It’s time to rise above our ‘station’
My friend (at least, I consider him a friend) Kenny Pieper wrote a blog post called Time to rise above our station. As always, Kenny hits a wonderful balance of self deprecation, provoking points and easy to read prose.
I can relate to this in terms of my upbringing in working class Glasgow. Being dyslexic in the ‘70s and early ‘80s had its own diagnosis. I was told I was thick.
It still has its hangover at times. Times of insecurity, particularly around writing stuff. As Ewan knows, as he pushes me to write more. So I can relate to some parts of what Kenny has said in his post, but it’s been a long time since I felt I had a Station.
I have been told I am ‘just a technical teacher’ by more than one ‘academic teacher’ (usually Maths teachers for some reason) but I can shake that off. Having served an Apprenticeship, I know I can do. Having run 3 companies after that, I know I can do. Having spent a year working on Iona in the Abbey I know I can speak and listen to everyone. Now after a year with NoTosh I know I can drive, grow and develop a business in the UK and, in particular, Scotland.
It’s a phenomenon we see well distilled in Scotland, but it’s not restricted to there. Education has a hierarchy based on academia and structure.
In 2009 a few of us set up and ran an Unconference on Islay. It started out as a few teachers having a discussion, in a pub, no hierarchy, just dialogue. We asked the question, “What should education look like in the year 2020?” That was when the Primary 1 intake in Scotland would be 16 and legally able to leave school. I set up a wiki (fairly new then) and asked the question. It grew and developed. So we decided we would try to set up a TeachMeet unconference. This also grew. Having it in a distillery proved to be a great idea.
What was interesting was the number of class teachers who were told that they couldn’t go. They asked for unpaid leave. Nope. They were told that this wasn’t for classroom teachers. It wasn’t for the likes of them. Yet they were the ones who were active in developing the wiki.
I was lucky I had a head teacher who was a believer in Distributive Leadership as opposed to distributed leadership. She said distributed leadership sounded like someone was giving out sweeties to their favourites. Distributive is when professionals take responsibility and check with others that it aligns with what is happening. Not just permission.
Now working with NoTosh I have heard of similar things being said of the firm. We are not part of the system. Where do we fit in? How do we work within the structure of Scottish Education?
Maybe it’s time to not fit in the structure and do things differently. Maybe it’s time for teachers to ask questions and not just wait for answers.
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