Still Trying to Find X

Setting the Scene

The title for this manifesto: Still Trying to Find X refers to the age-‐old mathematical problem of trying to figure out the

value of X.

In the problem, we’re given all the relevant information we need to calculate its value, but sometimes it still eludes us.

For some, the answer seems almost too obvious – and as a result they completely miss the point.

I believe we are faced with similar problems in education, with regard to the following issues.

ü Engagement

ü Wellbeing

ü Achievement

ü Why do we send kids to school?

I also believe the subtle misunderstandings we have in these areas create an ever widening disconnect for students in the 21 st century.

The frustrating thing is, many teachers do understand the shortcomings of our education system, but few in authority – or society in general, ever listen to them.

2 Still Trying to Find X by Dan Haesler

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that the education system is as completely dysfunctional as some very prominent commentators would have us believe.

However, despite the enthusiasm, professionalism and commitment of teachers, I do believe there are some fundamental

things in schools that we just don’t quite get.

And when I say, “ we” -‐ I mean, governments, principals, teachers, parents and kids.

The aim of this manifesto is not to provide definitive solutions.

Rather it is intended to provoke discussion and challenge the malaise that can infect our educational institutions.

It is aimed at stoking the fire that is within all teachers, but in all likelihood has been dampened by short-‐sighted politicians or the results and accountability-‐driven system in which they work.

It’s aimed at parents, grandparents, politicians, social workers or anyone with an interest in our kids.

You may think some of the ideas in Still Trying to Find X are worth exploring, you may think others aren't worth giving a second thought. It doesn't matter so much what you think of the ideas in this manifesto, just that you do think about them.

You are the experts in your school. How could you apply some of these ideas? How would you enhance these ideas? I look forward to hearing from you!

Still Trying to Find X by Dan Haesler 3

Still Trying to Find X is online with an open invitation for you to collaborate at: www.stilltryingtofindx.com

Twitter Hashtag: #findingx

I blog at: http:danhaesler.com

I Tweet at: @danhaesler

My Email is: dan@danhaesler.com

AND ONE OTHER THING:

Still Trying to Find X comes with a Must Disclose Statement :

If you resonate with any part of this manifesto, it is likely that your family, peer group and professional colleagues will do also. Please share this manifesto with as many people as possible via email, Facebook,

Twitter, www.stilltryingtofindx.com or the old fashioned way – hard copy.

Cheers,

Dan Haesler

May 2012


Engagement in Schools – A Case of Mistaken Identity

Engagement is one of the most over-‐used, yet misunderstood concepts in education.

Many educators, parents and students have a varied understanding of what engagement at school looks like.

The Australian Macquarie Dictionary defines the verb engage as:

Engage – verb: 1. to occupy the attention or efforts of (a person etc.)

Using this definition, it is apparent schools do engage their students. Producing occupied and busy students appears to be the goal that many schools strive for, and regularly achieve.

Think about your kids’ crammed academic curriculum, extra-‐curricular clubs and homework schedules. Think about how much time their school demands, and how their involvement is then rewarded via awards, badges, report comments, assembly appearances or grades.

In schools compliance is regarded as engagement. Does he follow the rules? Does she sit quietly in class, raise her hand to speak and wear her uniform correctly? We’ll describe a student as engaged if they do no more than conform to what is

expected.

Whilst the compliant student may still do well in school, by mistaking conformity and compliance for engagement we miss out on the real benefits of genuine engagement.


The Macquarie Dictionary offers another definition that I’d like to explore further:

Engage – verb: 3. To attract and hold fast: to engage the attention: to engage someone’s interest

This got me thinking. Do we attract students to learning? Or push them into it?

Within psychological circles, the accepted definition of engagement is:

The sense of living a life high on interest, curiosity and absorption. Engaged individuals pursue goals with determination and vitality.

Froh et al. (2010) found that adolescents who had a sense of engagement reported higher levels of wellbeing, life satisfaction and less problematic social behaviours.

1

And to help us convince those colleagues of ours who believe school is only about test scores; these students also

reported higher grades.

So clearly, Engagement is everyone’s business. But be honest – are your students genuinely engaged?

Or are they just doing what’s expected?

And now be really honest – is that good enough for you and your school?

1 Froh et al. (2010) The benefits of passion & absorption in activities: Engaged living in adolescents & its role in psychological wellbeing. Journal of Positive Psychology, 5, 311-‐332


W HAT ’ S NEEDED FOR GENUINE ENGAGEMENT ?

Intrinsic motivation is a prerequisite for engagement. According to Ryan and Deci (2000), for an individual to be intrinsically motivated they need a sense of:

1.

Autonomy – a sense that that have a choice in the what, why, when and how they do something

2.

Competence/Mastery – They are striving to improve. Not just going over old ground, or moving at too slow a pace.

3.

Belonging/Purpose – The sense that what they are doing has a real relevance to them and the world around them.

2

H

OW CAN SCHOOLS ENHANCE ENGAGEMENT

?

