News & Notes - AGPA
On a long car trip recently I listened to a CD biography of Albert Einstein. In addition to making the miles fly by faster, this eccentric genius fascinated me not only for the abundance and daring of his research (he revolutionized physics after all) but also for lessons that teachers could learn from his life.
Einstein's parents were so concerned about his delayed development, especially his speech, that they consulted a doctor for advice. The family housekeeper called him a "dope" and his peers in elementary school teased him as being a "bore" because he refused to roughhouse with them. He loved to read, to build houses of cards, and to play the violin. Although dismissed by some as dull and dimwitted, his mother is said to have remarked that one day he may be a great professor. How many times in my years of teaching did I struggle seeing the scholarly adult in the adolescent of promise? Perhaps if I had learned from Einstein's early years...
Two toys are said to have sparked much of Einstein's early scientific musings - an uncle gave him a small steam-driven engine and, once while he was sick for several days in bed, his father presented him with a compass. Relatives report that he played for hours with these toys - he would retreat off by himself in solitude, undisturbed by his parents, his sister, or other distractions. Where are the opportunities in our noisy world for today's budding scientists to contemplate the workings of the universe?
IQ or creativity? Certainly Einstein recognized that his mental abilities were above average, but to him, his qualities of perseverance and creativity far outweighed any native intelligence. His creativity got him in trouble with the school establishment - perhaps the reason why his grades were often only average. He deplored teaching methods that emphasized memorization, commonly used in schools of his day, and stubbornly refused to rattle off lessons by heart. He once remarked about his stubbornness, which got him in much trouble in school, that when God created the donkey, he give it a thick hide to withstand the disapproval of others. Do we teachers ever stifle students' creative genius by requiring unnecessary completion of boring, routine tasks?
To the end of his life, Einstein maintained a childlike sense of wonder, a playful sense of humor (he composed limericks in addition to writing scholarly papers), a rapport with children that made him more comfortable with them than with adults, and a humility founded on a respect for nature's order and mystery. Although he was recognized the world over and nurtured close friendships for decades, he lived a solitary, simple life. We all have benefited from the life and work of this "lonely genius".
- Katharine Owens, Associate Director of Operations