Epstein's Range, Karlgaard's Late Bloomers, and Boaler's Limitless Mind

One of our faculty members is a close, personal friend of David Epstein (The Sports Gene) and this teacher is extremely enthusiastic (as he should be) about Epstein’s latest non-fiction work: RANGE: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World. Epstein is an engaging writer who begins by contrasting the stories of Tiger and Roger – showing that Woods (the early specialist) and Federer (a generalist) achieved dominance in their sports through different philosophies.  Epstein continues by citing examples and academic studies involving music, mathematics, education, science and medicine – essentially giving his readers some broad and general exposure to his thesis. He describes participants of one study who “were perfectly capable of learning from experience, but failed at learning without experience. And [yet] that is what a rapidly changing, wicked world demands – conceptual reasoning skills that can connect new ideas and work across contexts.” Epstein repeatedly points out that frustration actually means that you are learning. RANGE has been favorably reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Guardian and The Atlantic. I highly recommend that you add it to your reading list. Epstein has made me want to do some more exploring of the concepts (like Fermi thinking) and resources (like University of Washington’s course on Calling Bullshit) that he mentions, particularly in regards to the application for our students’ Junior Theme research. If you are looking for more ideas to stretch your mind, consider also the recent list of summer reads for educators recommended on Edutopia.

“The Power of Patience in a World Obsessed with Early Achievement” is the subtitle for LATE BLOOMERS by Rich Karlgaard which one of our administrators has been strongly recommending. There is a great deal to discover in Karlgaard’s writing and beyond; he shares numerous anecdotes and devotes roughly a quarter of the text to notes and sources. He begins by looking at the potential consequences of how we measure and focus on achievement, especially for young people: “when so many people believe they are inferior based on a few narrow measurements made when they were children, society as a whole suffers.” Karlgaard then shifts to a chapter on the strengths of Late Bloomers: curiosity, compassion, resilience, equanimity, insight, and wisdom are all illustrated with numerous inspirational examples. One memorable quote comes from a global consultant named Don Peppers who says, “Not being curious is not only intellectually lazy, but it shows a willful contempt for the facts. If you don’t want to know the truth about something, then how moral can you claim to be?” Karlgaard also mused about the idea that almost everyone seemed to self-identify as a late bloomer and that perhaps some of the current, painful political discourse is a result of people feeling “unacknowledged, unappreciated and disrespected.” He encourages employers to take advantage of that potential, parents to “enjoy your children as they are” and for educators to better meet the needs of late bloomers. This past May, Karlgaard wrote a feature essay (adapted from his book) called “It’s Never Too Late to Start a Brilliant Career” in The Wall Street Journal where he cited many examples including the recently deceased Toni Morrison who “published her first novel, The Bluest Eye, at 39 and won a Pulitzer Prize for Beloved at 56 and the Nobel Prize in Literature five years later.” Reading LATE BLOOMERS may cause you to re-evaluate the path to long-term happiness for yourself and others.  

LIMITLESS MIND by Jo Boaler encourages us to “Learn, Lead, and Live Without Barriers.” Boaler is the Nomellini-Olivier Professor of Mathematics Education at Stanford University, and the faculty director of youcubed.  As you can see from that website, much of her work has focused on mathematics and students in the K-8 range. However, the soon to be released LIMITLESS MIND has application across ages. Boaler first debunks damaging assumptions that limit confidence and willingness to try new things. Using a fairly academic tone, she discusses neuroplasticity and then outlines six keys that deal with our growth journey, the value of mistakes, relationships between beliefs and health, multiple ways of learning, importance of creativity and flexibility over speed, and importance of connections. I especially liked this last section where she discusses how “part of the reason students give up on learning is because they find it difficult and think they are alone in their struggle.” Boaler stresses the importance of working together so that student realize that “for everyone learning is a process and that obstacles are common.” Just as I encourage my student researchers to be sure they use a variety of sources (who will they invite to that metaphorical dinner party?), Boaler also notes that “connecting with another person’s idea both requires and develops a higher level of understanding.” Her examples for schools to encourage community involvement are practical, including a profile of Shane Feldman, founder of Count Me In movement. LIMITLESS MIND is filled with inspirational stories and is worth a look as we continue to grow and “think differently.” As Boaler says, “we are all learning all the time.” 

Vox by Christina Dalcher

In a week after we were told that “Truth isn’t truth,” publication of the new book VOX by Christina Dalcher seems chillingly apt. It is a dystopian novel set in the near future where women must wear a counter bracelet and are only allowed to say 100 words a day (versus the 16,000 which is the estimated current average).  They and their daughters are not allowed other activities which we would take for granted: to travel out of the country, to read a recipe or the mail (or any book other than a women-only version of the Bible), to work outside their homes (of course, that means essentially no female political representatives). Dalcher even has a character asking: “How could this happen in less than a generation?”   

Yes, her premise does stretch credibility; plus, there is an uncomfortable element of religious zealotry (with members of the Pure Movement in power) and the ending reads more like a spy thriller. On balance, though, the beginning of VOX is both relevant and well-done and the “zingers” that appear near the end of almost every chapter are very clever, cynical, and even shocking:

“What do they study now, our girls? A bit of addition and subtraction, telling time, making change. Counting, of course. They would learn counting first. All the way up to one hundred.”  

“Signing defeats the purpose of what we’re trying to do here. … there are people researching the new – you know – devices. They’ll be more like gloves.”

Looking for some near-term real world connections? In addition to the #MeToo news, review the recent Pew Research poll on attitudes towards more female Congressional candidates where 12 percent of Republican men are opposed although most Americans (61%) think it is a good thing. New York Times has also just published a video (some graphic and offensive language) about difficulties which women candidates face. Or look at this scholarly analysis which was summarized in The Washington Post showing which states are most sexist.

Dalcher’s debut, VOX, is a LibraryReads selection and received a starred review from Library Journal.

The Performance Cortex by Zach Schonbrun

Interested in how Neuroscience is redefining athletic genius?  That’s the subtitle of a new book, THE PERFORMANCE CORTEX, by Zach Schonbrun and it is filled with surprising findings and profiles of those involved in this relatively new field.  Parts of this book describe the work of deCervo’s Jason and Jordan, two neuroscientists who are (in the spirit of big data’s Moneyball) experimenting with measuring and predicting the hitting ability of baseball candidates. 

This book is full of minutiae (“the typical batter will begin his swing at 19 feet”) and scientific jargon, mixed entertainingly with anecdotes (Yogi Berra saying, “How can you think and hit at the same time?”) and observations about a tradition bound sport (one where managers still “make calls to the bullpen using a landline phone”). Other chapters deal with topics like theories from Daniel Wolpert (“The Real Reason for Brains”), Johns Hopkins University's John Krakauer commenting on basketball's Stephen Curry, and numerous applications related to robotics.   

THE PERFORMANCE CORTEX is not a quick read, but I do think students interested in sports and science, especially if they are working on a Junior Theme, will benefit from having a look.