If you've read Drive by Dan Pink you may have already considered how your school could enhance engagement. Pink writes clearly and concisely on the subject and in my opinion, should be required reading on any teacher training course.

Here's my 2 cents..

Autonomy

Schools go to great lengths to give students (and teachers) the impression that they encourage independence. However, in the scheme of things, most of what occurs at school is prescribed for the students, not by them.

Students have little say in the shaping of their experience at school. Take a look at the following diagram. It is known as

Roger Hart’s Ladder of Participation 3 and has been around since the early 90s.

2 Ryan & Deci (2000) Self-‐determination theory & the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development and wellbeing. American Psychologist, 55, 68-‐78


Some schools, teachers or parents may look at the ladder and feel that it is simply not workable in a school environment. But I’d encourage you to think what aspects of your school could encourage more citizenship?

It’s clear to see that each rung of the ladder indicates a proportional level of autonomy. So why not start with something easy?

ü Students choose how to present their report. It could be in the form of a speech, Prezi, essay, website,

Facebook page, poster etc.

ü Students can collaborate with whomever they like.

And I mean whomever. A cousin interstate, a parent, a professor they follow on Twitter.

ü Students can choose when they will study certain aspects of the course.

ü Survey students to find out what they want to know – in essence they help design the curriculum.

ü Allocate one lesson a week where students can pursue an interest independent of the school curriculum.

3 Adapted from Hart, R. (1992). Children’s Participation from Tokenism to Citizenship. Florence: UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre as cited in www.freechild.org/ladder.htm


Competence/Mastery

The concept of Competence or Mastery is of utmost importance, yet I believe students have little understanding of what mastery actually is. Let me use an analogy.

At his peak, Roger Federer was (and still is) the finest tennis player I have ever seen

play.

Between February 2004 and August 2008, he held the World Number One spot for a

record 237 consecutive weeks.

Overall, he has been at Number One for a total of 285 weeks, falling one week short of

Pete Sampras’ record of 286.

Federer has won 73 ATP and Grand Slam titles.

He was named Laureus World Sportsman of the Year for a record four consecutive years between 2005 and 2009.

And in 2011 he was voted by over 50,000 people from 25 countries as the second most trusted and respected person in the world, second only to Nelson Mandela.

4

If anyone is entitled to feel they had mastered their art it would be Roger Federer.

4 http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2011/09/Features/Federer-‐Mandela-‐Most-‐Respected.aspx


But has he mastered tennis? Has he ticked it off his list of things to do? Does he feel he has nothing else to learn from his

coach?

No. He continues to train every day. He attempts to refine his technique, improve his agility and increase his power.

Despite all he has achieved in Tennis, Roger Federer is still trying to improve every day.

Yet too many students equate an A grade with mastery. They have achieved all there is to achieve in this area of their education. There is no need to revisit it and they see no need to attempt to improve on it. By placing grades on learning, we insinuate there is an end-‐point. There is no end-‐point for Roger Federer.

We really need to think about the importance we place on grades in school and the message it sends our kids about the value of education. I’ll talk more about this in the chapter on Achievement.

Even someone who gets 100 percent on a test can improve some aspect of what they do in that discipline. The question is do students appreciate that fact?

What could students learn from Roger Federer?

Purpose

Kids are pretty savvy. To start with, most of them carry technology in their pocket that can prove or disprove a teacher’s theory in an instant – and they aren’t afraid to use it!


Whilst having a sense of autonomy and mastery is crucial to creating genuine engagement, without a meaningful purpose

then kids won’t fully buy in. Think of this as the fourth R of education – Relevance.

All kinds of problems arise when kids realize:

The only reason you’re teaching something is because it will be on the test.

The only reason they are learning something is because the syllabus dictates they must.

When a teacher’s response to a student’s question is or implies, “Don’t worry about that, it’s not in the exam…”

The compliant students get on with it anyway and we pat ourselves on the back for a job well done.

But those students who are independent critical thinkers decide this holds no relevance for them and they disengage.

In this sense disengagement should not be seen as a disciplinary or behavioural issue. We need to recognize it for what it

is – a protest.

Students are disengaging as way of a protest against what school is serving up to them.

And to be honest, who can blame them?

Maybe it’s not the students who are the problem.


F INDING RELEVANCE IN THE CURRICULUM

Depending on the subject this may be easier for some than others. The fact that we have separate subjects only serves to make them less relevant to each other and life in general. Very few of us live our lives in 40 minute blocks, where the

previous 40 mins had little if anything to do with the next.

Some ways we can attempt to find meaning/relevance in the curriculum

ü Work with other subject areas as often as possible.

ü Have “themes” around which every subject can focus their work.

ü Find ways to incorporate a community project or charity into what you do

ü As often as possible, apply what you are doing to real life scenarios in the “here & now” – Avoid saying “You’ll need this when you’re older!” – Kids DON’T care!

ü Have a “Just Because” lesson – no grades, no syllabus outcomes. Learning for the sake of learning. Make learning relevant and purposeful in its own right.

ü Find ways for students to design their own learning by incorporating their own interests into what you are doing.

