I have thoroughly enjoyed teaching Integrating Technology into the Secondary Curriculum here at my uni. Not having taught this course before presented a number of challenges associated with the types of assignments that might be most beneficial for students as well as determining what types of skills might serve students best.

I initially started out by focusing on teaching and learning basics, lesson plan design, and instructional strategies (i.e., pedagogical content knowledge), with the idea of inserting technological pedagogical content knowledge through different learning experiences and class activities. I found after the first few weeks that I was spending too much time teaching students how to create lesson plans and not enough time showing how technology might be integrated into the lessons they were creating, as well as giving students opportunities to practice what they have learned. Assignments were constructed in such a way as to have students actually using technology experientially (e.g., weblogs, wikis, PowerPoints, Moodle, Googledocs, Google forms, polls, spreadsheets, YouTube, Slideshare, Flickr, discussion forums, podcasts, Wordle) on a daily basis; however, students seemed unaware of how what we were doing transferred to the lessons they were creating. After much reflection and one bungled lesson plan assignment, it occurred to me that I was trying to do too much. The mid-term evaluation I asked students to complete showed me that I was doing well on many fronts, but that I was moving too quickly. Students wanted the opportunity to slow down so they too could have some time to think more deeply about what we were doing and how they might apply what they've learned. Armed with this new knowledge I made a few adjustments to the syllabus so that we could concentrate on why and how technology could be used effectively in a teaching and learning environment. As such, students have warmed up considerably to our new pace and are showing me and each other a number of new ideas and strategies that indicate that the content we are covering is beginning to become their own.

I also took some time to talk with my colleague who teaches a similar class for elementary education students to see how he managed both the course in a way that seemed to benefit students best. I quickly picked up a few strategies that I will incorporate next semester, including adopting Jonassen's Learning With Technology text and having students "teach" the text to each other. This term I chose Bransford's How People Learn as the course text which seems to be serving the students well in terms of providing them the requisite pedagogical knowledge necessary to talk about how to teach students. I believe combining this text with Jonassen's next semester will give students a solid foundation and understanding of both pedagogical content knowledge and technological pedagogical content knowledge that is clearly the goal for this course. I have also been supplementing students' reading with selections from TED, Henry Jenkins, Clay Shirky, danah boyd, Will Richardson, and others which allows us to keep abreast of the social complexities associated with teaching, learning, and technology in our brave and ever-changing world.

Overall, I feel I've come to a greater understanding and appreciation for going deep as opposed to going long. In other words, it feels like both the students and I are getting more out of the class when we take our time and truly explore course concepts deeply as opposed to covering more, if that makes sense. I am finding that I sometimes forget what it's like to be a beginner and end up approaching the class too much like an expert which in turn does not help students new to teaching and learning with technology. I am also glad I am able to take some time to reflect on my thinking. I want students to feel confident about when, where, how, and why to use technology in their classrooms and I want to be able to model it for them so they can use their experience with me as a powerful example as opposed to a powerful non-example. We still have a several weeks to go in the semester and I am happy to be able to take what I've learned and make the necessary adjustments to make this experience better for them and me.

Image: Ode to Joy

Even if my recent “Politics Around the Web” posts have turned you off, I hope you noticed that they are a model of a very simple activity for any number of classes - current events, politics, science and math news, more - that want students to read and exhibit critical thinking about what they read. I say “simple” because all it takes is a Google News account, a Diigo account, and a blog.

This screencast shows you how it works, compliments of screencast-o-matic and Blip.tv:

http://www.FeedBurner.com).gif" />

If you like this post, please spread it: (But don't tag it "education." That will bury it.)

7 Comments

• At October 19, 2008, M. Walker wrote:

  Clay,

  Very nice! I'm speaking to some student bloggers on Tuesday, reading from a blog and sharing my thoughts, and I may have to share this with them. I'm thinking of using some of the Michelle Bachman material coming out of Minnesota...can you say Joe McCarthy?

  Mike

  M. Walkers last blog post..Wordle

• At October 19, 2008, Seadey Says 10/18/2008 « Seadey Says wrote:

  [...] Creating Critical Readers: A Too-Easy Diigo-Google News-Student Blog Assignment | Beyond School - Annotated [...]

• At October 19, 2008, Clay Burell wrote:

  Did you see VandenHeuven's reply / debate after that interview?

  You're right, it's the perfect current event to connect to McCarthyism. Ooh, and she's from your state, isn't she?

• At October 19, 2008, Louise Maine wrote:

  I would never characterize what you present as wacky ideas as you continue to stretch our minds on the possibilities. As my students are working with another class on animal classification and research into an endangered or exotic animal on a wiki, the natural extension would be on threats to biodiversity. Generally, they would prepare a statement as to their thoughts on the subject. Your approach would show reasoning on both sides that led to the students decision and is a great way to show and demonstrate critical thinking. As always, The true gain is in your thoughts and generosity in showing the process despite the issue.

