Children and Play in the Holocaust

Children and Play in the Holocaust is a emotionally hard to read essay by George Eisen. With a long list of references Eisen presents the experience of children in ghettos, detention centers and concentration camps during the Nazi occupation. These stories challenge the classical theory of play but also reinforce how play is so encoded in our genes that is almost unavoidable. 

"Play burst forth spontaneously and uncontrollably without regard of the external situation."

The sociological, psychological, physiological and even political aspects of life during the Holocaust are visited under the lens of children, and adult, play.

"Their play, just like all human experiences, was reflective of and governed by societal, psychological, and economic conditions of the society in which they took place."

For the people in the play field the book can be used as a catalog of play experiences to be classified under the 16 play types by Bob Hughes; to identify the play cycle and the role of adults in free play.

A River in Darkness

A River in Darkness is a surreal story of a man struggle to survive in North Korea. Half Japanese and half Korean, Masaji Ishikawa migrated to North Korea after his father got enticed by the lies of Kim Il-sung. For 36 years he struggle to survive to care for his family and see them die of starvation and abuse. He finally made it back to Japan just to find indifference and hostility. 

Among the lessons in the book is the eyewitness testimony of the failure of central planning (core of Socialism and Communism)

But that’s the thing. People in North Korea spend so much time in study meetings and calculating the number of hours they’ve worked that there’s no time to do the actual work. The result? Raw materials don’t arrive in factories, the electricity doesn’t work, and farms are overrun with weeds. But as long as people can get their food rations, they don’t care.

The black market was also thriving. It seemed the more messed up a country became, the more the black market prospered.

A River in Darkness is strikingly crude in the recollections of Ishikawa memories but also in the blind eye of other governments that wanted to avoid conflicts with North Korea, specially China and Japan itself. 

I often think about what would have become of me if I’d stayed in North Korea. I would probably have starved too. But at least I’d have died in someone’s arms with my family gathered around me. We’d have said our goodbyes. What chance of that now?

Ishikawa disappeared, don't know if publishing the book helped him in anyway. Don't even know if Masaji Ishikawa is his real name or a pen name. We just can hope he found peace.

Exponential Organizations

In 1982 Tom Peters and Robert Waterman published In Search of Excellence, in 1994 Jim Collins and Jerry Porras published Built to Last, and in 2014 Salim Ismail, Mike Malone, Yuri van Geest came up with Exponential Organizations. What do these have in common? They are examples of what Jeff Sandefer call "Business Pornography". Or what Phil Rosenzweig in The Halo Effect calls Delusion of Rigorous Research.

Books that sold by the millions pleasing the ears of people looking for instant success stories.

Exponential Organizations (ExO) makes some good diagnostics of the differences in pace and dynamics in the market. However the book is about Unicorns a fact that the authors acknowledge "Most of Lee's unicorns score well above the ExO threshold score." 

A principle in finance is that the higher the risk the higher the returns, thus an ExO has very high returns because they have very high risks.The book misses the mark by oversimplifies the market, it doesn't say anything about the thousands who die trying to be unicorns, it has no recognition to elements of luck and opportunity. Somehow Ismail et. al. despise the old fashion business model of bootstrapping and hard-work is still valid.

In the end they come with the idea of an ExO mindset which should yield into a ExO company and X10 returns. Economically if this were true the market would be dominated by very few companies, all ExOs, or the market would be so huge that I doubt it would be sustainable. 

Near the end of the book Ismail et. al. quote economist Brian Arthur: "Complexity economics is a different way of thinking about the economy. It sees the economy not as a system in equilibrium but as one in motion, perpetually 'computing' itself - perpetually constructing itself anew. Where equilibrium economics emphasize order, determinacy, deduction and stasis, this new framework emphasizes contingency, indeterminacy, sense-making and openness to change. Until now, economics has been a noun-based rather than verb-based science." What Arthur call the old economics is what Economist like Pete Boetke call "Mainstream economics" that oversimplified an emergent process, in opposition to "Mainsteet economics" that has always been dynamic. Maybe the velocity has change but markets were never static. Therefore, Ismail's ideas are not that original, successful entrepreneurs and business-people have succeeded because they understood the dynamics of their time.

Wise Guy

Guy Kawasaki returns with a book about life lessons that is entertaining, fun and yes, wise.

Wise Guy is a very personal book since he uses personal stories to give context to his pearls of wisdom. From the beginning Kawasaki clearly states:

"Before you ask, or wonder, this is not my autobiography or memoir. It is a compilation of the most enlightening stories of my life. Think personal lessons, not personal history."