The next time you use the word “engaged” in a report, consider this:

Can you say the student is genuinely engaged in the manner I’ve described here?

Hopefully you can. And whilst we’re on the subject, how engaged are you in your work?

What factors, if any, prevent genuine engagement in your workplace? What can you do about it?


Student Wellbeing – Whose Job is it Anyway?

Whose job is it to look after student wellbeing at your school?

If you answered, “The welfare team, the school counselor, the Deputy, Head of Welfare or similar…” I disagree on a couple of points.

1.

Welfare is not the same as Wellbeing

2.

And it’s everyone’s job to look out for the wellbeing of kids.

Let me explain why I prefer the term wellbeing rather than welfare.

Whilst the dictionary may well suggest that wellbeing and welfare are synonymous, society holds negative connotations around the word welfare.

For example, the governments approach to welfare works on a deficit model, with payments

and/or assistance given to those who are struggling in an attempt to get them closer to some socially accepted norm.

In many schools, the approach to student welfare is the same kind of reactive, deficit model approach.

Schools aim to help those students who are struggling mentally or emotionally, get back on track.

On the other hand, Wellbeing is regarded by society as something we can try to improve over and above an accepted norm.

It may be a small detail, but it’s these small details that can make all the difference when trying to find x.


Schools know they must look after their students’ mental health. They know it is crucially important not only for their

learning, but also their quality of life.

But, whereas schools take a proactive approach to their students’ physical wellbeing, with mandatory physical education classes, healthy canteen policies, non-‐smoking environments and occupational health and safety guidelines, we are less

proactive when addressing students’ mental health.

If we only look at our students’ mental health as a matter of Welfare , then we’ll never find x.

But let’s not be too hard on ourselves.

The fact is the majority of psychologists adopt this model. They try to find what’s wrong and fix it.

This approach was largely borne out of necessity. After the Second World War and the Vietnam War the efforts of most psychologists were focused on treating returning veterans dealing with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). As such it became the status quo.

Of late this deficit model approach has begun to be challenged.

In 1998, Dr Martin EP Seligman was elected president of the American Psychological Society. His mandate was to shift the focus of psychology. He wanted to shine a light on Positive Psychology.


Seligman is regarded as the modern-‐day founder of Positive Psychology, although many argue that Aristotle, William

James and others had spoken of Positive Psychology for years, just in different terms.

Despite some commentators dismissing this new brand of psychology as a Happyology, Positive Psychology is not

concerned with ensuring people are happy all of the time. This in itself would be a worrying mental condition.

A colleague of Seligman’s, Professor Chris Peterson PhD says,

“Positive psychology is a branch of psychology that focuses on improving the mental functioning of human beings above that of normal mental health. Researchers in this rapidly growing field investigate what makes human beings happy and how an individual can lead a fulfilling and satisfying life.” 5

Seligman coined the term flourishing to describe someone who has optimized his or her level of wellbeing. They experience positive emotions, enjoy healthy relationships and have high levels of engagement, meaning and purpose .

By shifting our focus from welfare to wellbeing, a school’s Wellbeing Department might focus on flourishing, as opposed to merely making sure students were OK.

Wellbeing departments could work with other teachers to ensure students were genuinely engaged in the manner I spoke

about in the previous chapter.

5 Peterson (2008) What is Positive Psychology – and what is it not?


Positive Psychology aims to help individuals to flourish. Those who are flourishing bounce back from adversity quicker than those who are moderately mentally healthy or languishing.

In short – those who are flourishing, in addition to all the other good stuff… have higher levels of resilience.

According to Keyes & Corey (2007) they also report the fewest missed days of work, the fewest half-‐day or greater work cutbacks, the healthiest psychosocial functioning (i.e., low helplessness, clear goals in life, high resilience, and high


intimacy), the lowest risk of cardiovascular disease, the lowest number of chronic physical diseases with age, the fewest health limitations of activities of daily living, and lower health care utilization.

6

There are, of course, a few teachers who see this as falling outside of their job description. These teachers are doing a

great disservice to our youth.

By only focusing on their subject matter, they are forgetting we teach kids – not subjects.

And as a prime example of finding x , research confirms what common sense would tell most of us.

Kids who feel good about themselves perform better at school.

Research by Andrew Howell (2009) states, “Students who are flourishing are less likely to adopt an entity view of ability

[ie. they had “Growth” mindsets], more likely to endorse mastery approach goals, report higher levels of self-‐control and higher grades.” 7

Both the studies by Howell and by Keyes & Corey suggest that not only is it in the students’ best interest to focus on a

flourishing model of wellbeing, but it is also in the school’s best interest. Graduates leave well adjusted, with good grades.

Who could wish for a better advertisement for your school?

6 Keyes and Corey (2007) -‐ Promoting and protecting mental health as flourishing: A complementary strategy for improving national mental health.

7 Howell (2009) Flourishing: Achievement-‐related correlates of students’ well-‐being


S

CHOOL

C

ONNECTEDNESS

What’s more important for the wellbeing of a child – how connected she feels to her parents or her school?