  Louise Maines last blog post..NEBSA Source for Learning challenge

• At October 20, 2008, M. Walker wrote:

  Yes, she came out of our state legislature, where she led the charge against gay marriage and other "anti-American" activities. Famous for molesting Bush after a State of the Union Address...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqSjtIivjnQ

  Mike

  M. Walkers last blog post..Wordle

• At October 21, 2008, Maggie wrote:

  Great idea, Clay! A great way to entice students to stay engaged with current events and cultivate research and critical thinking skills!

• At October 22, 2008, Creating Critical Readers: A Too-Easy Diigo-Google News-Student Blogging Project | Beyond School wrote:

  [...] is a cached version of http://beyond-school.org/2008/10/18/diigo-blogging-current-events. Diigo.com has no relation to the [...]

Related posts:

1. Update on “Visionary Student Blogging” Project I've chronicled my fantasies (and here) and ice-water reality-baths about...
2. “That’s not Homework; That’s Writing”: Authentic Student Blogging (Presentation Snippet 2) In a post last month I mentioned seeing the need...
3. Visionary Student Blogging: or, The Ghost in the Machine It's been a heck of a week, and it's...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Read/Write/Web reports on Rheingold's new project--the "Social Classroom." According to the story, it is "an open-source Drupal-based web service to teachers and students for the purpose of introducing social media into the classroom."

So, is this anything more that a Drupal distribution designed for learning and teaching? I think a lot of us who use Drupal-based sites already do that stuff. Perhaps I am missing something.

Update 1: Wikispaces recorded the webinar as a movie, and will send me the link when it’s up. I’ll post it here. I took the last half-hour of the 1-hour show to discuss 2 history wiki projects, and 2 language arts projects. Highly caffeinated and well-run good time (for me, anyway ).

http://www.FeedBurner.com).gif" />

If you like this post, please spread it: (But don't tag it "education." That will bury it.)

4 Comments

• At October 17, 2008, Michael Doyle wrote:

  Dang it, it's October 16th, late, I have a lab to design, tests to grade, I'm just setting up a wiki for my low level freshman, and NOW (another 98 hour week near its end) I see this.

  And I don't even know what a "webinar" is.

  I can learn (and I will), but geez, Clay, the old folks reading this need a day or two's wort of notice.

  [End of harangue.]

  Michael Doyles last blog post..Titrate until comfortable

• At October 17, 2008, Michael Doyle wrote:

  For whatever reason, I can' edit--I was going to fix "wort"--but given the meaning of the typo, it almost makes sense.

  So I will steal from myself.

  "A day's wort of notice...."

  Michael Doyles last blog post..Titrate until comfortable

• At October 17, 2008, Robert wrote:

  Is there any chance that you will post the recording of the webinar at this site? Or somewhere else perhaps. I would be interested in hearing what you discussed.

  Best,

  Robert

  Roberts last blog post..Mid-term Honor Roll

• At October 17, 2008, Clay Burell wrote:

  Hi Robert,

  Yes, Wikispaces recorded the webinar and will give me the link to post when it's up. My presentation started 30 minutes in, after they introduced new users to how to drive a wiki, and I covered four different projects (2 history, 2 English).

  I think it went okay. I had fun, anyway :)

Related posts:

1. More on Wikis in Education Curious about the possibilities for wikis in the classroom, but...
2. French Revolution Ant Farm and Arabian Nights "Flat World Tales" Wikis Now Unlocked Thanks to Jeff Whipple of Whip's Blog (linked in blogroll...
3. AMERICANS UNITED AGAINST EDUCATION: JOIN TODAY. ENLIGHTEN THE WORLD. Photo: "Panic Bear T-Shirt" by Spirals on Flickr, via...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Please consider signing the "PETITION IN SUPPORT OF THE TEACHING AND RESEARCH ASSISTANTS COLLECTIVE BARGAINING RIGHTS ACT." This bill would "amend the National Labor Relations Act to restore collective bargaining rights to teaching and research assistants at private universities and colleges." Further, this is a public bill and petitions so anyone, non-teachers and students, programmers, anyone, can sign this petition.

read more

This is just hilarious, and a brilliant idea at the same time: taking the Wasilla Town Meeting minutes (Sarah Palin presiding), and turning them into a one-man drama performance. Do yourself a favor and laugh as you learn about the extent of this woman’s experience, and worse yet, her leadership style.

http://www.FeedBurner.com).gif" />

If you like this post, please spread it: (But don't tag it "education." That will bury it.)

Related posts:

1. Of Great Productions and July Genius Alrighty, Mr. Meyer - you've won me.  What you're doing...
2. “Quick In, Quick Out” Podcast: PLN Class Design Discussion with Cleveland, Maryland, NYC, Qatar, and Seoul [quicktime]http://ia311317.us.archive.org/2/items/ClayBurellNetworkedLearningPodcastwithInternationalEducators/PLNtweetskype.m4a[/quicktime] (right-click and "save as" here to download enhanced podcast...
3. Networked Learning Class Reflection 1: Basketball without Borders Project That Networked Learning elective "English Seminar" class I taught last...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Yes, I am still here!

