Coach Kyle– Apogee Alliance: PA

Why I Joined Apogee Alliance: PA

I am very happy to be joining Apogee Alliance. For me, it’s very simple… being is loving, and

growing is learning, so why not learn to grow in a space we truly love being?

Snapshot in Time

I’m very interested to see how this community grows, and I’m curious to experience how exactly

we learn to become whoever we aspire to be. What an amazing opportunity to connect our

minds, awaken our hearts, and step fearlessly into the unknown… to discover new ways of

knowing… to explore new habits of being… and in the words of Paulo Freire, “to grow together

in the common effort to understand the reality that we seek to transform”.

Philosophy of Education

In my opinion, a dialectical approach to education is most constructive. It implies continuous

movement within the learning sphere, through the dynamic interplay of opposing forces… theory

vs practice, appearance vs reality, tradition vs innovation... The concern is no longer right or

wrong, or true and false. Dialectical inquiry works toward the reconciliation of opposing forces,

and the balancing of contradictory postures. It emphasizes interdependence, and underscores

the interconnection between forces, aiming to synthesize a more nuanced understanding of the

world as we know it.

No predetermined outcomes, no mechanical reproduction of answers, no compulsion to

conform. Just a pedagogy that fosters self-awareness, and a curriculum that links awareness

with practice. Practicing variations of learning as an exercise of freedom: the freedom to resist

prejudice with critical thinking, the freedom to defy ignorance by creative self-expression, and

the freedom to disregard structures of oppression through peace-building, community

development and grassroots activism.

The construction of knowledge is a cooperative process. Beginning as dialogue… we exchange

perspectives. Thoughts may collide, and ideas ricochet, creating a spark, or an energy that can

trigger the imagination, illuminate possibility, and crystallize a pathway toward self-actualization.

Worldview

One of my favorite learning instruments is a mirror, as an allegory of the mind. If our minds can

serve as mirrors to one another, we can guide all those sparks in the classroom through a portal

of self-reflection. All you need are two mirrors reflecting a spark to kindle the imagination. To

me, a coach is someone who can help angle a mirror so that it reflects the light within a

student’s mind. In other words, we can tilt our minds to reflect upon the brilliance shining

through the mirror. The mirror is a doorway to the imagination, and self-reflection is the key.

The imagination is a playground, well worth exploring, but no need to get completely lost living

within the reflection of a dream or searching for echoes of memories not yet born. There is work

to be done. The world, in every sense, and in every corner, needs to be revitalized. My hope is

to accompany and to encourage and to empower a new generation of leaders: authentic,

compassionate, courageous, confident, creative, diligent, insightful, generous, and true. May

we all assume the responsibility to love and to heal and to grow.