Research 8 conducted by Professor Ian Shochet from Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane has shown that the students’ sense of belonging and connectedness to school is one of the most important variables in their wellbeing and will play a major role in whether students will experience depression. School connectedness or belonging is the extent to which students feel respected, valued and included, and supported by others in the school (including teachers,

administrators and peers). His research showed that approximately fifty percent of differences in depression among students could be accounted for by differences in their school connectedness. Subsequent research that he conducted showed that connectedness to school was an even stronger predictor of wellbeing in students than attachment to parents.

When I met with Professor Shochet last year he told me that it is imperative that schools realise the crucial role they play in the wellbeing of kids. Shochet says schools need to be able to ask their students questions such as these:

1.

Do I feel able to be myself in school?

2.

Is there at least one adult in the school I feel I can talk to if I have a serious issue?

Do you think your students could answer, “Yes” to these two questions?

8 Shochet et al. (2006) School Connectedness Is an Underemphasized Parameter in Adolescent Mental Health: Results of a Community Prediction Study


A D IFFERENT TAKE ON R ESILIENCE

Like engagement, resilience is something of a buzz word in education and professional development courses.

The accepted definition of resilience is: the ability to “bounce back” after an event, or general ability to cope with stress and adversity.

In most cases resilience is seen as something to draw upon after the event.

We often look to address areas that are lacking in a students’ life in order to help build their resilience.

However, one model for developing resilience in children is taking a slightly different approach.

The Resilience Doughnut 9 identifies what aspects of the child’s life is going well for them, and then seeks to build on these.

The creator of the Resilience Doughnut , Dr Lynn Worsley describe seven external factors that impact on the individual’s

sense of self and ability to be resilient.

9 http://www.theresiliencedoughnut.com.au/


They are:

The parent factor: characteristics of strong and effective parenting.

The skill factor: evidence of self-‐efficacy.

The family factor: where family identity and connectedness is evident.

The education factor: experience of connections and

relationships during the learning process.

The peer group factor: where social and moral development is

enhanced through interactions with peers.

The community factor: where the morals and values of the local

community are transferred and the young person is supported.

The money factor: where the young person develops the ability

to give as well as take from society through employment and purposeful spending.

The Hole in the middle represents the person’s key beliefs that develop as they build the tools and resources they need to face the world. These beliefs are concerned with three areas:


•

Their awareness of those who support them (who I have)

•

How they view themselves (who I am)

•

The degree of confidence they have in their own abilities (what I can do)

Research indicates that young people who have strong positive beliefs in each of these areas are more likely to be resilient.

The doughnut is comprised of seven sections, each section representing an external factor in the person’s life. When reviewing the research, Dr Worsley found that these seven factors repeatedly showed up in the lives of resilient people.

Worsley has developed a simple system for individuals to score themselves with regard to each factor.

And it’s when the results are analysed that things get interesting.

Let’s assume that Jamie, a 15 year-‐old boy, scored highly in the areas of peer group, skills and money, but scored poorly in the areas of parenting and family.

Intuitively, we may decide to help Jamie in the areas in which he scored poorly. We may speak directly with Jamie about the reasons for his scoring so low in this domain. Or we might focus on strategies that Jamie could use at home in order to foster better relationships with his parents. And if we were really concerned, we may speak directly with the parents to discuss the nature of their relationship.

All the above seem like perfectly appropriate strategies, but by focusing on what is not working, we may not be helping the student in the best possible way.


In an article written with Ruth Fordyce, Dr Worsley explains,

“These seven factors [ parent, skill, family etc ] each have the potential to enhance the positive beliefs within the person and thus to help the individual to develop resilience. Interestingly, across the various research projects, most of the resilient individuals had only some, and not all, of these seven factors working well in their life. It seems that their ability to focus on the factors that were strong was a key aspect of their resilient mindset.”

As such the Resilience Doughnut focuses on the factors in which the individual scores highest. Once these have been established Worsley says, “The creativity can begin! Because the factors are external to the individual, they can be considered, enhanced and utilized in a range of practical ways. [I] encourage people to think of ways they can use their strengths factors in every day life, and work to make them even stronger. In particular, it is the interaction of the three external protective factors that will inevitably strengthen resilience.”

However, the simplicity of the model belies its depth. In an email to me, Dr Worsley explained, “It is a simple model.

However it has the complexity of showing that:

1.

“There are multiple pathways towards resilience.”

2.

“There is an interaction with the individual and the environment.”

3.

“Resilience is a life long development process.”


The Resilience Doughnut model is an example of positive psychology in action. More specifically it is an example of

Appreciate Inquiry (AI); a strengths-‐based model of affecting change designed by David Cooperrider.

10

AI’s simple philosophy is we get more of what we focus on.

In the case of the Resilience Doughnut , Worsley is focusing on what is working in the kids’ life, and then creates

opportunities for students to further develop these areas.

I also believe, that as well as the ability to bounce back, resilience gives us the ability to bounce forward .

Bouncing forward is not a new concept, and you’ll find varying definitions of it around the web.

