teaching – Once More into the Classroom

Another New Chapter

At the end of June, another chapter in the adventures of the Galloway’s will come to an end, that being our adventure in Egypt. At the beginning of the month we decided not to renew our contract here at The British School Alexandria. It was a somewhat difficult decision in that we have made some very good friends here, we’re saving money and working in the Prep School has been a very enjoyable and for the most part, a rewarding experience. But there are several issues that, on balance, meant we didn’t want to spend another here.

One of the main reasons for this decision was the lack of access to high quality CPD. This is often an issue at international schools, especially small one’s like BSA. Returning to the UK will, hopefully, budget cuts aside, allow me to satisfy this particular urge, which will help me become a better teacher.

It wasn’t the only reason. The other main factor was that with a small family it is very hard to find things to do with out little guy. Funnily enough, our friends who have recently arrived from the Falkland Islands assure us that there is SO much to do here in comparison to where they have just come from. But still, for us, the difficulty just getting somewhere to do an activity is a hurdle we no longer want to overcome. The idea of being able to find an activity that doesn’t take 45m to get to and then 90m to get back from is very exciting. And don’t get me started on the quality of the provision…

Finally, and we knew this coming here, we’re not city people. We love the outdoors, fresh air and open spaces. Alexandria is not that. In fact, without travelling for at least an hour it’s difficult to escape the noise and pollution of the city.

These were the major drivers behind our decision to leave BSA at the end of the year. There’s still five months to go, but in the life of international schools notice has to be given early so that replacements can be found. Once January is over, (what is with January always seemingly an endless month, doesn’t matter where you are…) the time will fly by and we’ll be once again on the road looking for a place to call home. And that depends on a job.

Teaching – A Performance Art

I came across a great article in the Atlantic by Jessica Lahey called Teaching: Just Like Performing Magic. In it she talks to Teller of Penn and Teller fame about his time as a teacher before he became famous. He taught Latin of all things but his point was how teaching is really a performance art saying that the delivery part of the job is often under valued and rarely taught. I kind of agree although as with most things there needs to be a balance. It’s no good delivering rubbish brilliantly, so to speak. The whole article is here and well worth a read.

Talking of art - the landscapes up here are beautiful. The light falls on these majestic mountains in a way that is often sublime. Photo C. Galloway — Talking of art – the landscapes up here are beautiful. The light falls on these majestic mountains in a way that is often sublime. Photo C. Galloway

Something to Think About

Creative Schools: The Grassroots Revolution That’s Transforming Education

By Ken Robinson, Lou Aronica

Due to the fact I am not teaching full time I have more time than I otherwise would to think about teaching. The relationship between learning and teaching as well as teacher and student is fascinating.

So my latest read, Creative Schools By Ken Robinson is right up my alley. Ken Robinson, for you who don’t know is a Professor who has been looking at this relationship on and off for 40 years. He has a PHD and has the most watched TED talk ever.

(Watch that here.) For the last eight years or so he has been talking and writing about why the current trends in education are way off the mark and not doing our children any favours. Such things as high pressure standardized testing, centralized curriculums which are narrow and restrictive. By being these things a large numbers of students are being turned off and belittled by an education system that so narrowly defines success. In this book he continues the process of explaining how he believes education can be improved and made more inclusive. One of the things that jumped out at me was the following;

The fundamental purpose of education is to help students learn.

He goes on to say

At the heart of education is the relationship between the student and the teacher, everything else depends on how productive and successful this relationship is.

He is of course right. Effective teaching or coaching is all about good relationships. Success is impossible without it. This got me to thinking about what good relationships look like and how we can effectively foster them with our students. More about this later. In the meantime I highly recommend this book whether you are a teacher or a parent.