Sages and Seekers Participate in Study

 

First launched in 2009 by Ms. Elly Katz, Sages and Seekers has become an essential component of Rivers’ English 10 curriculum, enriching the students’ literary studies and enhancing the teaching of writing. The program also has a profound personal effect on students, fostering the development of empathy and social skills. It complements the English curriculum's focus on empathy and perspective by allowing the students to deeply understand another person's life experience through careful listening and the act of representing their story in writing.

 

Last year, Ms. Katz approached Dr. Mary Helen Immordino-Yang, a neuroscientist, author, and professor at the University of Southern California's Rossier School of Education, to ask if she would partner with Sages and Seekers on a study of the benefits of the program. Together they applied for and received a research grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. Dr. Immordino-Yang is the current president of the International Mind, Brain, and Education Society, and was one of 13 thought leaders to speak at the White House in February.

 

“Storytelling is a folk art with roots as old as humanity itself,” noted Dr. Immordino-Yang in her proposal. “Stories form the basis for self-understanding, group membership, and cultural values. Storytelling may be especially essential for adolescents, who are struggling to develop identity and an inspired vision for their future adult self, and for seniors, as an affirming way to review their lives.”

 

The weekly sessions at Rivers begin with an icebreaker to allow the students to get to learn a little about each Sage. The conversations between the paired Sages and Seekers that follow may include stories about their military service to first jobs to family dynamics and parenting. Students have remarked that they had never had such an extended conversation with one person and acknowledge how powerful it can be in today’s age of texting and tweeting. The Sages and Seekers program wraps up with a “tribute” session, where students read essays that they have composed based on the Sages’ lives and share what they’ve learned from them.

 

This year, as study participants, students and seniors will also complete anonymous pre-program and post-program surveys to gauge changes in various values and perceptions that the researchers believe may be affected by the program. Throughout the program students will also submit brief reflections on the various activities the groups participate in for the researchers to analyze.

 

“Today there is a huge awareness building not only in the U.S. but also globally that school isn’t just a place where students acquire a set of building blocks for the future,” said Dr. Immordino-Yang. “Students need to develop a sense of self and an ability to reflect on what they are learning so the skills take on meaning in a greater context. Rivers already has a very innovative approach to teaching and engages in curriculum that promotes developing that sense of self. We hope through our study to be able to measure the impact of this kind of deeper thinking and reflectivity, and use it to promote programs like Sages and Seekers in schools that don’t currently employ that kind of pedagogical approach.”

 

One returning Sage, Jeff Talmadge ’64, commented that he was intrigued when he first heard about the program. He wasn’t sure what he might have to say to students, but he always enjoyed talking with young people, and was interested in learning more about today’s Rivers students, so he decided to give it a shot. The first year he participated, both of his seekers clearly were struck by the central role Jeff’s family has played in his life, and his reflection on their conversations anecdotally confirms the researchers’ hypothesis about the benefits to both parties.

 

“I was so impressed by the maturity of the kids, by the depth of their questions and answers,” commented Talmadge. “I was surprised by one student’s perceptions about my parenting, and touched that she attributed my son’s success as a parent to my having taught him how to be selfless and caring of others.”

 

Click on these links to learn more about Sages and Seekers:

A 3-minute overview with Rivers faculty

A 15-minute detailed video of the program