Wise Guy is a collection of life lessons. We can learn from our own experience or vicariously from other people's experiences and this is what Guy has to offer: "my goal is to educate, not to awe you".

I'm not sure the order the author followed to write the book. He could have thought about a lesson to share and search for an anecdote to enhance or he could have remind a life event and search for lessons in it. Either way Wise Guy is a book loaded with nuggets of wisdom.

Some of the favorites ones are:

"Be a  hard-ass if you are a teacher, manager, coach, or someone who influences people. You’re not doing anyone a favor by lowering your standards and expectations in an effort to be kind, gentle, or popular. The future cost of  short-term kindness is great."

The world is full of PC-ness and being blunt and clear can be a risk worth taking. None wins from  hypocrisy. 

"Don’t consider yourself a victim... If you believe you’re a victim, you’ll truly become one.Take responsibility for your fate. You still may not succeed, but at least you’ll try."

This is a nugget consistent with other authors like Fred Kofman, Joseph Campbell and others. The victim has the benefit of not having to take responsibility but at a great cost, impotence and lack of freedom.

"Make your personal interests known. This provides “hooks” to develop additional and deeper relationships.  These relationships have led to friendships, adventures, and financial rewards. My life would have been a lot less interesting if I had not “opened the kimono” and unveiled my personal interests."

"Cultivate relationships with people you would run to see. Anyone who doesn’t pass the Shopping Center Test may waste your time, and life is too short. Second, be the person other people run to see. This is a useful test for how you treat others."

Living in a connected world is an opportunity to expand and grow. People are more than their jobs and sharing what you love can be a glue to support more and better relationships. But also the myriad of relationships can be overwhelming, Guy's advice is prioritize and spend your time wisely.

"If you provide value, you can ask  for—  and  receive— reciprocation. This is the glue that holds society together. You may not care about reciprocation, but the important concept is to help people so much that they would gladly reciprocate."

Adam Smith (and others before him) stressed the value of social cooperation. The division of labor works only in a cooperative environment. It is a mistake to think that competition is the opposite of cooperation, competition is the freedom to provide more value than others.You can't get value from society if you don't provide value, unless you are a parasite.

"Smile. The more you smile and laugh, the more you will smile and laugh. The more you smile and laugh, the easier life gets. You can never go wrong being nice, and there’s no such thing as being too nice."

This is one of the best ones. People live such dull lives that being playful seems as a sin or a crime (as Bernie DeKoven used to say). Believe in humanity and enjoy life more.

I found one of the last chapters, Ohana, quite special. Guy was humble and brave enough to ask his family and close acquaintances to share a pearl of wisdom they acquire from interacting with him. They share nice personal stories and what they learned form them.

Everybody should take the time to do what Kawasaki did with Wise Guy. Reflect on your life and what you learned, thank the people who touch your life and gave you a lesson, and ask those around you how you have made their lives better. 

You, Your Child, and School

Sir Ken Robinson is a world wide recognized educator. Whenever Robinson speaks or writes something new the education community listens. This is the case of his latest book, You, Your Child and School. This time Robinson is speaking to the parents. Helping a generation of highly involved parents deal with the anxiety that educating their children in an increasing uncertain world.

Robinson's ideas are always stimulating and challenging, and hopefully this book will expand the discussion about the need for a radical change in Education.

However Robinson seems to still hope for the impossible, to change a government run education system. The coexistence of opposing models is a conundrum that has wasted millions of dollars while destroying the hope of families.

As a kind of social justice warrior Robinson sees an active role of public education as a menas to equality. His low trust in the profit motive probably biased by the current state of cronyism within the mainstream system blinds him to the efforts of thousands of edupreneurs who are trying to make a change. As Michael Strong points out here we need a free market of education for ideas to spur innovation. For many educators it is sinful to consider education for profit but as Kerry McDonald point it out here it seems to be a major reason why so many efforts have failed.

Aside from the political contradictions, Sir Ken Robinson delivers sound advice for parents who have understood that the current system of Education needs a turnover. 

It is satisfying that Robinson devoted some pages to the importance of play. 

"Perhaps the simplest advice I can offer parents concerned about preparing their children for the world is this: let them play more. I don't mean they should spend more time with the Little League or the school basketball club, as valuable as that can be. I'm talking about inventing games on the spot, with their friends, turning a pile of twigs into a faerie wood, or hiking along a stream to explore the wildlife there. Play is the work of a child, and children must have time, space, and permission to engage in variety of play in order to maximize the developmental benefits that play offers"

Then follows to elaborate on the definition of play by the "Dirt is Good - DIG" movement.

