ARTICLES
Reno-Tahoe Equestrian Centre chose its tagline with several things in mind about the philosophy of our business and teaching methodology. With Deborah having a Master’s Degree in Communication and 8 years of teaching at the collegiate level in that discipline, communication and its studies are something that drives her business choices. With the current studies surfacing both by Harvard and books by MIT Professor, Sherry Turkle, it is apparent now more than ever the value of learning to communicate with a horse! RTEC is living its tagline of “More than riding a horse!” every day as we teach our students the value of face to face communication. To be successful in working with a horse you must be free of distraction and devices! In a recent study, it was shown that collegiate students are 40% less empathetic than a decade ago! In a recent morning news program, it was suggested people try the following exercise to improve their communication skills: Go for a 10-minute walk and leave the phone/tablets behind. Create a sacred space where there are no phones out or on the people in the space. Try some solitude – 10 minutes free to be alone with yourself – your thoughts and to be aware of your surroundings. Constantly plugged-in makes it more difficult to think for yourself. Our students are developing their own identity. We practice each of these exercises every day at RTEC. Our students do not ride with their phones or other devices! The arena is a phone-free zone! Our students have time to be alone and/or with their horse! We are thrilled to be doing our part to assist our students in every possible way!
We never talk any more: The problem with text messaging
http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/31/tech/mobile/problem-text-messaging-oms/
Alone Together – an interview with Sherry Turkle
http://www.npr.org/2012/10/18/163098594/in-constant-digital-contact-we-feel-alone-together
Abby Rockefeller Mauzé Professor of the Social Studies of Science and Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
http://www.mit.edu/~sturkle/
Horse-Riding can improve children’s cognitive ability (Science News 03/02/17)
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/03/170302115822.htm
Sherry Turkle on Talking Face to Face (Boston Globe 10/2/15)
https://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/2015/10/02/sherry-turkle-power-talking-face-face/r6RFoy1LZBT4gIk2I0WJoK/story.html
The Lost Art of Human Communication
http://www.larsonmarcom.com/blog/recovering-the-lost-art-of-human-communication/
The New Way for Kids to be Rude
http://www.empoweringparents.com/My-Teen-is-Addicted-to-Texting.php
Motivating Young Adolescents
