{"id":1106,"date":"2022-12-20T14:13:16","date_gmt":"2022-12-20T19:13:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cohort21.com\/garthnichols\/?p=1106"},"modified":"2022-12-20T14:13:16","modified_gmt":"2022-12-20T19:13:16","slug":"book-review-stolen-focus-johann-hari","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cohort21.com\/garthnichols\/leadership\/book-review-stolen-focus-johann-hari\/","title":{"rendered":"Book Review: “Stolen Focus” (Johann Hari)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Stolen Focus, Why you Can’t Pay Attention – and How to Think Deeply Again, by Johann Hari, is a game-changer for me. It captures the tension, the friction, the challenge, opportunity and hope that faces education in the face of diminishing ability to think deeply, pay mindful attention, and to learn deeply. This book explores the patterns and trends over time of humanity’s actions that have worked against our focus and attention abilities and skills.<\/p>\n

Is this book a bit terrifying? Yes.
\nIs this book interesting? Yes, it is fascinating.
\nIs this book hopeful? Ultimately, yes – and encouraging.<\/p>\n

You would be interested in this book if you are:<\/strong>
\n1) Looking to explore personal and systemic causes of our inability to focus
\n2) Curious about the pace and speed of the world and its implications to education and raising children
\n3) Embroiled already in a debate \/ argument \/ challenge with social media and digital devices
\n4) Wanting to take back your focus and attention in a world that is trying to steal it<\/p>\n

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The book begins, and has a thread throughout, of Hari’s personal realization of the impact of the systems and structures in our society that are tugging at our attention and focus. It is this personal experience that makes this book very readable, even as he draws upon in-depth research and interviews with experts in their field. This is not a personal, self-help book, though that may be a part of it; rather, this is an exacting exploration into history, industry and economics and our society.<\/p>\n

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Skinner Box vs. Mihaly’s Flow<\/h3>\n

As educators we all know BF Skinner, but perhaps not how influential he was to forming our current education system, and how we think of motivation. At his height, he was on Television, on Government committees, and magazines.<\/p>\n

He was highly influential in education thought and practices as well. Watch this:<\/p>\n