Small Talks, No. 71
August 5, 2022
Welcome to the seventy first edition of Small Talks. Every Friday, I highlight 6 areas of weekly joys and reflections in early childhood and the whole family. Small Talks leverages my experience at the intersection of education, philanthropy, and impact investing. Enjoy!
What I’m celebrating -
Raj Chetty has been a leading researcher studying equality of opportunity at Stanford and now Harvard University. His latest research says economic connectedness is a better predictor of a community’s upward mobility than any other characteristic studied yet. Read more about the study in this New York Times piece «Vast New Study Shows a Key to Reducing Poverty: More Friendships Between Rich and Poor» or Brookings feature. Full research (in Nature) here.
Philanthropic collaborative BlueMeridian is doubling down on support for early childhood.
New piece from yours truly in Forbes: “The workforce of tomorrow requires a child care system fit for the future”. The rate of employers offering child care benefits is at all-time high (56% vs. 36% pre-pandemic). For instance, JCPenney just announced child care benefits for its 50,000 employees with WeeCare.
For inspiration, window cleaners at Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh PA.
What I’m listening to -
Jessica Sager is the inspiring founder and CEO of All Our Kin, a nonprofit organization supporting family child care providers. Listen to her remarks at the Aspen Action Forum event last week (1min):
Terrific session by the Hunt Institute and the Trust for Learning on creating ideal environments through play.
“What is the benefit of all the pressure to read?….Everybody wants what’s best for their children. They want them to be happy and successful. But we think there’s only one way to do it and it’s cramming academics…If we have a generation of kids who can read but don’t like to read…I think that’s the worst kind of thing. If they don’t like to read, then what have we done, what is the purpose of all that?” — Dr. Denisha Jones
What I’m reading -
Marian Salzman’s “The New Megatrends: Seeing Clearly in the Age of Disruption” invites to reader to think like a futurist. Among the many trends the book highlights, Ana Gold at Diplomatic Courier selects top three here.
What I’m watching -
This TED Talk by John Tsang discusses why we need new ways of learning, delivering and acquiring knowledge, as we head into a world of intelligent machines.
What I’m learning more deeply -
Excellent report by Georgetown’s Center for Education and the Workforce “The Uncertain Pathway from Youth to a Good Job.”
Over the past several decades, the pathway to a good job has become longer and more challenging for young adults to navigate.
Today, most young workers do not attain a good job until their early 30s, and only young workers with a bachelor’s degree or higher are consistently more likely than those in the previous generation to have a good job before age 30.
Further, the disparities in good jobs by race/ethnicity and gender persist.
College students with children often face substantial shortages of time and money in completing their degrees. But now schools and other groups are stepping up to help.
Right on time for the summer holidays, this research shows the benefits of vacation, with creativity peaking 2 weeks after vacation and the importance of having elements of challenge and learning opportunities in one’s vacation.
A quote I’m pondering -
“The joy of learning is as indispensable in study as breathing is to running.”
— Simone Weil
Feedback is a gift. Which part above is your favorite? What did I miss? What do you want more or less of? Other recommendations? Please kindly let me know. Thank to all of you who are sending me amazing suggestions.
If you enjoy this newsletter, please help spread the word by sharing with your friends, colleagues, and networks.
If you enjoy this newsletter, please help spread the word by sharing with your friends, colleagues, and networks.
Have a wonderful week. Please stay safe and care for each other.
Isabelle