However in this instance, I’m using the term bounce forward as the ability to take a risk or attempt to grab an opportunity

– safe in the knowledge that if you fail, it won’t be the end of the world.

Too many of our kids (and adults) lack resilience because they are too afraid to fail.

In fact in most cases this fear of failure has been cultivated by their educational experience.

We’ll look at this concept in more detail in the chapter on Achievement.

10 Cooperrider & Whitney – A Positive Revolution in Change: Appreciative Enquiry


I’ve heard many teachers suggest that, “We don’t have time to focus on welfare or student wellbeing. We’re all about results.”

However the research is irrefutable, if schools and individual teachers were to focus on wellbeing, rates of academic

achievement would rise.

It’s also worth reminding ourselves at this point of the research by Froh et al. (2010) that said,

“Adolescents who had a sense of engagement reported higher levels of wellbeing.” 11

But I wonder, how often do schools focus on achievement at the expense of wellbeing and engagement?

Things to consider for your school

ü Set up a Wellbeing department – a group who, as well as addressing welfare concerns , drive the concept of flourishing at your school. Are the kids inspired? Engaged?

ü Consider whether or not the teaching staff are flourishing; Flourishing kids need flourishing teachers.

ü Ask your students if they feel they can be themselves at school.

ü Ask your students if they feel there is at least one adult in the school they can go to if they have a serious issue.

11 Froh et al. (2010) The benefits of passion & absorption in activities: Engaged living in adolescents & its role in psychological wellbeing. Journal of Positive Psychology, 5, 311-‐332


Achievement – At what cost?

How many of these statements sound familiar?

We endeavour to ensure every child reaches his or her potential.

We pursue academic excellence.

We wish for our students to become lifelong learners.

We wish to develop critical and creative thinkers for the 21 st century.

Academic achievement is the bench-‐mark by which the majority of schools and increasingly, many teachers are judged.

In the UK, a school’s percentage of GCSE passes at A-‐C is compiled into league tables to demonstrate which school is out-‐ performing the others in the country.

In Australia, the print media does the same for NSW’s Higher School Certificate, Victoria’s Certificate of Education and each individual state gets the same treatment, whilst the Federal Government is very proud of it’s MySchool website 12

that ranks schools according to their standardized test scores and socioeconomic status.

12 http://www.myschool.edu.au/


In New York, the Education Department went one step further, by ranking their 18,000 public school teachers based on their student’s standardized test scores. In doing so the Department’s chief academic officer, Shael Polakow-‐Suransky said,

“No principal would ever make a decision on this score alone and we would never invite anyone — parents, reporters, principals, teachers — to draw a conclusion based on this score alone.” 13

Given that this was the only data published, it’s hard to understand for what other reason it could have been done.

The fact is the public, media and education administrators obsess over data – and rightly so as data is essential in guiding educational improvements. The dangers arise when data, and in particular test score data becomes the sole focus of

education.

If test scores become the sole focus of teachers, then guess what the sole focus of the students will be within about 0.003 seconds of a lesson starting?

Well, actually there is more than one answer.

•

For some students it will be their score. The distillation of their educational experience into a single grade, or number.

•

For others they’ll just focus on staying out of the limelight. Doing just enough to keep ticking over , but they won’t be keen to push themselves in case they fail. What then?

13 Taken from an interview in the New York Times – February 2012


•

And another group will disengage completely. They’ve never got good test scores, so obviously, this whole education “thing” isn’t for them.

These groups are transient. At one time or another students may identify with one particular group, but then in another

subject, with another teacher, at another time of their life find themselves at the other end of the spectrum. It’s usually a downward trend.

If we’re serious about creating a real mindshift in education, (and I’m assuming that if you are still reading this, you are) we need to re-‐define what we consider achievement to be.

What is it?

What does it look like?

How can we encourage it?

With regard to the statements I asked you about a couple of pages ago, I think each one of those goals are noble aims for schools and should be front and centre of any school mission.

But as I’m sure you’re beginning to appreciate by now, I’m of the opinion these statements are yet more examples of the

missing X.

Let’s look at each one in turn.


W E ENDEAVOUR TO ENSURE EVERY CHILD REACHES HIS OR HER POTENTIAL .

Last year the The Sun-‐Herald newspaper in Sydney carried an eight page spread about how parents should choose an independent school.

14 It was obvious it had had significant input from various independent schools as well as including a

39-‐point checklist for parents to refer to when choosing the right school for their child.

It spoke of considering the individual needs of the child, the extra curricular opportunities, as well as the policies in regard to religion, homework and bullying. Countless articles and advertisements spoke of how schools value the students’ individuality in their quest to achieve their potential.

Then I read thirteen words that shine a light on what I believe is the biggest fundamental flaw affecting the education of

our children in the majority of schools today.

In bold type The Sun Herald proclaimed, “Research shows that if bright children aren’t challenged… then they will underperform”

Indeed they will, and not only underperform in the particular field that they are strong, but elsewhere in their studies/school/ and possibly life.

The problem I have is not with the statement itself, rather I take issue with the way in which we interpret and act on the

statement. In schools we run accelerated learning programs for our “brightest” students.

