photo credit: Otter Student
A HUGE thank you to all of the parents and grandparents who joined us at Chicago Executive Airport on Wednesday. I understand that several families needed to make special arrangements for it to work and your efforts are much appreciated.
I also need to deeply thank Madeleine Monaco, president of the Chicago Executive Pilots Association, who not only graciously and courageously opened the doors of her Cessna 150 to us all, but also made connections with several people affiliated with the airport to make our learning possible.
Thank you very, very much, Ms. Madeleine Monaco!
These included Jamie Abbott, Chicago Executive Airport’s Executive Director, who lent us the airport van as well as the wonderful tour-guide talents of Rob Mark, Chicago Executive Airport’s Communications Director.
Thank you, Mr. Rob Mark
Mr. Mark is also a humble host: while he did tell us that he is a flight instructor, he didn’t mention that he is also a captain-rated commercial jet pilot, a former air traffic controller and FAA supervisor, and an award-winning aviation journalist. Thanks also to Gina Zungrone, from Signature Flight Support, who coordinated our use of Signature’s hangar #19 as well as moving Ms Monaco’s aircraft into the hangar for us to investigate.
An Otter student’s grandfather enjoys learning from Signature Flight Support’s Gina Zungrone. Thank you, Ms. Zungrone!
And a special thanks to Mary Linstromberg, our original S.M.E. (subject matter expert) and the person who sparked the children’s interest in aviation, fanned those flames, and coordinated this amazing culminating event. Mary, we’ve learned so much and we couldn’t have done it without you.
How it All Went Down (er..Up?)
photo credit: Otter Student
Every family had someone on-site and I’m sure you’ve shared your experience with each other at home, so here’s just a quick run-down of how the visit went (followed by a ridiculously long philosophical treatise).
We arrived on time (thanks, everyone!) and met up with Madeleine, who introduced us to Rob and got us out of the chilling wind, into the vestibule of hangar #19.
We’d been searching for practical uses of numbers. One student sketched the keypad lock in the vestibule of Hangar #19.
Inside the building, we split up into two groups. One group went with Rob to tour another hangar,
The structure on the left is a giant dolly used to bring the NBC 5 helicopter in and out of the hangar.
Sketching the engine of a plane with its cowling removed.
while the other stayed to take turns sitting in the cockpit of Madeleine’s plane,
yes, there is a student in there!
working the yoke, and observing the effects of their actions on the elevators and ailerons.
A student transforms from reluctant to enthusiastic, testing out the effects of her actions on the yoke. Thank you, Ms. Monaco!
While waiting, students designed aircraft color schemes on forms provided by Ms. Monaco. Thank you!
When Rob’s first group returned, we all switched.
Rob’s two tours took folks to two different hangars. One contained several large aircraft and the other contained many smaller planes. Students had time to sketch their observations
…and ask questions.
“Why don’t small planes have bathrooms?”
This was the very first question of the day. Even I enjoyed a silent chuckle before I guided the student to talk to the expert. Ms. Monaco answered quite thoroughly and illustratively and the essence was simply that small planes are too small to fit bathrooms into.
Simple enough, but such questions are directly related to one of the reasons that I work to follow children’s interests.
The question revealed the fact that this child, just like every one of us, had experiences that led to the acquisition of knowledge. That knowledge represented the child’s full understanding of the concept of airplane hygiene. But in this new experience (being told that there were no bathrooms on the plane), that understanding was directly challenged. This young person was really saying, “hang on, I know that planes have bathrooms. I used a bathroom on a plane. What you are telling me is not right according to my view of the universe.”
Jean Piaget, the “father of cognitive developmental theory,” called this state of mind “disequilibrium.” Disequilibrium can be accompanied by negative feelings like discomfort and frustration, or positive ones like excitement. When a person encounters disequilibrium, there are a few paths that can follow:*
- The person can reject the new information and maintain their prior understanding.
- The person can reject their prior concept and replace it with the new one.
- The person can modify their understanding of the overall phenomenon to include both the old and the new information (Piaget called this “accommodation”).
A person who is unaware that they are in disequilibrium will go down one of these three paths without making a conscious choice. Conversely, a person who knows they are facing an apparent conflict between old and new learning can make a choice about where they will take it.
They can choose to maintain a closed mind or to open up to new possibilities. Even if they finally choose to reject the new information, they will have based that decision on an evaluation of the new and old information and made a conscious choice about the value of each. This consciousness of one’s own learning is essential to co-creating a healthy society.
At age 3-4, our curious Otter student may or may not have been aware of their own disequilibrium. Child development research suggests that this is exactly the age during which metacognition (thinking about thinking) begins to develop. This is a time when adult guidance can really make a difference (Maria Montessori called times like these “sensitive periods”).
By honoring children’s questions, we model respect for disequilibrium and encourage children to respect it in themselves. We show children that the uncomfortable feelings are worth paying attention to. These feelings are a signal that we are about to grow. Listening to that signal gives us the power to decide what to do.
I believe that a society of people who better understand their own minds will make decisions that better reflect their values. People with stronger metacognition may be more able to understand each other, leading to more listening, better communication, and better problem solving. They will be better equipped to grapple with moral and ethical challenges.
I’m not proud to admit that I sometimes toss off a haphazard answer to a child’s question. But I’m working on that, and I hope that the vast majority of the time I do place myself face-to-face with a child, and in some way, shape or form, tell them, “that’s a worthy question. Let’s find out.”