It seems the higher education sector in many countries is losing the debate about learning as a public good, forcing us to justify our value in new ways. The resulting strides taken in widening participation are welcome. This is one aspect I’m particularly proud of at UTS, where I’ve taught with people who disrupt the idea of the ‘traditional’ student in so many ways. There are also amazing things happening to de-colonise learning and teaching that reflect a strengthening energy to couple higher education with broader global justice. However, learning is also becoming a more contractual process, consumed or even purchased. I’m less comfortable about this and unsure how I can best respond.
What gives me the most joy in teaching…
Moments when I’m humbled by what students have achieved. Just yesterday every student in my class gave a presentation explaining how their understanding of the way research can improve professional practice in their field had changed over the semester. My job was to listen and hold up a mirror to help students recognise their accomplishments. Seeing students not just being able to grapple with complex concepts, but to use them to imagine new possibilities and see scope for making a positive contribution in something that matters to them was simply wonderful.
If I could wave a magic wand, what would I change about learning and teaching in 2017?
In my research I have been lucky to see remarkable nurses working with parents where neither person knows what will be learned at the outset: there is no learning objective, no assessment at the end, just an opportunity to explore and produce new knowledge together along a path that no-one can foresee. This was some of the best teaching and learning I’ve ever seen. I’d love for students to have similar kinds of connections with each other and their teachers. I would also like students to step off the treadmill of the semester, to dwell peacefully in ideas. This excerpt from The Rock by T.S. Eliot captures why I’d like to infuse some pause in learning:
The endless cycle of idea and action,
Endless invention, endless experiment,
Brings knowledge of motion, but not of stillness;
Knowledge of speech, but not of silence;
My next trip will be to…
Québec City. There is a conference for people who work in the same theoretical field as me. I was invited to present in symposia alongside some of the world’s best researchers, so it’s scary but also exciting. The theoretical focus means I get to hang out with people who are also inspired by Vygotsky (my intellectual hero). It also means that the studies being discussed relate to a huge variety of contexts and problems, so I get to learn about things I don’t normally read about.
Outside of work, I am passionate about…
I just love mountains. There’s something about a vertical landscape, the physical challenge of long hikes or treks, and disconnect from everyday life that I’m addicted to. I get a similar sense of wellbeing from freediving, and am lucky to have a marine reserve on my doorstep where I can hold my breath and wait for the aquatic life to get curious and swim up to me.
Feature image credit: Tim Gouw.