14 The Sun-‐Herald – A Fast Track to High Achievement – Feb 27, 2011


Accelerated learning is when schools react to the ability of the child, and teaches them with regard to their aptitude rather than their age. So a Year 7 student could well be studying at a Year 9 level, if they are considered “bright” enough.

Accelerated learning takes place predominantly in maths and the languages – that is to say schools identify “brightness”

with aptitude in these fields.

And because schools do… generally speaking, so do parents.

By identifying “brightness” in the narrow band offered by academics, they dismiss intelligence in other fields as insignificant. How many of us have been told (or told someone) “Don’t waste your time on that, you won’t get a job doing it…” as if intelligence can only be quantified by earning potential?

Now I’m not saying that accelerated learning is a bad thing. On the contrary, I think it is a great idea. It just needs to be applied across the board.

Now more than ever, parents and schools need to identify exactly how their children are intelligent, and they need to be given the flexibility in the curriculum to push these students in the same way we do the gifted mathematician.

I wonder how many talented artists, musicians, poets, writers, sculptors, carpenters, mechanics, acrobats, dancers, comedians or actors are underperforming right now because their talents have not been recognised or validated by their school or parents? Moreover, how many of these potentially brilliant individuals are lost to their field in their early years through lack of recognition or validation? Imagine if accelerated learning in these particular fields was the norm rather

than the exception. Imagine the levels of engagement in their learning across the student population.


Imagine if we pursued potential in all its forms?

And by the way, I’m not sure it’s our place to determine whether or not a child has reached her potential.

Rather we need to ensure that we have empowered our students with the skills, tools and desire to what to reach their potential.

W

E PURSUE ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE

.

Sir Peter Medawar was a Brazilian-‐born English scientist.

In 1960 he was the co-‐winner of a Nobel Prize with Sir Frank Macfarlane Burnet for their pioneering work in tissue grafting which is the basis of organ transplants, and their discovery of acquired immunological tolerance

It’s fair to say that he, unlike me, was something of an academic. Grant me a little poetic license as I use the word scientist and academic interchangeably.

Over to you Sir Peter…

To be a first-‐rate scientist it is not necessary (and certainly not sufficient) to be extremely clever. One of the great social revolutions brought about by scientific research has been the democratization of learning.

Anyone who combines strong common sense with an ordinary degree of imaginativeness can become a


creative scientist, and a happy one besides, in so far as happiness depends upon being able to develop to the limit of one's abilities.

15

A scientist is no more a collector and classifier of facts than a historian is a man who complies and classifies a chronology of the dates of great battles and major discoveries.

16

I believe in "intelligence," and I believe also that there are inherited differences in intellectual ability, but I do not believe that intelligence is a simple scalar endowment that can be quantified by attaching a single figure to it—an I.Q. or the like.

17

However in schools, academic excellence is reflected by a single figure – the ATAR in Australia, or the GPA in the US, or

Grades in the UK. And these figures can be achieved for the most part by collecting and classifying facts; students often pursue this at the expense of exploring the limits of their ability due to the fear of failing.

Are we really pursuing academic excellence or are we just producing kids who succeed in school?

And while we’re on the subject of succeeding at school, what it is the prize of doing so? A university place?

If that’s the case then 70% of our kids are “failing” school, as only 30% of students in any one cohort go onto an

undergraduate course.

15 Sir Peter Medawar (1968) – New York Review of Books

16 Sir Peter Medawar with Jean Medawar (1984) – Aristotle to Zoos, A Philisophical Dictionary of Biology.

17 Sir Peter Medawar (1981) Advice to a Young Scientist


W E WISH FOR OUR STUDENTS TO BECOME LIFELONG LEARNERS .

First of all let’s ask when did they stop being lifelong learners?

As the proud father of two children aged one and four, I witness firsthand their love of learning every single day. I watch on as they persist in trying until they succeed. From walking to talking and from eating to drawing this sometimes takes

months with many failures, yet they keep on trying – and they seem to enjoy the process too!

You’ll remember Ryan & Deci in the Engagement chapter. I first read of their work on Self Determination Theory when I was at university, however it wasn’t until I read Dan Pink’s Drive that the ramifications of their research in this area really hit home with regard to why it seems we have to continually coerce students to complete work. If you haven’t read Drive ,

you should.

Pink describes an experiment by Ryan and Deci that in a nutshell sums up the biggest issue in education as I see it.

Twenty-‐four undergraduate psychology students participated in the first laboratory experiment and were assigned to experimental ( n =12) and control group ( n = 12). Each group participated in three sessions conducted on three different days. During the sessions the participants were engaged in working on a Soma cube puzzle which was assumed to be an activity that college students would be intrinsically motivated to do. The puzzle could be put together to form numerous different configurations. In each session, the participants were shown four


different configurations drawn on a piece of paper and were asked to use the puzzle to reproduce the configurations while they were being timed.

During the middle of each session, the experimenter left the room for eight minutes and the participants were told that

they were free to do whatever they wanted during that time, while the experimenter observed during that period. The amount of time spent working on the puzzle during the free choice period was used to measure motivation.

