Alexandra Mihai

Slow learning "The Educationalist", by Alexandra Mihai

Life is so fast paced, full of distractions & requests for immediate input.
Should our classrooms also look & feel like that? Does this help learning?
What if we could take back control & set our own rhythm?
This is an act of resistance. Are we up for it?
educationalist.substack.com/p/slow-learn...

Today I experimented with wet cyanotypes. It was so cool to see that just by using some things you have in your kitchen (vinegar, lemon, coffee, turmeric) you can bring colour & texture. This opens so much creative space! 💙💛🤎

Loved playing with mimosas today. So delicate and bright!
#ikebana

Merging waters
(The Duoro meets the Atlantic)

The ocean
embracing the river
Hungry for it;
Absorbing its softness
with untamed power.

The river
forever flowing
Towards the ocean;
Nor fearing it will be lost
but longing to be bigger
Different.

Time flies when you have fun- and important conversations!- with inspiring colleagues!
Thanks a million @dresdeb.bsky.social @niyamirandabond.bsky.social @flowerdarby.bsky.social and everyone who joined us!

Hello, beautiful Porto!

"Loneliness and snow became the same thing in her mind, lighter than air, made of nothing; only upon tackling the stuff did you realise it had piled to heavy to yield."
❄️
"The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny", by Kiran Desai

Interested in asynchronous learning? Want to find out more about how the people who design and teach it strive to make it meaningful for both educator and learner? Join @anda19.bsky.social @flowerdarby.bsky.social @niyamirandabond.bsky.social and I on Thurs 15 Jan, 1–2pm (UK). Link in Lawrie's post!

Winter magic ❄️❄️❄️
Seeing my hometown Brașov dressed in a fresh white blanket is such a delight.

Today's snowfall was a real throwback to my childhood. Waking up to the sight of a white blanket and falling snow. Feeling & hearing the fresh snow under my feet. This, for me, is magic.

Happy New Year!

In 2025 I was lucky to spend time in some amazing places:
Hiking & enjoying la dolce vita in Italy;
Soaking up the sun in Malta in spring & in France in summer;
Exploring London on my annual visit;
Eating my way around South Korea on a food tour in the best autumn weather.
Bring it on, 2026!

Learning does not *only* happen in the classroom. I chatted with @niyamirandabond.bsky.social about how we can scaffold & support students' learning before (and after) class. Watch our chat to get some inspiration from this free @onehe.bsky.social resource: onehe.org/resources/wh...

"Hello, World!"... revisited The Educationalist. By Alexandra Mihai

I belive education is about *people*.
In my latest newsletter I argue that we should be intentional in nurturing human interaction in education and resist the false promise of convenience exerted by the sadly ubiquitous GenAI.
educationalist.substack.com/p/hello-worl...

"Survival often depends on a specific focus: A relationship, a belief, or a hope balanced on the edge of possibility. Or something more ephemeral: the way the sun passes through the hard seemingly impenetrable glass of a window."
***
Elisabeth Tova Bailey, The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating

"It is a serious thing
Just to be alive
On this fresh morning
In this broken world."
***
Mary Oliver, "Invitation"

"What helps is that we are not all crazy and hopeless on the same day. One of us remembers and reminds the rest of us thay when it is really dark you can see the stars."
***
"Almost everything", Anne Lamott

Coziness is the smell of freshly baked brioche on a cold rainy Sunday.

"The truth is, we know so little about life, we don’t really know what the good news is and what the bad news is.”
***
Kurt Vonnegut, "A man without a country"

When using shortcuts, let's consider not only the things we can do, but also the things we can't do anymore. The skills we are missing. The things we stop practicing for convenience. Harder to grasp, yet important.

Agreed. I just wish we deliberately made more space to practice in different courses/ contexts... But this is seldom the case, sadly. "Do" is prefered to "think" in many cases. Also, I feel it works better when they are device-free, even for a short time, in analogue mode.

Yes, had this conversation. I think they appreciate it after a while, but it takes practice, and it does not really happen in many courses, unfortunately, so space to practicr is limited...

We are all burdened with so many stimuli and conditioned to act/ respond fast, moving from task to task (efficiency mantra...) that we begin to see *thinking* as a luxury. Students don't see the value of it anymore. They lose patience easily. They seek fast rewards.
What can we do about it?

Walk into the classroom.
Give students pens & papers (no, they won't have pens).
Ask them to work individually on a reflection task for 10 min.
Count until they get bored and start fidgeting.
If you're lucky, you reach 5 min.
Sad but true.
Education became so transactional.
#BringThinkingBack

What we are trying to do is help students build a toolkit that can help them make all the other courses *about them*. This includes reflection exercises & prompts, coaching, competence development strategies, etc.

This made my day, after 8 hours of teaching.
Reflection from one of my BA students in a skills/ professional development course: "I really liked that this course is *about us*. That's not the case with most of our courses... which is sad."
#FocusOnWhatMatters #ReflectivePractice

The wet air bearing
earthy undertones;
Colours fading away.

Bare-bones.

A shadow of what used to be.
Or maybe
The essence of everything.
A beginning.

Step slowly
In silence:
The earth is resting.

Breathe in.
Breathe out.
Time to pause
Recharge
So we can be again.

"Hope is an embrace of the unknown and the unknowable, an alternative to the certainty of both optimists and pessimists."
***
Rebecca Solnit

"What do we have to hold on to? Only the certainty that nothing will go according to design; our hopes are newly built wooden houses, sturdy until someone drops a cigarette or match."
***
Pico Iyer, "Autumn Light: Season of Fire and Farewells"

Colourful autumn ikebana in my new Korean mini vases.