I apologize for not writing more. I have been beyond busy during the past 15 weeks writing up research findings for my study. My goal is to hand in the first draft of my dissertation to my advisor next week. The study identifies specific advantages and limitations within which teachers' learning might be supported online, so needless to say, I am anxious to share the results with an edublogging audience.

Once I've received the green light from my advising team, I will begin to post chapters in pdf form here in Eduspaces. I am also considering creating a wiki to house the final product to make the content more accessible to the public and open to social judgment and adjudication. There are scholars all over working on projects that could benefit more than their peers if they opened up their work to a larger audience using the freely available social media tools. I understand how funding for research and scholarship works and that you cannot always have your cake and eat it too. So in the spirit of seeking balance, I will do what I can to always make my scholarly efforts public.

 I have also been quite busy developing content for a course I am teaching this fall titled Integrating Technology into the Secondary Curriculum. I have two sections of 16 and 22 undergraduate education minors finishing up their careers in college. Some are truly gung-ho and interested in teaching and learning. Others less so, but are willing to play along in the name of learning something new about themselves. I was hoping to share more of what is going on in these classes in this space, but with course preparation and the dissertation, my attention is needed in the latter.

In the meantime, I have not completely fallen off the map. The wonderful bits of minutiae that I find in my travels I have been posting to my Tumblr blogs.  So in the spirit of Friday, I give you a literal translation of A-ha's famous pop fodder Take On Me. Cheers!

Since schools, so often limited to teaching to the lowest common denominator of parental intelligence, can’t teach politics any more relevantly than they can teach religion, economics, biology, or anything else, the following video offers both a good argument for the importance of bucking this dumbing-down-for-fear trend, and a good approach to helping students view campaign ads critically:

With the McCain campaign’s announcement that it will heighten attacks on Obama’s character, and the Obama campaign’s decision to meet mud with mud instead of being Swift-boated a la Kerry ‘04, schools would be irresponsible if they didn’t try to equip students with the tools to understand how these things all work.

On a personal note, things may be quiet around here for a spell. I’m too interested in the elections and the economy to be able to write about much else right now (and by the way, these podcasts from This American Life, Part 1 here, Part 2 here, explain the economic crisis in a way that puts the mainstream media and both presidential candidates to shame, and are required listening for anybody wanting to understand the crisis - and they spread responsibility in a non-partisan way). I’m also busy with some projects that I hope will get a green light soon so I can share them, and with slowly getting back on stable footing domestically after my mother-in-law’s passing. So bear with me.

http://www.FeedBurner.com).gif" />

If you like this post, please spread it: (But don't tag it "education." That will bury it.)

3 Comments

• At October 7, 2008, Jose wrote:

  This is perfect. Just perfect. I think it's easy for kids to get caught up in the big hype machine, but that's exactly it: politics are often made so they can get to the most base, guttural fears and simplistic, shallow statements without getting to any real issues. That's what our founding fathers, even indirectly, wanted our politics to look like, and this is the monster that they kinda created. Well done on highlighting this dialogue.

  Joses last blog post..A Message To Latinas, Remastered

• At October 7, 2008, avoiceinthewilderness wrote:

  Hi Clay

  I've been looking around your blog. So many thought provoking and contemplative posts.

  I would imagine that you found the confines of our public school system just a bit confining.

  I would love to see every school include a course in their curriculum about understanding media-not just political media, but all forms of print, visual, etc.

  So many people - not just children - take what they read and see it as truth and never look at who is creating or funding the information.

  We have a so called educational expert writing for the Washington Post telling us about the best schools and materials. We rarely hear that the Post owns Kaplan Educational Services.

  Is it coincidental that he often highlights schools which emphasize heavy test preparation?

  Then again, what does it say to us when we elect a mayor of New York City who owns one of the largest media conglomerates in the country?

  avoiceinthewildernesss last blog post..Blocking Story About The Pope From His Biggest Fans?

• At October 9, 2008, Economic troubles, simply explained | Sustainably Digital wrote:

  [...] even for non-financial types. _____________________________ Thanks to BoingBoing.net for the tip. Clay Burell also pointed out This American Life’s earlier show on the economy. addthis_url = [...]

Related posts:

1. Suspended Edublog Campaign Day 2: Political Web Round-up 10/12/2008 Op-Ed Columnist - The Terrorist Barack Hussein Obama - NYTimes.com...
2. Suspended Edublog Campaign: Political Web Round-up 10/11/2008 McCain Defends His Rabid Crowdstags: mccain, elections08, racismThe rabid nature...
3. Social Networks as a Political Force for Education (and, More Students 2.0 Sought) If I've learned anything in this year of blogging,...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

"As Putin rears his head and comes into the air space of America, where do they go? It's Alaska!" Palin CBS interview, Sep. 2008

Test-Making 101: A Teacher’s Take

Most teachers know that multiple choice tests focusing on facts only are easier for their students to ace than essay tests requiring students to use those facts to analyze a problem and reason their way to a solution. A concrete example would be a map test requiring students to merely identify countries and geographic features of central Europe during World War II, versus an essay test requiring students to argue which side of the warring alliances, the Allied or Axis powers, had the geographic advantage during that war.

