By Kylea McMurray
Moapa Valley Progress
Submitted April 30, 2008
The NorthStar Commonwealth of Moapa Valley sponsored a free education forum at the Overton Community Center on Thursday. Northstar is an organization run by parents who want to help their children receive a good education. The forum featured two main speakers who emphasized leadership education.
The first speaker was Professor John Pulver. He started with a survey entitled “Where are you with your education, and that of your children?” This presentation helped parents at the forum evaluate their own educational progress, and the areas that they needed to improve.
The second speaker, Laura Bledsoe, has been involved with the program Face to Face With Greatness, and has spent a lot of time working on education with both parents and students.
Bledsoe focused her remarks on the three main types of education, how they work and what we can gain from each type. She explained that we can use conveyor belt, or public education in order to get a job. This type of education uses textbooks and activities to teach us what to think, and to prepare us for the workforce.
She compared conveyor belt education to professional education. In professional education, students use case studies and applications in order to specialize in a certain profession. “The world today is full of professionals who specialize,” said Bledsoe. “From an educational perspective this type of education teaches us when to think, in order to advance in our respective professions.”
The last type of education Bledsoe discussed was Leadership Education. “The goal of leadership education is to teach students how to think, so that they can make their own decisions,” said Bledsoe. This method focuses on teaching values, and letting students learn from classic literature of all genres. “We can create simulations, and inspire students to learn on their own, instead of forcing them to memorize facts from a textbook,”said Bledsoe.
This forum was the first in what may become several educational seminars, said John Pulver. “This one started small, but we hope to have more seminars where we can involve people and educators throughout the Valley.”
Those interested in learning more about leadership education can visit the NorthStar Commonwealth. A Parent’s Meeting will be held at the Overton Park on May 3 at 7:00 p.m.
