Friday 27 April 2012

Is leadership an innate quality or a learnable skill?

The last workshop of PGDE Curriculum Studies this week, and it was a happy-sad occasion.  The students have progressed so much, changed greatly and (I hope) learned and enjoyed themselves lots!  The year has flown by, but I think that's the nature of getting old too.

I am immensely proud of the progress they have all made, and I'm even more impressed by the innovation, enthusiasm and talent on display.  I suggested something to my group that I really beleive: "If you stop enjoying the job, do something else."  In my opinion, there are enough teachers out there that don't seem to enjoy themselves anymore - perhaps they never did...  Our young people deserve the best education and this can only happen with dedicated, enthusiastic, skilled teachers.  As such, I really hope that some of this cohort go on to be educational leaders of the highest calibre in the future - there are certainly a few to watch!

A recent article in the Guardian alluded to the fact that there is a lack of strong applicants for the top leadership jobs in education.  This led me to thinking that maybe Leadership could be some sort of elective for PGDE students...  I'm not sure this is feasible, but who knows?  Maybe it should even be compulsory!

So, is leadership something that one can learn?  Are leaders born?  There is often comment made that people like Churchill or Martin Luther King or Martin Johnson are born leaders, but are they really?  Is there some common feature of a leader, or are leaders shaped by the experiences of their lives?  Is it a combination of both (or more)?

Thus, I conclude by considering the nature of leadership in ITE.  We are all leaders in the classroom, yet we assume that all teachers have the skills to be a leader from the outset.  Is this really the case?  Do the student teacher already have these skills in some innate way, as it's not something that they get a lecture on!  (Do we even all have the qualities to be leaders?!)  Perhaps the ITE of the future will not be about electives in EAL or Outdoor Learning, but in Leadership or something like it...

Wednesday 11 April 2012

"One good analogy is worth three hours discussion." - Dudley Field Malone, US Poilitician

In my previous entry I mentioned the possibility of using analogies in History in order to develop attitudes, skills and knowledge.  This led me to consider the use of analogies in general in teaching, and to think about my (seemingly frequent) use in the classroom.

They are something that I've come to realise that I use all the time as  a teacher of History.  When I found the above quotation, I really started to consider whether or not analogies are a powerful learning tool, or just something I do!  Having spoken to colleagues in other disciplines, it seems I'm not alone in using them.  As a result, I've started to do some reading on analogies.

They are something that have long been a part of my teaching, but I've never really thought about them before.  I'm not even sure that I intentionally used them in the past.  I certainly never included them in a lesson plan (yes, I had one of those once...), but maybe I should.  Thus, I made a move to find out a bit more about effective use of analogies - are there specific good examples for teaching History?  Are they useful for students?  Do they confuse more than clarify?  Is there any benefit in asking students to make up their own, or do they remain the domain of the 'story teller teacher'?

One very good article I came across was in Teaching History, March 2006.  This, to some extent, raised my awareness of the importance of planning for effective use of analogies.  There was also suggestion that a poorly used analogy hindered understanding of a complex topic.  So, in my own teaching, am I actually doing more harm than good, or (purely by chance) am I aiding the learning experience without even really thinking about it?

When I was at school, one of my (superb) History teachers used 'memory pictures' to help with complex topics.  These were produced by the pupil with little/no input from the teacher.  I found them very useful, despite being appallingly bad at drawing.  Are these memory pictures analogies of a sort?  They certainly don't fit with the Oxford Dictionary definition, but they are a way of pupils interpreting complex issues in their own learning style.  Perhaps there is opportunity for this in written form as analogies?

I also had an interesting chat with an English teacher colleague who commented that analogies and allegories were often tricky for pupils to 'get'.  Thus, perhaps developing skills of making analogies in History (amongst other subjects) might help with understanding them in English.  Moreover, as we move ever-closer to a more integrated approach to delivery Social Studies, are there ways that teachers could use analogies in order to make more explicit links between the skills/content covered?  Perhaps there is more in this than I first realised.

So, I conclude by continuing to look in more detail at the use of analogies in the History classroom.  I'm currently considering some sort of small(ish) scale research on this topic, although I've no idea how!  Also, if I am to continue using analogies in my teaching, then maybe they should be more planned...  As a result, I have drafted the planning tool below... (ideas are basic, but it's a first step).




Tuesday 3 April 2012

Holding up a big mirror

So, this is my first foray into Blogging.  I've long written my thoughts about teaching, learning and life in general, but I'd never before considered sharing them with the world.  I suppose it comes from encouraging my PGDE students to do so much reflecting that I started reflecting on this 'scale'.

I have no idea where my Blog will go, but I'm planning to do something as and when I need to exorcise...

For now, I've been thinking about consequences.  We're always going on about them to children of all ages (especially in terms of positive behaviour management), but I think it's only very recently that I've truly understood the importance.  I suppose it comes with all the emotions of being a fairly new Dad, but I don't think I ever really considered how much the past impacts on my present and future.  Must be another sign of getting old.

This led me to thinking that this is a vital life skill that History (among others) helps develop.  If History can do one thing, surely it can help learners realise that the past - our past - does impact on all our futures. So, how do we make sure that the next generation - the ones who don't remember 9/11, let alone the Cold War - appreciate the need to change things for the better?  Again, perhaps this is hitting home of late due to the current ITE focus on Global Citizenship.  One of the students mentioned something that resonated with me: "Surely children need to be citizens before they can be Global Citizens...?"  I couldn't agree more, and clearly part of this is that we all need to appreciate that our actions have consequences.

Thus, I conclude this first ramble by thinking of ways of teaching consequence, mostly as a History teacher, but in general terms too.  Perhaps the emphasis should be on examining global historical issues as an analogy for personal issues too?  Could we think of ways of, say, teaching about co-operation and conflict as a tool to developing personal social relationships in classrooms?  Maybe that's all a bit too 'Modern Studies-ish' for a History teacher!