Know-nothing students can easily cram to memorize the map of Europe at that time and score an A on the first test. But to score an A on the second test would require an intelligence orders of magnitude higher. Requiring students to demonstrate an understanding of such things as the significance of the easily traversed plains of Poland and the limited coastlines of Germany in the context of the war, the second test would expose which students really deserved an A, and which knew how to cover their shallowness by excelling at rote memorization.

This puts me in mind of Sarah Palin right now, whom I picture desperately cramming with her debate coaches in McCain’s estate in Sedona for the Big Test on Thursday: the Vice Presidential debates.

With even the conservative punditry now conceding Palin is an “embarrassment” who is “not ready” to assume the presidency in the not-unlikely event of the death or disability of the oldest - and either the most politically reckless or medically clueless - presidential candidate in the history of the United States, Thursday’s debate, offering us a glimpse at the most sequestered vice presidential candidate in living memory, looms larger as a serious moment for the fate of the nation because, quite simply, it’s one of the only chances we’ll have to see the candidate think and talk on her feet, live and unscripted.

Palin’s Report Card So Far

Student Palin’s grade point average started with a sterling 100% for her public speaking assessment at the Republican National Convention. She turned in a gifted performance there, reading someone else’s speech off a teleprompter. A+.

But since then, in her three subsequent assessments - a number about which classmate Joe Biden, who has had almost daily assessments in the media and on the campaign trail, should complain to the principal, since the teacher is clearly showing favoritism to Palin by excusing her from all these tests - Palin’s g.p.a. has crashed and burned. She scored a C in her softball interview with Charles Gibson, a C in her love-fest with FOX’s Sean Hannity, and an F (a “Z-” grade being unavailable) in her debacle with Katie Couric.

What We Learn from Student Councils

Watching the former beauty queen and high school track star eat crow on the national stage is an experience not unfamiliar to that of many high school teachers who watch that painful annual ritual in high schools around the world called the Student Council elections. They always involve the popular kid - the cheerleader or football star with ill-starred academic records - deciding, due to ill-advised assurances that popularity is all that matters to win an election, to enter the race. Then on speech day, the cafeteria kings and queens face off against the Math Club and Literary Magazine whizzes, and the former show their stuff while the latter show their lack of stuff.

It often ends in tears on stage, pity in the crowd, and teachers afterwards trying to help the unfit student draw some wisdom from the experience about the difference between confidence and ability, and between sound advice and bad.

The McCain campaign gave Palin bad advice here. No mayor of a town smaller than many big-city high schools (only 6,000 residents) not yet through her second year as governor of a state whose population is smaller than all but North Dakota and Vermont should be expected to ace a test designed to assess the next president of the nation with the world’s largest economy and military. And that the McCain campaign didn’t foresee this blinding reality when they urged her to join the ticket speaks volumes about either its staggeringly bad judgment or, to go Rorschach on you, its withering cynicism regarding the intelligence of the American electorate.

And as a result, the good cheerleader is undergoing a public humiliation that pulls at the heart-strings of any caring teacher. “Whoever put her up to this,” the teacher thinks, “should be ashamed.”

The Most Important Test in American History? A Plea to Gwen Ifill

But Palin rose to the bait, and the debate is set. She’s cramming in Sedona for a test any good teacher who knows this student knows she cannot ace - if the test is a form of assessment for thinking instead of memorizing.

And that’s what makes me think the most important person in this debate in not Palin, and not Biden. It’s the assessor - the person who creates the test questions.

So to PBS moderator Gwen Ifill, I can only offer this advice: give an assessment that will show the electorate not who can memorize the most facts. That kind of test leads to a class with all A’s. Instead, give a test that will show us how these candidates will use their knowledge-base to solve problems.

A very perceptive commenter on the Chicago Tribune’s blog says as much in the below:

The key to the debate will be for either the moderator or Biden to dig beneath the thin veneer of rote memorization that will be the basis of her performance. She has had plenty of time to memorize some statistics and talking points to certain questions she knows will be on the test, and even someone with her intellectual paucity can do that somewhat convincingly.

It’s when you dig slightly beneath the surface that she implodes. As anyone who has ever B.S.ed their way through anything knows, your goose is cooked when you’re asked to explain the basis of your statements. Being able to give simple, concise answers to complicated questions is way harder than it looks. You need to have a deep understanding of what you’re talking about - an understanding of international and domestic affairs that are the result of years and years of study and analysis, not just a few weeks of cramming.

