Friday 14 July 2017

Creating a Classroom Culture for Learning: The Human Factor in Sanctions





First and foremost this is not a post arguing against school sanctions for student misbehaviour. I am a strong proponent of sanctions as an additional strategy to support its much more powerful cousins: student-teacher relationships and positive reinforcement.  What I am proposing is that such a strategy should perhaps come with a health warning, or terms and conditions to be considered prior to enforcing.

I have rarely met a student who has a problem with sanctions; I have met plenty of parents who struggle to come to terms with another human disciplining their child - but rarely a student who thinks that sanctions are a breach of their human rights.  What I have often come across is the emotional outcry brought on by a sense of injustice, or a feeling of being picked on, or the belief that teachers are incapable of understanding the incident through the eyes of the student.  As such, it is perhaps important that teachers view themselves in such situations as not just a judge, jury and executioner, but also an empathetic, caring significant other.

Issues often arise when students perceive a punishment to be unjust.  More often than not this a misperception.  Whatever the reasons for such a misperception, it can be damaging to the student-teacher relationship.  It is therefore important that a shared common understanding is sought to ensure trust is maintained between both parties. Listening to a student does not equate to agreeing with a student.  It shows respect, and also allows for the teacher to attempt to clarify the purpose for the sanction.  It may also allow the teacher to reconsider whether the sanction is just.  We are human after all!

Nine times out of ten, additional time spent seeking a shared common understanding is not required. With regards to the other 10%, teachers are often quickly made aware how unfair a sanction is; You will more often then not know when to seek further dialogue. *

Furthermore, subsequent misdemeanours (however small) involving the same student & teacher can sometimes lead to the student thinking he/she is being picked on.  A simple strategy to tackle this is to show the student the issue is in the past.  Look for opportunities in lesson to praise, but only if deserved; Alternatively, engage in small talk with the student during break or lunch duty, or wish them a lovely evening at the end of school. 

Finally, one study suggests that employing an empathetic mindset towards sanctions can positively impact on students subsequent behaviour in school.  Worth considering!

* There will be always be some students who place themselves in the position of victim.  No amount of dialogue is likely to change their perspective.  Stand by your decision.

Tuesday 14 March 2017

Is the death of the teacher (in Norway) inevitable?

Is the death of the teacher (in Norway) inevitable?


Over the last few years I have come to the realisation that the Norwegian education system is potentially one of the last remaining bastions of safety for teachers.  Its system still places teacher autonomy and professionalism at its core.  In this post apocalyptic (or neoliberalism) educational world we live in, Norway’s education system is the educational equivalent of Helm’s Deep in Lord of the Rings, Zion in the Matrix, or even Narva in the year 1700 as the Swedes defended against the Russians with odds of 4-1.  Many of Norway’s neighbours have fallen to the allure of neoliberalism, even Norway’s eternal ally Storbritannia has succumbed to the rise of this ideology, with its education system on its knees. The impact of such an approach to education is best summed up by Evers and Kneyber in their book Flip the System:


“It is clear that the neoliberal shift in reform has led, in a more postmodern sense, to the death of the teacher (Biesta 2013): the death of the very idea that a teacher has something to contribute, the very idea that the teacher has a meaningful voice in regard to his work, to what he wants to achieve through his work, and by which means he achieves it.  Although it is a common and oft-cited belief that the quality of a system is determined by its teachers, that particular belief is of no benefit to teachers. In the neoliberal perspective, the teacher is viewed as a trained monkey, and it is simply a question finding the right stick to beat him with, or the right brand of peanuts, to make him do the desired dance in front of the audience.  The teacher is no longer viewed as a professional...So clearly the old days where teachers decide on matters of curriculum, and delivery without any kind of accountability, are over.  By and large, through neoliberal reform teachers’ professional identities have been monopolized in many countries by aspects of managerial professionalism.”


My worry is that in some quarters of the Norwegian education system there is an attitude of why fix it if it ain’t broken; such carelessness and complacency will ultimately lead to the downfall of a system that should be nurtured and improved.  Let’s assume that the system has its flaws and requires reviewing and improving, who should be responsible for this? Again, my worry is that rather than lead this improvement, some teachers will employ a protectionism mentality underlined by an air of stubbornness: “You can’t make us!” Such a mindset will (in my opinion) only undermine the professional standing of teachers, and deepen the resolve and determination of politicians and administrators to change to a top down profession rather than a bottom up profession leading to the demise of teacher autonomy.


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Having autonomy means having a responsibility to take ownership of the profession so that teachers can call it so. Teachers need to challenge the rise of government involvement and administration expertise by continuing to upskill and develop teacher expertise.  This needs to be self motivated, purposeful, with a renewed mindset about what it means to be a professional.  Professionals in such professions as medicine, engineering, architecture and law seek to constantly improve their knowledge, and the application of such knowledge. If teachers are not viewed in such regard by politicians, and the public, then the future is bleak.  But if teachers do not hold this view of themselves then the future is inevitable; the death of the teacher.

For further information on neoliberalism and its impact on education I suggest you read Flip the System.  Furthermore, a  number of the contributors to the book are presenting at the researchEd Conference in Oslo on the 22nd April, further information can be found here.