· Play is intrinsically motivated
· Play is a state of mind
· Play is pleasurable
· Play is nonliteral
· Play is actively engaging
· Play has no external rules

Another important advice from Robinson is how to judge a good school? He offers a template to make the call.

"As a parent you can use the four purposes and eight competencies as a template for judging whether your child's school - or your homeschooling program - is providing the kind of education they really need and press for improvements where necessary." 

The four purposes:
· economic development
· social development
· cultural development
· personal development

Learning to live (ways to know):
· know that
· know how
· know this

The eight competencies:
· curiosity
· creativity
· criticism
· communication
· collaboration
· compassion
· composure
· citizenship

Overall is a good book for parents, not so a contribution to the cause of an overhaul in Education.

Rating. 3 of 5 stars.

La llamada de la tribu

"La llamada de la tribu" es el más reciente trabajo de Mario Vargas Llosa nos trae su biografía intelectual. Un recorrido por los principales pensadores que influyeron en su pensamiento liberal.

Adam Smith
José Ortega y Gasset
Friedrich August Von Hayek
Sir Karl Popper
Raymond Aron
Sir Isaiah Berlin
Jean-Francois Revel
(creo que Vargas Llosa debió agregar a Jean-Paul Sartre. Si bien es cierto que no fue un pensador Liberal, su presencia y desilusión son una constante)

Siendo Vargas Llosa un consagrado novelista, premio Cervantes (1994) y Nobel de Literatura (2010) entre muchos era de esperar un texto rico, entretenido y variado. "La llamada de la Tribu" es hasta cierto punto la continuación de "Contra Viento y Marea" (Entre Sartre y Camus, 1983) donde desarrolló su recorrido ideológico del socialismo al liberalismo. 

En esta oportunidad Vargas Llosa hace una reseña biográfica e intelectual de los autores liberales que más influyeron en su pensamiento. Por un lado nos cuenta detalles de sus vidas llegando a niveles de intimidad que acercan el personaje al lector. Detalles que no solo refieren sus virtudes sino sus defectos, haciendo de cada uno de los elegidos seres cercanos al lector. Ejemplos de estos sucesos están la disputa entre Karl Popper y Wittgenstein, o las infidelidades de Isaiah Berlin. Por otro lado, como buen escritor, no deja de hacer una crítica a la calidad literaria de sus héroes. Excelentes los textos de Ortega y Gasset y de Jean-Francois Revel, no así el inglés de Hayek. Pero la narración no es únicamente biográfica sino también intelectual. Vargas Llosa destaca los aprendizajes que tuvo de cada uno de los autores, pero también comparte lo que considera errores y contradicciones. 

Si bien es cierto que para alguien como Vargas Llosa escribir este libro es un lujo que se puede dar queda claro que todos podríamos emular la selección de nuestro "Dream Team" intelectual. Una selección que en forma indirecta esboza un perfil intelectual.

La riqueza del libro tiene un valor adicional al simple conocer mejor al Nobel, es un texto que puede bien servir de introducción al Liberalismo. Una narración donde resaltan algunos de sus principales exponentes y sus ideas sin llegar a ser un tratado académico pero si para sembrar en el lector dudas e interés por sus contribuciones individuales.

Rating 5 estrellas.

Montessori: The Science Behind the Genius

Maria Montessori was an empiricist in many ways and her method developed from careful observation of children. In this book Angeline Stoll provides extensive research background to fill the voids of scientific support of the famous educational method.

In her book, Stoll addresses each of the eight principles of Montessori Education, providing support with specific research and expanded with actual Montessori practices. 

In most of the cases Montessori proved being in line with science, upholding the value of the method.

1. Movement and cognition
2. Choice and control
3. Interest
4. Motivation
5. Collaborative learning
6. Meaningful context
7. Adult-child interaction
8. Order and the environment

Stoll criticizes the traditional school system in different parts of the book, with a two-fold argument: The system is based on the Lockean view of the blank-slate mind; an empty container that needs to be filled with information (this is an oversimplification of Locke's view but the mainstream system seems to fit Stoll's interpretation). Thus, the system is organized for most efficient transmission as a manufacturing line. Maria Montessori recognized that children are born with dispositions to learn and each child is different, therefore the education method should facilitate that. From Stoll’s work we can conclude that Montessori is a superior education system than the standard offer for families and society.