If Ifill’s debate questions follow those guidelines, the nation benefits. If not, it may fall victim to the most fateful and disastrous consequences of grade inflation due to lack of assessment rigor in the history of the United States.

Palin is clearly likable, her policies and beliefs notwithstanding. But by putting herself in line for the Oval Office, we can’t let our sympathy for her soften our assessment of her. She’s not running for student council or small-town mayor. She’s running for 76-year-old-heartbeat-away-from-president. It shouldn’t be an easy test to pass.

–

Image: BoingBoing

http://www.FeedBurner.com).gif" />

If you like this post, please spread it: (But don't tag it "education." That will bury it.)

7 Comments

• At September 30, 2008, Kate Tabor wrote:

  On this, the Jewish New Year, where we wish our families and friends a good and sweet new year, we are looking at a nation whose capitol seems to be in chaos over the bailout of the financial markets and an election where there is the possibility of the beauty queen/weather girl as vice president. Oh, yeah - we are at war, too.

  So I wish us all peace and love in the new year. Clay, I appreciate your last three posts. They make me gasp, laugh, cry, and hope that together we are smarter than we seem.

  In life there will be at least one test. And yes, sometimes the test is cumulative.

  Kate Tabors last blog post..Little Moments Matter

• At September 30, 2008, Penelope M wrote:

  Heh, I wish your Student Council comparison were accurate. I've never been somewhere where it didn't come down to either no one else running or the popular kid winning.

  I look forward to this debate with great curiousity, that's for sure.

• At September 30, 2008, Clay Burell wrote:

  Ouch. Touche.

• At October 1, 2008, marian Hallin wrote:

  I am a great admirer of Gwen Ifill, a great admirer of great women and I can only hope that on Thursday the questions will be of an essay type. The American people deserve to just how qualified Sarah Palin is or how woefully ill qualified she is. Multiple choice questions from Ifill without followup depth questions will certainly be as revealing as Palin's qualifications appear to be at this moment......about as unqualified as can be!

• At October 1, 2008, Kate Tabor wrote:

  Hi Clay -

  Check out the most recent Couric/Palin-McCain interviews. Yes, that's right - they went back for more.

  Here's an excerpt on Talking Points Memo:

  http://talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/221008.php

  And you might like FiveThirtyEight.com and Nate Silver's thoughts on why McCain will keep Palin on the ticket: http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2008/09/mccain-is-stuck-with-palin.html

  Kate Tabors last blog post..Little Moments Matter

• At October 3, 2008, Jabiz Raisdana wrote:

  Great article to think about:

  http://www.joebageant.com/joe/2008/09/sarah-palin-thr.html

• At October 4, 2008, Palin Debate Flowchart: Smiling Down the Decline | Beyond School wrote:

  [...] and intelligence a “passed test” on Palin’s part (and Ifill miserably failed my test for quality debate questions), post it, spread it, make it [...]

Gilgamesh - the Earth's Oldest Epic - in Stephen Mitchell's brilliant 2004 translation.

[The Unsucky English Gilgamesh series so far: 1: Dangerous Questions ~ 2: The Day I Thought Gilgamesh Would Cost Me My Job ~ 3: Adam and Eve, Backwards ~ 4. this post ~ 5. Good and Evil, Nature and the Hero - Backwards]¹

~     ~     ~

Beyond the Giggles: More on the “Seven Days’ Erection”

As we saw last episode, seven days of sex with Shamhat, the temple prostitute of the goddess Ishtar, gave the innocent, wild, and Adam-like Enkidu² more than seven days of carnal pleasure: “knowing what a woman is” in this way also humanized him, making him lose his animal essence, making his “mind grow,” making him understand language, making him suddenly yearn for that most civilized thing - friendship.

It’s worth speculating that Enkidu’s epic sexual marathon with Shamhat might itself be another “gift of civilization,” since animals, so far as I know, don’t draw out the raw sexual act across days, don’t turn it into a sacred art form the way Ishtar’s hierodules³ do, and thus don’t experience this natural act with anywhere near the range of sensations, thoughts, and emotions that humans do. Without being literal about the sex scene’s “seven days” - any more than Bible readers should be literal about the forty days of Noah’s flood or of Jesus’ meditation in the desert, which are probably the ancient culture’s variation of our own “dozens” or “hundreds” or “millions,” when we just mean to say “many” in a hyperbolic way - the fact remains that the poets of Gilgamesh chose to emphasize that Enkidu’s sexual initiation was no animalistic quickie, but instead something lasting an unusually long time. Why? Because what humans can learn through erotic love, seen as sacred, cannot be learned in a hurry.

