May 12, 2015 The Wrong Way to Get People to Do the Right Thing By Alfie Kohn [This essay is adapted from The Brighter Side of Human Nature, which contains the complete references to research cited here.] Our culture may sing the praises of the heroically selfless, yet it also seems to disdain the very idea of helping. We ... Read More
Caring
January 11, 2022 Second Thoughts About Community and “Empathy” By Alfie Kohn We’re too quick to ascribe neutrality to things that actually aren’t neutral at all. Standardized tests, for example, don’t provide anything like an objective “snapshot” of teaching and learning. Not only are they best at measuring relatively trivial intellectual capabilities, but administering them influences what gets taught, thereby ... Read More
January 27, 2025 Heterogenius Why and How to Stop Dividing People into Us and Them By Alfie Kohn How can we use each other’s differences in our common battles for a livable future? – Audre Lorde Even as a child I was puzzled by people who wanted to hang out only with those who were very much like themselves. I ... Read More