However, there are a few issues to consider for further research.

Winning against the standard educational system is not a big challenge. Most of recent theories of how the mind works show that the empty vessel filled in a manufacturing line is plain wrong. The true contestants are innovative models that value the same principles as Montessori; such as Forest Schools, Free education (i.e. Sudbury School), unschooling, etc. However, this kind of research is hard to find since these practices are not widespread. Probably there is no right or wrong answer as different models satisfy different needs and tastes.

The value of research has some inherent flaws. Stoll is careful at explaining the limitations and through combining independent studies she ties in the conclusions. However most of these studies were made in school setting and as a play advocate once said; “studying children in schools is like studying wildlife in zoos”. Also, as Stoll quotes, “studying children in an environment that is not well prepared would be like trying to study normal cell growth in an infected petri dish”. There is a broad spectrum of Montessori implementations, how to know how the specifics degrees of preparedness of the cases affected the results?

From the play profession point of view, it is interesting the overlap between Montessori and play. However, Stoll explains that Maria Montessori had a limited understanding of play, reduced to toys that may sound opposite. 

“Dr. Montessori divided our hours into those for leisure and those spent at school. She implies that children may well choose to play with toys in their leisure time, just as we may choose to play chess, but that in the schools she structured, children did not choose to play.”

A more comprehensive understanding of play highlights the similarities. Using Peter Gray’s definition (Free to Learn). 

1. Play is self-chosen and self-directed. This is coherent with the second principle of Montessori, choice and control. Play is an expression of freedom and Montessori give agency of learning to the child.
2. Play is motivated by means more than ends. Play is activity conducted primarily for its own sake. Gray says “a playful student enjoys studying the subject and cares little about the test”, something very much related to the importance of personal interests and intrinsic motivation in Montessori. Same as grades, stars and rankings kill intrinsic motivation in education, turn free play into a competition.
3. Play is guided by mental rules. Some of the critique to Montessori are its rules that Stoll explain is a balance that give freedom in some areas and structure in others. People need rules to operate either in play, school, society and work. In play children are agents in the definition of rules maybe more than in a Montessori school, but both offer way more freedom than traditional schools. This could be one of the areas of further research.
4. Play is imaginative. Although Montessori discourage the use of fantasy in little children based on their inability to distinguish between fantasy and reality, creativity, play-pretend and sociodramatic elements of Montessori are based on the imagination of children. 
5. Play is conducted in an alert but non-stressed frame of mind. The concept of flow is part of interest, context and even the purpose of what is the proper environment. 

The role of playworkers is quite similar of the role of the Montessori teacher, their goal is to disappear and just provide the right amount of clues to provoke children. Playworkers care for the quality of the playground as the teacher prepare the environment. Playworkers carefully observe the child at play just like the teacher observe the absorbent mind at work. And of course, the aphorism of Play is the Child’s Work is common to both. Of course, not everything is the same. For play advocates the affordances of items are important, the multiple uses that a person can give to a give object is discourage in Montessori classroom where each material is purposefully designed for a specific use.

It seems like children don’t find Montessori materials as alternative to toys but as engaging. Bob Hughes’ taxonomy of play (“Evolutionary Playwork”) can shed some light here.  A lot of the Montessori activities and materials can fit in some of the play types. 

Communication play is in the movable alphabet, sandpaper letters and other grammar exercises. Creative play is in the approach to science. Dramatic play and the understanding of how society works. Exploratory play and the multiple materials from the pink tower to the sound cylinders.  Mastery play is the end of Montessori three period lesson. Object play is the constant manipulation of objects such as the brown stairs, the red rods or the wooden cylinders to name a few. Recapitulative play is involved in the timeline of life or civilization. Role Play seems to be part of the appealing of Practical Life. Social play manifests in peer-to-peer and collaborative work and the mixed age groups. 

No wonder why kids can spend three hours of hard work; the program is structured as a flow of games where children enjoy enough freedom to manage their energy and attention. It is not hard to understand Maria Montessori’s reluctance about recess. In traditional schools, kids may be focused on an activity they enjoy as play and are forced to go out doing less interesting stuff. The pro-recess advocates critique the lack of freedom during breaks in traditional schools, it is not the same as in a well-run Montessori school. 

Finally advances in neuroscience could open a new door of research to connect the benefits of a Montessori method as well as all other alternatives that are popping and challenging the mainstream institutionalized education system. This could very well be the subject of another book but could provide the ultimate validation to the Genius.