Some of you will think I’m crazy at this point, but I’ll counter by pointing out that Hinduism is another major religion that does not damn sex as a sin, does not freak out at this centerpiece of the natural order, and on the contrary, has among its sacred scriptures the Kama Sutra, which is essentially a Sanskrit sex manual aiming to instruct men and women in the arts of love-making - so that families, with happier husbands and happier wives, can be stronger.⁴

So after one last bit of love-making in their natural paradise, Shamhat gives Enkidu one of her robes - you have to love the “Adam as cross-dresser” bit - and they begin their trip to Uruk, the only big city in that mind-bogglingly distant ancient world, twice as far from us in time as the Bible.

The Seven Deadly Sins, Backwards: Enkidu’s Moral Education Continues

They stop on the way at some shepherds’ huts, where Enkidu creates quite a stir. The shepherds all compare him to King Gilgamesh in strength and stature, and speculate who would win if the two supermen came to blows. ESPN, Sumerian-style. Whatever.

More interestingly, though, they provide Enkidu with his next taste - literally - of civilization: bread and beer. Shamhat, still the teacher and initiator, tells Shamhat:

“Go ahead, Enkidu. This is food,
we humans eat and drink this.”

Let’s stop here and think about the pattern so far of Enkidu’s “civilized education”: the first stage was sex, a physical pleasure; and now we come to bread - eating - another physical pleasure, and beer, which is complicated.

Because beer is not just the “drinking” equivalent to “eating,” the way water or milk would be.  Beer is an intoxicant.

How would most of today’s Christian preachers advise us to regard this food and drink? I can only point to the status of “gluttony” - the love of food - as one of the “Seven Deadly Sins,” and to the general disapproval of alcohol among most serious Christians today⁵ to support my argument that these two “civilized gifts” would be unpopular in Christian circles.

But in Gilgamesh, again, we see that religious viewpoint turned upside-down.  Enkidu eats the bread until he’s full, and more interestingly, likes the beer so much he drinks “seven” pitchers - after which:

his heart grew light,
his face glowed, and he sang out with joy.

No moralizing at all here. Beer is a good thing. (And please note, I think there are secular arguments against beer now, in the age of the automobile and drunk driving, that make alcohol one of the worst intoxicating substances to encourage - not because it’s sinful, but because so many irresponsible people don’t know how to drink, and don’t know better than to drive after doing so. In the pre-automobile age, though? It’s harder to argue that there’s something wrong with a beverage that makes our “heart grow light” and our voice “sing out with joy.”)

This pattern of “Good, Blessed Things” being the opposite of what we see in popular Christian morality today is something to remember. We’ll return to it later, when we ask the question, “Why does the Bible forbid and demonize the things that the Sumero-Babylonian culture praises as good?” Those of you who know Jewish history - and that Christianity is essentially a radical form of Judaism - probably have the same type of answer to that question that I do. But that’s later.

Back to the story. Enkidu undergoes a couple more transformations into civilized life while with the shepherds: he gets a hair-cut, takes his first bath, and oils his skin, thus becoming, according to the poet, “fully human,” and “handsome as a bridegroom.”

Do I have to point out that caring about your appearance could qualify as the sins known as “vanity” or “pride” in the Christian tradition? And that this is yet another detail in the overall pattern that the flesh is good?

Finally, the poet follows up this last detail with evidence that Enkidu, though now more of a city-type and hedonist, enjoying sex, food, beer, and a good hair-cut and skin treatment, is still morally innocent.  My evidence?  After enjoying all these things, Enkidu takes the night shift for the shepherds, watching and protecting their flocks as they sleep, and retaining that compassion for nature’s living things that was among his chief traits “before Shamhat.”

I’ll stop there for now, after this warning: those of you who think, based on this series so far, that Gilgamesh is a text that unambiguously argues that civilization is better than nature, that humanity without limits or divine punishment is “good,” and so forth?  You have another thing coming.  As we work our way through the changes that both Enkidu and Gilgamesh undergo throughout the rest of this story, I hope you’ll agree that this ancient story is far more subtle, more disturbing, and to repeat, more wise than we would expect.

http://www.FeedBurner.com).gif" />

If you like this post, please spread it: (But don't tag it "education." That will bury it.)

1. All quotes taken from the beautifully poetic 2004 Stephen Mitchell translation of Gilgamesh.
2. please don’t take the Adam comparison too literally; there are differences distinguishing Enkidu and Shamhat from Adam and Eve that we have to recognize also.
3. ”Hierodule” is the word for a temple prostitute in the ancient world.
4. The Kama Sutra is more than that, and much of its caste-system dogma is objectionable, which is inevitable when seen with modern, post-scientific and post-democratic eyes; but the point remains: Hinduism, like the Sumero-Babylonian religion, embraces the sexual and erotic as social goods, when practiced with a sacred consciousness instead of a dark, taboo, guilt-ridden one.
5. Though I’m damned if I can find much scriptural precedent for the sinfulness of drinking alcohol in the Bible - can anybody help?

22 Comments

• At September 12, 2008, Jamilee wrote:

  I am really enjoying your series on Gilgamesh. I think I may go out and read it now. Continue please!