On the first day during the period of free time, both groups engaged with the Soma puzzles for around 3 ½ -‐ 4 mins.

On the second day, the experimenter turned it up a notch. He told Group 1, that for every Soma puzzle that they got correct within the given time frame, they would received one dollar. Not surprisingly, when the experimenter gave this

group free time they used it to hone their skills, after all, there was money at stake today!

Group 2 received no such reward and as such their engagement with the Soma puzzles remained steady during their free

time. The table below shows the impact that rewards had on Group 1. You would think that this proves the importance of offering rewards to get the behaviour you want.

Group 1 (Cash Rewards on Day 2)

Group 2 (Control – No rewards)

Day 1

3 ½ -‐ 4 mins

3 ½ -‐ 4 mins

Day 2

More than 5 mins

3 ½ -‐ 4mins

But things got interesting on Day 3, when the experimenter told Group 1 that he’d run out of cash, and as a result they’d

be completing Soma puzzles for free that day.


When the lure of cash was taken away, the amount of time that Group 1 spent engaging with the puzzles dropped to less that 2 ½ minutes.

I’m guessing you’re probably not too surprised at this? I mean who works for free?

Well in this instance, Group 2 did.

On Day 3, the amount of time Group 2 (who’d never been offered anything ) spent solving Soma puzzles during their free

time INCREASED to between 4 – 4 ½ minutes.

Group 1 (Cash Rewards on Day

Day 1

3 ½ -‐ 4 mins

2)

Group 2 (Control – No rewards)

3 ½ -‐ 4 mins

Day 2

More than 5 mins

3 ½ -‐ 4mins

What’s the first question many students ask when you set them a piece of work?

I’m assuming like most classrooms, the question revolves around marks or grades.

Students see their whole education as a series of transactions.

And all too often schools exaggerate this perception, by telling students that this exam carries more marks than the work they’ve completed during term time.

Day 3

< 2 ½ mins

4 – 4 ½ mins


Or perhaps we tell them that this year’s work is more significant than last year’s and as such they’ll be marked harder.

They’ll really have to earn their marks this year.

I understand why schools do this. To be honest it’s probably the only way we keep kids interested in half the stuff we have to teach them, but let’s not pretend for a minute that we’re helping to develop their love of learning.

Let’s not kid ourselves that once the attraction of a grade is no longer there, our students – one and all – will be life-‐long learners.

The research by Ryan and Deci proves they won’t be!

W

E WISH TO DEVELOP CRITICAL AND CREATIVE THINKERS FOR THE

21

ST CENTURY

.

Again, I first read of this experiment in Dan Pink’s Drive . I’ll say again… you really should read this book!

The Candle Problem was created by the psychologist Karl Duncker in the

1930’s, however the research Pink draws on is from a series of experiments by

Sam Glucksberg, a psychologist at Princeton University.

The Candle Problem requires the participant to sit at a table next to a wall. In

front of them is a candle, a box of thumbtacks and some matches.


The task is to attach the candle to the wall so that the wax does not drip on the table. There are many ways people have attempted to do this but only one works and it demands some creativity.

Participants were divided into two groups.

Group 1 was told that they had to solve the puzzle in order to help establish some norm values.

Group 2 was told that the person who solved the puzzle in the fastest time would receive a monetary reward.

Can you guess what happened?

Participants in Group 2 took on average 3 ½ minutes longer to solve the puzzle than participants from Group 1.

The researchers concluded that once you offer a reward for a task, it is the reward that becomes the focus of the individual rather than the task itself.

This has some interesting ramifications in the classroom.

How often do we offer extra marks for creative thinking?

How creative will students be prepared to be if they believe there is only one correct answer – and marks are on the line?


Do we even teach kids how to be creative in schools? I’m sure you’ll have heard Sir Ken Robinson argue fairly convincingly we do not.

18

Things to consider in your school

ü Explore how you can accelerate all of your students in their areas of strengths or interests.

ü Have a week, term or semester where students receive no grades – only written (meaningful) feedback.

ü Publicly declare that while your school acknowledges the importance of standardized test scores, you will not enter into discussion about how you compare to other schools or cohorts from previous years – it is as irrelevant as it is damaging.

ü Examine what avenues your school has to cultivate creativity in your student body and teaching faculty.

And for those who want to know the solution for the candle problem:

18 Sir Ken Robinson – Schools Kill Creativity -‐ www.ted.com


The Virtuous Cycle – A Tale of Two Cycles

T HE V ICIOUS C YCLE

Imagine the child at school, perhaps a boy, who really doesn’t understand the why of school.

Chances are he disengaged early from his learning, and his teachers saw him as troublesome, or perhaps he had a learning difficulty.

Sure they tried to engage him – or at least they thought they were. But he bucked against their attempts to try and get

him to conform or comply.

As a result he started to feel that school wasn’t a place for

him. His self-‐esteem suffered. He acted up, as at least he got some laughs from his peers that way. He developed some welfare issues and started doing stuff that maybe he shouldn’t – smoking, drinking etc.

