Disciplined Teaching

Howard Gardner defines discipline as:

• Working steadily on a craft.


• Expert status in an area and continuing to be an expert by continuing your education.

“If I don’t practice for a day- I know it, if I don’t practice for a week- the
orchestra knows it, if I don’t practice for a month- everyone knows it.” –Arthur
Rubinstein

I hope I continue to learn something new every day and grow as a teacher. I do not want to become stagnant by not trying anything new or learning about new ideas. I want to be as up-to-date on all new ideas as a student just coming out of college- only with the background knowledge of an experienced teacher.

Leader v. Creator

What is the difference between a leader and a creator? I watched a video today called Creativity and Leadership: Making the Mind Extraordinary, Howard Gardner: In-Depth (1998). It was quite interesting and asked the question- what makes a great leader or creator?

Leaders- lead through stories, ideas, and the way they lead their lives. They directly share with audiences and have linguistic and interpersonal talents. They have a rhythm of success and failure however, they do not quit when they fail. They reflect after a failure to determine what to do better next time. They take risks and say what's on their mind. They have high energy and always need to be in charge of something.

Creators- solve problems, fashion products, and ask questions within a specific domain in a novel manner. Their work is acceptable in their culture. They share their ideas in more indirect ways such as through essays, theories, and other means.

So what are you... a leader or a creator?