Promoting positive social change related to healthy development and learning
‘When I was getting my teacher training masters I was told, you’re a teacher, not a social worker. But there is a social work aspect to the job.’ (Ledra Sun teaches at Delair elementary school in New Jersey, US.)
The power of motivation coming from the feeling that what you do as a teacher can make a difference in someone’s life is evident in teachers who claim to enjoy being in this profession. Indeed, It can be an inspiring profession, rather than simply a job, because you use certain tools along with a set of moral standards and values which can literally change people’s lives.
Societies have the school systems they deserve.
Emile Durkheim, the French Sociologist, argued that educational systems reproduce society’s values, norms and beliefs, and therefore he rejects the idea that education can transform society and resolve social problems.( Durkheim, 1897/1951: 372-373). In essence, Durkheim questions education’s transformational power.
I am in no position to argue whether a schooling system could radically transform societies or not.
However, I could argue in favour of small-scale, yet, significant change in individuals within the school environment.
Michael Fullan describes three fundamental ways of driving change in schools.
- A Change Leader helps the group shape and reshape quality ideas and engages all members in a process where everyone develops a sense of ownership of those ideas.
- We should stop boring students.
- Bring about change from the middle out - Top-down change doesn’t work.
The first two points are indeed very relevant to my professional environment. In my experience as the head of the Foreign Language department of the school, suggesting a quality idea to the teaching staff is not enough. There has to be a shared vision building process. We have had plenty of teachers meetings with top-down decisions that were never implemented or even tried. I have learnt, through trial and error, that judgemental remarks are not a great motivator and that a collaborative culture is one of the key factors of any positive change.
As far as our learners are concerned, we need to look more closely into their needs and engage them more in the learning process. We have recently set 4 goals in our school regarding our students.
- more active students participation in selecting material / topics.
- more technology integration (we have recently stopped using workbooks and have started using online platforms instead).
- More real-life tasks that are evidently more engaging and learners recognise the value of the task.
- Move towards Student-led Parents Conferences, so that students are more actively involved in the assessment process and develop a sense of ownership of their learning.
These goals were the result of three long meetings with teachers working in smaller groups and suggesting what goals should be set thus attempting to develop a sense of ownership.
Quality characteristics, mindsets, skills and contributions of professional practitioners
Being a professional practitioner is not a licensed instructor who simply feels bound to follow the course syllabus, but someone who constantly reflects, reviews and analyses their practice in order to improve. (Jon Spence 2014). Being a professional practitioner is about wishing to further one’s understanding and learn more about the field while making good use of all prior practice and knowledge which will allow you to have the confidence to make changes in your context as well as help others to change (Angela Major, 2014). It is also related to an awareness that personal knowledge is limited compared to the amount of information and knowledge that exists, which leads to the need to value other people’s perspectives, knowledge and skills.(Tim Kent, 2014)
Philosophy of Development and Learning
During the last few years, a huge amount of new knowledge has been produced on how human brain stores, retrieves and analyses information.
Due to non-invasive brain-imaging techniques and advances in neuroscience, we now know that the brain is the organ which is built to change in response to experience. Social and emotional learning actually changes the brain(Dr Davidson,R, 2008). Behavioural interventions can produce more specific changes in the brain than any ‘biological’ interventions such as medication. In other words, behavioural interventions are, in essence, biological!
Is this scientific information relevant to educators?
It appears that society and the education system, in particular, does not capitalise on the knowledge that has been gained in this field. Societal changes (parents struggling to spend quality time with their children, Child care centres of poor quality with little quality interaction between the child and the teacher) as well as ignorance can be a barrier to putting developmental science into practice.
Qualities such as cooperation, patience, calmness, kindness are not characteristics that are exclusively determined by our genes. Instead, they should be regarded as skills that can be developed. (Dr. Davidson, R, 2008)
If educators’ philosophy of learning acknowledges the fact that the brains of our students are constantly being moulded by experience, and educators are aware of the intricate interactions between the emotional and cognitive brain systems, then, yes, this information is of great value for everyone who is involved with children. The implications of the effect of stress and threat on learning can contribute to radical change in the way we design our lesson plans or our philosophy when we design an educational system.