He didn’t perform all that well in tests and his achievement across the curriculum was poor.

His parents didn’t know what to do with him.


As the years wore on, he disengaged further.

It’s easy to see how dis-‐engagement, poor wellbeing and lack of achievement can create a vicious cycle.

As the student fails to achieve they disengage further, feel worse about themselves, so act in ways to compensate for this, and as a result their achievement continues to suffer. In fact it could be described as a downward spiral rather than a cycle.

The NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics has just completed a 10 year study showing that of all the juveniles that enter the justice system, 54% of them go on to re-‐offend an average of four times. For indigenous kids the rate of recidivism is

closer to 85%!

The majority of these kids have never been engaged in their education.

We need to realize that as it stands school only speaks to some of our kids.

We are obligated to ensure we speak to all of them.


T HE V IRTUOUS C YCLE

It is essential that we create a Virtuous Cycle for all students in our schools.

The Virtuous Cycle relies on having positive relationships at its heart or hub.

Think of your own experience at school. It’s likely your favourite teacher taught one of your favourite subjects. It’s likely you engaged with the subject matter because of the teacher , rather than vice versa.

As well as interpersonal relationships, the relationships between achievement and purpose, the past, present and future, student

goals and the relationship between school and the wider world are all crucially important to establishing the Virtuous Cycle.

Froh et al. (2010) found that adolescents who had a sense of engagement reported higher levels of wellbeing.

Andrew Howell (2009) states, “Students who are flourishing are less likely to adopt an entity view of ability [ie they had “Growth” mindsets], more likely to endorse mastery approach goals, report higher levels of self-‐control and higher grades.”


Your own experience will tell you: when students achieve and see the wider relevance of their achievement, they engage on an even deeper level.

I believe schools need to pursue the Virtuous Cycle above and beyond all else. In doing so we’ll have students who:

ü feel good about themselves

ü have a sense of ownership over their education

ü feel valued in the school community

ü pursue learning for the sake of learning – not grades alone

ü are creative thinkers

ü are resilient

ü are physically, mentally, emotionally & spiritually healthy

ü are aware of their strengths and how to use them to contribute to society

ü aren’t afraid to fail

ü are flourishing

You don’t need a doctorate to see that these kids are the kind we would benefit from having in our schools, families and

communities:

Yes we get it right for some of our students.

But we need to get it right for all of them.

To do that, we need to think critically and creatively in order to Find X in our own individual schools.


Why, Why, Why, Do We Never Ask Why?

Those involved with education reform in Australia, the UK and US seem to focus on what we should teach students, when we should teach our students & how we should teach, assess and compare our students with their

international counterparts.

To me, it appears that those leading educational “change” neglect the most important questions of all.

Why should we teach our students that?

Why should we teach our students then?

Why do we assess students in manner we do?

Why are we comparing our students to kids in Asia?

I believe we really need to get to the WHY of education.

I was fortunate to be in a room the other day when a professor from the University of Sydney, Susan Groundwater-‐

Smith posed a great question (in the style of TV quiz show Jeopardy):

“To what question is School the answer?”


I don’t know if there is one particular question that fits the bill here, but I do know that most politicians aren’t courageous enough to even think about it.

Having said that, is it all that surprising?

Very few politicians have a background in education other than their own thirteen years of schooling, and their policy decisions are based on what they believe will best ensure their political survival – a familiar rhetoric for voters. Politicians talk of Back-‐to-‐Basics approaches with an over-‐emphasis on literacy and arithmetic.

I’m not saying that literacy and arithmetic are unimportant – of course they are – what I am saying is that by continually harking back to the Good ol’ days to win votes we are missing the why of education.

I don’t think there is one simple solution to finding the why.

My own teaching philosophy dictates that each student should be able to find their own why in their schooling.

I believe part of the teacher’s why should be to empower students achieve this.

I believe the Virtuous Cycle goes a long way to helping teachers to do this.

We must stop waiting for the politicians to get education.

We must start in our own classrooms, after all, revolutions are started by the people, not the politicians.


Of late I have come to the realization that we achieve great understanding not by reading or hearing facts, but by the asking of questions.

To attempt to understand the why of education in your own school, and direct it so as to be in the best interests of your

students, you need to ask some questions.

W HAT CAN WE ASK TOMORROW ?

ü Ask whether your school needs to redefine its understanding of engagement, wellbeing and achievement.

ü Ask whether your school values conformity over engagement.

ü Ask whether students and staff are flourishing.

ü Ask whether you need to constantly grade students.

ü Ask whether your school helps all your students to pursue their potential – wherever that may lie.

ü Ask whether your school should be selling itself based on its league table standings.

Don’t expect there to be any simple solutions to these questions.

Chances are asking these questions will ruffle some feathers within your school.

Chances are you will be seen as an idealist or a dreamer unaware of the demands of the system.

But, chances are if you’re still reading this, you won’t care about the criticism or barriers you’ll face.

Because like me, you are Still Trying to Find X.


Still Trying to Find X

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