, Keynote Speaker and TOCFE

teacher/mentor/sensei throughout

· Work toward formal International TOC-ICO Certification

· Dr. Theodoro Cantindig, Undersecretary of Education, Philippines

· Dr. Sharifah Maimunah. Bt. Syed Zin, Director of Curriculum

Development Center, Malaysia

· Dr. Hee Piang Chin, Assistant Director of Staff Training, Singapore

· Upgrade TOCFE skills/all latest trainings

· Dr. Danilo Sirias/Belinda Small (USA): Update on TOCFE in the

classroom, includes Dr. Sirias presentation on how to generalize TOC

through N. branch and AT to make every lesson relevant

· Rami Goldratt (Israel)

· Mike Round (USA): newest TOC applications in Math AND Science.

Much more to come! AND mostly importantly:

Who: YOU!

(2) A Small Example to Share

From Jeff Rideout, Michigan, USA

Hello TOCFE folks! I have a small example to share: David’s NBR.

I am a volunteer Big Brother to David, who is 9 years old. David has had

troubles in school, specifically around sitting still, paying attention and

goofing off instead of listening to the teacher. This behavior resulted in

the teacher calling home and David getting grounded.

His mother, Betty, asked me to reinforce how important school was for him,

so I decided to have David and I write the already existing NBR he was

experiencing.

I was concerned about starting with the bad experiences, so I chose to

start by asking him what he wanted to do when he grew up/went to college.

He said a doctor or fireman. I asked him why. He replied: because it made

him feel good to help other people. So we wrote those transatlantic, but

good enough, connections into a branch of sorts. Then we discussed, for

several minutes, those good feelings he would have and all the good that

comes from there.

Then we had lunch and dropped it for a while.

After lunch, I asked him why the teacher had called home. He told me that

he was goofing off and not listening (his words). So I wrote those at the

bottom of the page that we had already written the “doctor and fireman”

branch on (I had written the “doctorpart on the top of the page). I asked

him what happened next and we soon wrote the ugly current NBR he was

experiencing.

At that point, we had the positive branch on the top (doctor) and the

current NBR on the bottom of the page, with a gap in the middle. We looked

at it for a while and I didn’t dare say a word.

But then I couldn’t help myself and I asked him what his chances were of

experiencing all those good feelings of helping people if these things at the

bottom of the page kept happening. He replied “not so good”. The point had

been made, I thought, so we then went to how he could change his actions

and we came up with a few ideas.

This all happened about 4 weeks ago. The results so far have been OK. He

went 2 weeks without any issues then started to backslide some and has

recovered again. We have talked about it regularly and I think the

reinforcing will help. He claims he looks at the branch we wrote regularly,

and I guess time will tell.

The results haven’t been perfect, but we’re not done yet. The NBR gave us a

great way to discuss the issue and keep it in front of us.

Jeff

QUOTE

(3) Compromise makes a good umbrella but a poor roof, it is a temporary

expedient. James Russell Lowell

EDITORS’ NOTES

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

Are you making plans for the 8th Annual International TOC for Education

Conference? Jeff, thanks for sharing and we hope to hear more about how

things are going with David's experience with the tools.

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.

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