Join us as we ask influential author Alfie Kohn in-depth questions about his groundbreaking philosophy on Unconditional Parenting, Rewards, Homework, and other topics.
Many of our listeners are familiar with the work of Alfie Kohn. (And if you aren’t, now is the time!) Kohn’s books look at the research behind the “default” thinking about how we communicate with and parent our children, and help us find ways to connect with and teach our kids more effectively. As his website states:
Alfie Kohn writes and speaks widely on human behavior, education, and parenting. The author of eleven books and scores of articles, he lectures at education conferences and universities as well as to parent groups and corporations. Kohn’s criticisms of competition and rewards have been widely discussed and debated, and he has been described in Time magazine as “perhaps the country’s most outspoken critic of education’s fixation on grades [and] test scores.”
I (Lisa) first met Alfie Kohn in person many years ago at a conference, and was very inspired by his presentation. In the Q&A, though, I wanted to know, “so, now that we know all of this, how do we get kids to cooperate?” I’ve read a lot of parenting books. Even at that point, I had read a lot, and knew that most traditional parenting books give you a formula, and assurances that if you just follow it, you’ll be golden. Where was the formula?? I still remember Kohn’s wry look when I asked the question, and I suspect it’s a look I’ve now given others.
Parenting is about developing relationships, and even more difficult, developing skills at relationships – not just in our kids, but in ourselves. Instead of giving us easy answers and assurances, Kohn asks the tough questions. He questions our assumptions about the nature of children, points out the euphemisms we use for parenting practices and the message they send, and challenges us to look beneath the common thinking about parenting.
This show will be a chance to explore some of those questions. Don’t expect to hear potty training advice or 10 steps on how to get your child to clean his room. Instead, prepare to come away with the feeling that even though you may now have even less formulaic answers than you did before, it started your thinking going in new and intriguing ways. At least, that is always how I feel after listening to this fascinating speaker.
We’ll be taking questions in advance over voicemail, facebook, and email. To leave us a voicemail, call (641) 715-3900 Extension 98407# . After you record your message, if you don’t like it, press #, and you can delete or re-record. You are also welcome to leave questions here.
To set up a reminder for the show, to join us live, or to listen to the archive afterward, please visit: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/parenting/2010/02/24/unconditional-parenting-with-alfie-kohn