• At September 12, 2008, Jose De Obeso wrote:

  Just stumbled into your blog and read it all, I find your posts very interesting and will now have to add Gilgamesh to my book list, but I am currently reading Atlas Shrugged. I do not find anything offensive in whatever you had your students read, and I would like to believe that people should have no reason to. I took literature in the IBO programme in my high school in Monterrey, Mexico where I learned to appreciate it and read more than Harry Potter and R.L. Stine. I now am fascinated by it and reading your blog took me back to my old lit class where dialogue, interpretations, and knowledge were appreciated (in my college they are not). I do not know how your story ends but I do hope that you at least inspired one kid to give up the "good" way of thinking.

• At September 13, 2008, Jack641 wrote:

  Another great post. I have my thoughts on why the values regarded as 'good' here are seen as evil in the Judeo-Christian tradition, but I'll hold off on commenting until you get to it later.

  Keep them coming!

• At September 13, 2008, Kate Tabor wrote:

  So does this beg the question about excess?

  If all of the "seven deadly sins" are in the end the things that make us human, then is it the indulgence in the excess of these very human things that makes up the "sin"? Is it necessary to subdue our passions to live a Judeo-Christian "virtuous" life?

  We are reading Ben Franklin in my autobiography class, and he claims to be actively working on 12 virtues: temperance, silence, order, resolution, frugality, industry, sincerity, justice, moderation, cleanliness, tranquility and chastity. Someone suggested he should add a 13th - humility.

  Franklin says that pride is the hardest passion to subdue, "for, even if I had completely overcome it, I would probably be proud of my humility."

  And what does this say about those of us in the world who use more than our share of natural resources (excess) and then drive a Prius to show we care?

  Kate Tabors last blog post..An open letter to the NCAA Clearinghouse

• At September 14, 2008, Paul C wrote:

  Interesting that the seven 'deadly' sins: pride/greed/lust/anger/gluttony/envy/sloth may all have a silver lining?

  I'd vote for sloth at the cottage.

  How about envy or anger in search of the truth?

  Paul Cs last blog post..Men from Mars, Women from Venus?

• At September 14, 2008, Rory wrote:

  I can't wait until the next post! I hope it comes soon!

• At September 14, 2008, tommy schmitz wrote:

  Outstanding!

  tommy schmitzs last blog post..http://Baloooma.stumbleupon.com/review/25354406/

• At September 15, 2008, Clay Burell wrote:

  Jamilee, it's a book that deserves a place on anybody's shelf. It's blowing me away all over again. (I re-read it in one day last week.)

  Thanks for the encouragement, by the way. It helps.

• At September 15, 2008, Clay Burell wrote:

  Thanks Jose. You're one of several students from IB schools to mention that no topics were taboo in your English class. It's weird that they are in your college class. Why, do you think?

  How do you like Rand? If you haven't explored Nietzsche, I think you might find him more soulful (he'd hate that word, but I mean it figuratively).

  Thanks for taking the time.

• At September 15, 2008, Clay Burell wrote:

  Thanks Jack. When we get to that million-dollar question, I look forward to your input :)

• At September 15, 2008, Clay Burell wrote:

  Interesting as usual, Kate - especially the insertion of the word "virtue." To me, that takes us out of the realm of "good/evil" morality (religion) and into the realm of "good/bad" ethics (philosophy).

  "Sin" involves notions of divine rules; "virtue" involves those of human guidelines or wisdom. The first also involves fear and punishment of an irrational sort, whereas the second involves only reason and ideas of cause/effect.

  "Virtue" - or more richly, "virtue_s_", as the ancient Greeks and Romans understood them (Alisdair MacIntyre wrote a great book called, I think, _The Death of Virtue_ about the history of the devolution of our ethical sensitivity suggested by the historical change from the plural "virtues" to the singular "virtue") - "Virtue," I was saying, is very often described in terms of moderation of pleasures, not denial of them, as the worst impulses of Christianity and Islam advise. Aristotle and Buddha both agreed on this one, for example.

  (I don't consider Buddhism as much a religion as a psychology, the misguided Buddha-worshipers notwithstanding.)

• At September 15, 2008, Clay Burell wrote:

  It seems clear to me that the Sumero-Babylonians (whose religion was alive, in total, far longer than Judeo-Christianity has lived so far, by the way) would laugh at the notion that these are "sins" at all. It's really a later invention by first, the Hebrews, and later, the Catholic Church.

  But more on all that soon. Thanks as usual, Paul.

• At September 15, 2008, Clay Burell wrote:

  Thanks Rory. Encouragement helps. Feedback is also welcome :)

• At September 15, 2008, Clay Burell wrote:

  Thanks for that, Tommy.

• At September 16, 2008, Kate Tabor wrote:

  So if virtues are based in the human and sin in the divine, then Mr. Franklin was "moderating pleasures" and not so much avoiding sin. Then does Enkidu, as he discovers the very passions that make us human, begin to explore reason and to experience longing (that living for the future that gives our old friend Sigmund Freud his conception of ego and superego as a way to both satisfy and moderate passions)?

