Winter 2001

Dear Linda and Charlie,

Thanks for the "living article." Congratulations on exploring new frontiers in technological approaches to mental health. I'm impressed with your work. You asked for feedback.

• I found your opening quote a shocker. It beautifully describes the alienation that often takes place in American public education.
• I have concerns about Kohlberg's research. I think that Carol Gilligan, in her influential book IN A DIFFERENT VOICE, effectively questioned morality based on justice and logic. Cold cognition has been replaced with connectedness, cooperation, and communication.
• Our work with Invitational Education provides a model that is based on respect, trust, optimism, and intentionality. It addresses the total ecosystem of the school, consisting of the five powerful P's: people, places, policies, programs, and processes.
• My concern is that your paper does not even mention "care." It seems that students are viewed as functionaries to a system, where "expectations" and "developmental tasks" are given priority. You may want to review the work of Nel Noddings with her work on caring teachers, gentle teaching, inviting schools.

To conclude, it appears that you have taken a cognitive developmental model as your foundation. You may wish to look at other models that seek to promote healthy development in students. Again, I am most impressed with your rich research.

Best wishes,
William Watson Purkey
Professor of Counselor Education
University of North Carolina at Greensboro