Sunday 5 February 2017

Creating a Classroom Culture for Learning: Empathy


"Daddy, can we go over the jumps so that you can see me jump and I can see you fall?"


The words of a six year old called Cai Fredrick on Christmas day to his father as they walked to the ski slopes. Cai's father had wanted to learn to snowboard since moving to Norway.  He was desperate not to fit the stereotype that Norwegians have about people who can't ski or snowboard: Han må være engelsk eller dansk. Translated: He must be either English or Danish. Cai's father wanted to become a master of the slopes, but first he had to start at the beginning - as a novice.  It had been a long time since Cai's father had been a complete novice at anything. So he began his journey as a learner.  It turned out that Cai's father learnt more than just the ability to snowboard but also what it felt like to be a novice again.  The constant wrestling of emotions: fear, anger, embarrassment, frustration, sadness, occasional joy, bruised pride, a deflated ego - not to mention a sore backside.  All the ingredients needed to help him maintain his empathy (as a teacher) with his students in his classes.  Why is such teacher empathy important to Cai's father? Because there is a strong possibility that it may help develop positive relationships with students, since students recognise that the teacher understands their struggles.  It is the teacher's ability to see the school experience through the eyes of the student, which according to Kohut (2001) triggers an authentic response, leading to a positive impact on learning.  Yet such an important connection may be in jeopardy from the curse of knowledge. The idea that the more expert a teacher becomes the less empathy they may be able to show towards their students.

Is it then a case of you can't have your cake and eat it? Let's hope not - teachers should strive to become experts in both subject knowledge and pedagogy, and endeavour to remain empathetic. Perhaps timely life reminders, where teachers experience the trials and tribulations of being a novice over a sustained period, might just be a suitable defence against such a curse.  My suggestion, if you haven't already learnt to ski or snowboard, is to give it a go.  The slopes are one humongous mixed ability classroom.

Diary of a Novice Snowboarder
December 7th 2016
Dear diary, it's only two weeks away and I have been excitingly telling friends and family about how much I am looking forward to my first skiing holiday.  I can't wait to feel the brisk wind sweep across my face as I weave my way down the slopes; a playground for adults. Yeeha!

December 22nd 2016
Dear diary, I woke up today full of excitement.  I was so confident and of course foolish when I kept asking myself how hard can it be? I looked good in all the gear and for a short time I even felt like a competent snowboarder despite my novice status. Helping the kids suit and boot took my mind of the impending playground of fun and thrills.  When we walked out of the apartment I was suddenly face to face with the mountain.  I have to say diary that I was momentarily giddy as I walked to its base. Adults and children were gracefully zig zagging their way down the slope.  As I arrived at the T bar queue my confidence began to wane.  I attempted to reassure myself by remembering my moves as a teenage skateboarder.  The line was long but it was soon my turn.  I was told how to grasp the T bar by the blonde Nordic attendant. I smiled and said to myself you can do it.  And I did do it .............. for exactly 3 meters before I was eating Scandinavian snow.  It was so embarrassing diary.  The attendant even ran to my aid with a sympathetic smile, whilst the kids in the queue were rolling their eyes and whispering.  The next time I managed 10 meters, after that I managed 15, and after that I only managed 3 again - what an idiot! I'm 41 for #####sake.  Step forward my brother-in-law; 6ft 3in muscular frame, fair hair, chiseled face, and beard.  Some say Norwegians are born with skis on their feet, in his case he snow jumped out of his mother womb on Telemark skis.  What's worse diary is he is a lovely guy, everyone's best friend, with man crushes a frequent occurrence. It was baby bambi on ice next to an adult Simba in his natural habitat.  I have to tell you diary - I felt pretty inadequate.  So with the class pin up and jock by my side I hung onto him for my dear life as he took hold of the T bar - It was reminiscent of the scene from the original Superman movie when Superman catches Lois Lane as she falls from a helicopter.



Coming down the hill was fraught with danger as I negotiated how to stand up on a snowboard from a sitting position, and how to deal with a bruised cox bone.  I only coped with a couple of hours of instruction, fear, frustration and pain before I had had enough.  It was not the day I had hoped for, and not one I readily want to experience again.  On the upside, my wife tells me that my 3 year old son Ketan can independently go up the T bar on skis and come down unaided. Great!

December 23rd 2016
Dear diary, I was a wreck this morning.  The image of people laughing at me as I attempt to snowboard was plastered across my mind.  My son Cai asked me this morning at breakfast why I was grumpy.  I told him my snowboard wasn't working properly.  What a pathetic excuse.  I did manage to take the T bar unaided to the top once. It must have been luck as I failed to replicate this success for the rest of the day. Luckily the God of Thunder (Thor), my Brother-in-Law, was on hand to help. Diary I feel like giving up.

Christmas Eve
Dear diary, I am still trying to come to terms with the Norwegian tradition of giving presents on Christmas Eve but Father Christmas was good to me. I mastered the T bar today and came down the mountain a few times without falling over.  Tomorrow I will accomplish mastery of the baby slope.

Kohut, H. (2001). On empathy. The search for the self, selected writings of Heinz Kohut 1978-1981. New York: International Universities Press.