  (and I think of Buddhism and Confucianism as ethical philosophies more than religion.)

  Thanks for giving me something to think about.

  Kate Tabors last blog post..Itchy Friday…

• At September 16, 2008, Jose De Obeso wrote:

  I thought I had made it clear when I said I was from Monterrey, Mexico. Mexico is a country with a population of over 85% declared catholics and Monterrey is one of its largest cities and is part of the conservative north. It is in fact the central hub for social conservatives in Mexico, the college that I go to is not religious in any strict sense, but since religion permeates every aspect of society everyone is assumed to be a good catholic. In fact in my ethics class we pretty much see everything from the point of view that God exists and there is one God as a given that no one argues, except me. I could fill pages about the complex social role that religion takes in my local society. Priests have a lot of power here, but at the same time do not pursue incredibly stupid agendas as in the US (creationism in school for example), they tend to give the state its place and everyone values secularism because our government has had its socialist tendencies and we have had two wars to try and end religious influence over the government. Its a very weird place, and very different from many places in teh world, because even the supposed catholics here are not true catholics, they follow some sort of weird catholicism that has merged with old pre-conquista mexican traditions. There are just too many reasons to list, but to sum up: the reason it is not taboo is that IBO values questioning authority and bringing forth new ideas, it is an integral part of their diploma and programme. In college the system is not designed for the few gifted to learn a little about everything, rather it is designed to speciliaze people in a single thing and make them good workers and masters of their degree.

• At September 16, 2008, Clay Burell wrote:

  Interesting Freud connection, threatening my head with an over-expanded balloon pop. It's been a while since I've read Freud.

  Franklin was a Deist, wasn't he? He didn't buy the Bible, did he?

• At September 16, 2008, Clay Burell wrote:

  You are really making we want to work at an IB school. And you're also making me hope you find a way to study elsewhere.

• At September 16, 2008, Kate Tabor wrote:

  I'm not a BF scholar, and Franklin may have been a Diest; as far as his Autobiogaphy goes, he mentions God a handful of times, though Jesus only once that I can find (Virtue 13. "HUMILITY. Imitate Jesus and Socrates.") I imagine that living in Quaker dominated Philadelphia there was no urge to hew to a strict construction of the Bible. Though a catholic (small c) and avid reader, he is clearly conversant with the text and he does quote the book of James in his exhortation to 'do' good not just speak of doing good. Near the beginning of his narrative he thanks God:

  "And now I speak of thanking God, I desire with all humility to acknowledge that I owe the mentioned happiness of my past life to His kind providence, which lead me to the means I used and gave them success."

  Did he "buy" the Bible? Maybe, but he didn't seem to believe in any one "way" to experience the divine. His youthful beliefs he sums up this way:

  "That there is one God, who made all things.

  "That he governs the world by his providence.

  "That he ought to be worshiped by adoration, prayer, and thanksgiving.

  "But that the most acceptable service of God is doing good to man.

  "That the soul is immortal.

  "And that God will certainly reward virtue and punish vice either here or hereafter.

  All of these (with an exception perhaps for the last) would fit within many wisdom traditions across many an age.

  I have to stop this interesting line of inquiry as my daughters are all demanding my brain space - so to stuffy heads, homework, and post dinner clearing. Thanks again - it's a such a pleasure.

  Kate Tabors last blog post..Itchy Friday…

• At September 19, 2008, Penelope M wrote:

  I'm in the middle of reading "History of the World in 6 Glasses" (highly recommended) and it's reminded me of how much we as modern people fail to understand historical perspectives on alcohol. We're so strongly influenced by the viewpoint of the temperance movement, and the availability of both distilled liqours and drinkable water that we often forget that beer (ale) and wine were pretty much the only safe things to drink for most people throughout history.

  It's worth emphasizing how strongly beer and bread were associated with civilization, with the whole idea of "let's create a city" when the idea hadn't happened before.

  -----

  I was also reading something on the origins of the Christian anti-alcohol stance and I can't remember now. I know in the US there's the more recent connection to the 2nd great awakening and the reform movements of the mid 19th century, one of which was temperance.

  Penelope Ms last blog post..Dear Hollywood: Go make insipid movies about some other profession

• At September 19, 2008, Clay Burell wrote:

  Fascinating. Keep those coming, thanks.

• At September 23, 2008, Good, Evil, Nature, and the Hero - Backwards: Unsucky English, Lecture 4 (Gilgamesh, cont’d) | Beyond School wrote:

  [...] [The Unsucky English Gilgamesh series so far: 1: Dangerous Questions ~ 2: The Day I Thought Gilgamesh Would Cost Me My Job ~ 3: Adam and Eve, Backwards ~ 4. The Seven Deadly Sins, Backwards.]1 [...]