injenuity

Posted by Jennifer on July 3rd, 2008 in Uncategorized , DIY, EDUPUNK

I think I was raised by my parents to champion all that is DIY (Do It Yourself). When I was 7, my mother and my piano teacher got together and decided to write a piano book for kids. There were no personal computers back in the stone age, so they used the tools they had available. I remember my mother leaning over a light table for hours on end, rubbing off little black adhesive notes onto the pages, being so careful not to ruin the stems of the notes. They allowed the children to draw the illustrations that were printed on the inside of the covers. When the books came back from the printers, they were not yet bound and collated! We stuffed every one of them by hand, night after night until they were ready to be sent to the distributors. Almost 30 years later, she’s still making royalties from the series she published.

My dad was a USAF Academy English instructor, PR person and instructional designer, but when it came time for home improvement, he did it himself. He finished basements, built decks and patio covers and wired everything he could for the best stereo sound. In my house, we learned to do what we could with the tools on hand. I think this is why I am comfortable with change and churn in technology. I also think it’s important to instill this mindset in our children.

Growing up, my parents would take us on road trips around the country every summer. They brought us to historical and cultural sites and let us learn about the world first-hand.  In high school, I never brought home a text book and never asked for help with homework, yet I also never brought home a grade lower than B.  My parents would let me skip school to visit the Smithsonian, because they knew I would learn more there.  I think I missed every Monday my senior year.  I would put a note on my door saying I had cramps.  Miraculously, the cramps would disappear by the afternoon so I could go to my job at the record shop.  This is where I learned about people, music, and the world!

What can we do so our future leaders are prepared to be resourceful with the tools they have, to reach beyond their immediate access, to seek collaboration and to champion creativity in all forms? How can we help them learn that often, there isn’t a right and wrong way, we just need to go forth and do something? Who is responsible for encouraging creativity and activism? If we battle our IT departments, who suffers? If we speak and don’t do, who will? Will their actions hurt, or help?