“Every child deserves a champion – an adult who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection and insists that they become the best that they can possibly be.” Rita Pierson
The Role of Teachers/Educators
A friend and mentor introduced me to this quote and TED Talk, recently. The world of education has been kind to me. An excited and obsessive learner from as far back as I can remember, I have collected ideas and thoughts, somehow trying to make sense of a world that often astounds and amazes me, whilst filling me with fear and confusion. I must have been a trial!
School was often a haven, a place where I wasn’t a daughter, granddaughter, or sister. But Karen, a learner, with an entire world laid out before me. Certain teachers laid a red carpet of opportunity down for me, never minded that I wasn’t dressed for the occasion, or that my shoes left a trail. A journey where adults encouraged to make regardless of the disadvantage that I did not understand then, but champion now.
I have learned to work with this dichotomy over time, holding true to my two core values of Curiosity and Rootedness. A desire to constantly question and uncover but requiring an environment of support and safety. Both in and out of school I have experienced the most profound teaching and the most damaging. I have benefitted from exceptional kindness that going into my sixties I can still use all my senses to experience again and again.
There is so much talk of schools as learning organisations, with a structured framework that guides headteachers to aspire towards this. I wonder about the schools who people do not consider as a learning organisation or sadly do not see themselves as one. Those organisations whose have diluted their values due to a fear of not having the correct formula for success. A framework can only measure so much. And to be honest, the relationships that school teams develop, the ethos that pervades through every classroom and into every lonely corner are what creates the climate for learning and nurture. There is not sympathy but strong and powerful empathy that expects highly and forever. The necessary trust may not build overnight; this may take a member of staff or a child gritting their teeth and walking the extra mile for a long time with great resilience. But oh, my goodness, the rewards!
I am a coach, a leader, and a teacher. But most importantly I am a human being who does the best she can to make connections, to understand the human condition and to contribute to the world as well as she can, knowing that I will do a better job of it tomorrow, for self-awareness and a sense of responsibility is crucial when you choose the path of development.
When it comes down to it, all we can do is move forward one step at a time to a destination, a place of being, a goal that we dream of to become, as Rita says, the best that we can be.
So, my gratitude extends to: Mrs. Collins, Mr. Moore, Ms Ellis, John Croghan, Sally Boughton and Dick Mills. They made me believe and achieve what the 5-year-old me never dreamed of. When a coach asks you about your resources, think about the road travelled.
Who are the people in your life who champion you?
What are the strengths you manifest daily?
Where can you incorporate both into your dream plan?