This new knowledge is relevant to my professional context.
As a language teacher and Director of Studies in the foreign language department of our school, my main goal is to make sure that learners are exposed to rich, age-related content and not merely language-focused activities in which the appropriate form, grammar, and other linguistic elements are the main lesson objectives. Lack of conceptual involvement results in loss of retention of the unconnected facts and details and, even worse, unmotivated students.
A more holistic approach should be adopted in schools. There should less focus on our ’language-based syllabus’ and more attention to our learners’ needs. Lessons need to be relevant, meaningful and engaging. In the context of foreign language teaching, lists of irrelevant vocabulary references and translation in L1 or unrelated grammar exercises that are meant to drill a particular structured taught by the teacher are more than likely to be ‘blocked by the brain’s affective-emotional filters’ (Dr Willis, J, 2010).
When stress in the classroom is getting high, it is often because a lesson is overly abstract or seems irrelevant to students. Teachers can reduce this type of stress by making the lesson personally interesting and motivating. ‘Ideally, students should be able to answer the question, “Why are we learning about this?” at any point in a lesson.’ (Dr Willis, 2007)
An emotionally safe school environment requires issues such as racism or offensive behaviour, however subtle, be tackled.
The term racial micro-aggressions was first proposed by psychiatrist Chester M. Pierce, MD, in the 1970s. What is interesting about micro-aggressions is that they are often unintentional, seemingly innocent and harmless, yet, they can be more damaging than conscious and deliberate racial insults or offensive remarks referring to sexual orientation or gender. Nevertheless, they are often perceived as harmless and as an indication of over-sensitivity (Dr Wing Sue, 2014)
It is, in my opinion, the duty of the educator to openly discuss the impact of such behaviours making everyone more aware of biased thoughts and attitudes.
An emotionally safe, stress-free school/class environment, teaching language in context and keeping the learner’s interest in mind is my personal philosophy and ultimate goal.
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Durkheim, E. (1897/1951). Suicide, A study in sociology. New York: Free Press.
Dr. Wing Sue D., (2014) Microagression. (Video) Laureate Education, Inc. (accessed: 12/02/2017)
‘From Neurons to Neighborhoods: Applying the Science of Early Childhood Development’, [Podcast]/National Academy of Sciences, (2007) ‘From Neurons to Neighborhoods:Applying the Science of Early Childhood Development’, [Podcast], Available at: http://media.nap.edu/podcasts/nax10fromneuron.mp3, (accessed: 14/02/2017)
National Centre for Education Statistics NCES, (2014) Distance Learning statistics, Available at: https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=80 (accessed: 12/2/2017)
Schon, D.A. (1983) The reflective practitioner. New York: Basic Books.
Sun, L., (14th June, 2015) Teachers’ network, Why I became a teacher The Guardian, Available at:https://www.theguardian.com/teacher-network/2015/jun/14/when-i-started-my-career-i-was-told-youre-a-teacher-not-a-social-worker (accessed 13/02/17)
The George Lucas Educational Foundation, (2008) ‘The Heart-Brain Connection: The Neuroscience of Social, Emotional, and Academic Learning’, [YouTube] Available at: http://www.edutopia.org/richard-davidson-sel-brain-video, (accessed: 14/02/2017)
Williams, C., J. Matt,O’Reilly, F.(2014) ‘Generational Perspective of Higher Education Online Student Learning Styles’,pp 33-34
Willis Judy2007 Volume 64 Engaging the Whole Child The Neuroscience of Joyful Education Available at : https://www.psychologytoday.com/files/attachments/4141/the-neuroscience-joyful-education-judy-willis-md.pdf (accessed : 13/2/2017)
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