“I just want Miss A to be able to help me… I hate school at home!”
My six year old daughter was finally able to verbalise what had been bothering her for the last few days by telling us, between sobs, about how much she missed her school and her teacher. It seemed telling that her desire to be in the classroom prioritised her teacher even before her friends. Despite all of the effort and the well organised daily videos and lessons, the lack of personal connection and the assistance from two equally busy parents had finally reached a point where lying on her bed and screaming out her frustrations seemed the only option.
I’m certain that my daughter’s experience is far from unusual in houses across our state and country. Much has been said about how this virus has affected the health, wellbeing and lifestyles of all of us, and more recently the impact upon our kids is something that has come into focus. We’re now at an important juncture as we facilitate the staggered return to physical schooling and the re-opening of classrooms for our children as they emerge from their covid cocoons. However, I feel that the discussion around schools has hovered between two factors: that we need them running so that parents can return to work and stoke the fires of a smouldering economy and also that trying to teach your own kids is a task that has led many to joke about the need for teachers to be paid well beyond their current salary. Whilst I see the importance of this thinking and the sentiment underlying the humour around the frustrations of daily educating our own children, I feel that this experience has provided a unique window for all of us to evaluate the sheer importance of a functioning education system and the vital role that all workers within that system play in maintaining the benefits of a safe, balanced society that we all enjoy.
Months ago, many of us considered where all of the preliminary talk of restrictions and lock down would lead. The first thoughts that rolled through my mind as I began to try and comprehend school closures was that the longer this went on, the wider the gap would grow between those who could be more self-sufficient during these times and those who would struggle without the support that the school in their community provided. What about the young student who had just ‘clicked’ with their new teacher for the year and was making strides towards better understanding the foundations of literacy and numeracy skills? What about the secondary school student who was teetering and only attending school because of a group of teachers and coordinators who had shown them that they were committed to getting them through? What about those who wouldn’t have the support they need at home due to the education level of their parents or potential language barriers? Meeting the needs of all school-aged kids on a daily basis in organised and resourced schools is challenge enough; attempting that remotely seemed like further stretching of the chasm between those who benefit from our schools and those who rely upon them.
Glossy leaflets and advertisements from the government of the day can paint a picture of educational institutions that cater to the needs of every student, every day and that no child will fall through the cracks of the system. And whilst teachers and administrators do their utmost to ensure that this utopian, individualised, well-resourced educational experience exists for all students, the reality can sometimes fall short as the teacher sits in front of twenty or more faces who all bring their own story to the classroom, who all come from homes and backgrounds which provide them with their own advantages and challenges. Of all of the experiences that ensure teaching is an equally fulfilling, yet also exhausting profession, seeing a child ‘slip through the cracks’ despite the efforts of a school is one that unfortunately many teachers encounter. Of the long list of victims of this virus and our response to it, the students relying on schools and what they provide for them were certainly going to feature and that list was only going to grow for as long as the lockdown remained in place.
Hopefully, those who saw the importance of schools as merely babysitting so that parents can get to work have had their view altered through this humbling and humanising experience. Our children are excitable, unique and unpredictable balls of energy who can bring about joy, frustration, love and angst - sometimes all in the space of an hour. The early days of the virus lockdown saw millions of tweets from around the globe humorously depicting parents locking themselves in bathrooms and demanding that teachers have their pay doubled upon resumption of normal activities. As with most online memes, tweets and hot-takes, there was an abundance of exaggeration and levity, but also an underlying truth in that harnessing the energy of, not one or two, but more than twenty students, and then inspiring them to understand new ideas and concepts whilst also feeling safe and content as they grow is a skill; a profession. Much more than child-minding, teaching was perhaps seen as the unique and difficult profession that it is by parents who had not perhaps considered every aspect of a system that aims to advance their child on a daily basis.
As this virus and its subsequent consequences play out, a spotlight has been shone upon many aspects of our existence. Some of us have slowed down and considered what’s important, some of us have been asked to consider things we’d blissfully ignored in years past - the basics of an economy, the rush of our daily lives, the importance of our health system, the governance of our country. The spotlight has shown the best parts of our community and our national spirit - the kindness and sense of community that we like to (rightfully) celebrate as key aspects of what it means to be Australian. However, it has also exposed uncomfortable truths about the experiences of many in households other than our own and just how lucky some of us may be. Much has been written and said about what we may learn from this experience. The optimist in me can imagine people being more understanding of community and what it means; that to improve our society and the lives of others we need to be considerate beyond a fundraiser or the signing of a petition and look to understand each other better in a post-covid world. Certainly lofty and idyllic words, but these are times which bring about such thoughts given that they are what so many have labelled ‘unprecedented’. Perhaps our biggest failure from this experience will not be in the data concerning our economy and our efficiency, but in the return to political bickering and wilful misunderstanding that leads to further division.
When we shine the aforementioned spotlight on schools, we may uncover some elements that we want to improve - relics from a bygone era which can be shed or brought into a modern context. Perhaps we may see some aspects that we neglected for too long. At a staff briefing held on the eve of remote learning, I smiled as a room of teachers scoffed at the notion that schools would be ‘even more thoroughly cleaned’. It was a gentle reminder of what so many educators understand - that we know of the features of our school system which are undervalued or under resourced, and that simply saying they would be improved was wishful thinking at best. However, the spotlight has also been shining brightly on schools who have produced uplifting videos for students, who have sent care packages and shown those students that they care about them and their education even if their ability to deliver that care and teaching is so heavily restricted. That so many schools could so quickly and efficiently pivot to an online learning model is nothing short of inspiring. It’s also no surprise to those who have worked in the education sector, those who have seen the effort put in by colleagues who lift students each day, those who understand that initiatives such as breakfast club and extra-curricular activities are more than simple programs run by dedicated staff - that they are an essential part of the nurturing sense of belonging and hope that radiate from school buildings throughout the year.
Ask one hundred teachers how to improve education in our state and you’ll most likely receive one hundred different answers. Not for one second do I purport to have the one true magical key to improvement. However, I am tired of the same old arguments from either side which are too often trotted out. School holidays, the justification of teachers having school holidays, the pay received by teachers and the workload that the profession demands - there’s extreme views of all of these aspects which form the basis of heated debates but rarely get us anywhere. Throw in some data and out-of-context information about Finland, Singapore etc. and you’ve got a recipe for an unending argument. Or perhaps it’s those iPads that are responsible? Hopefully, this whole experience can take educators and their detractors beyond these arguments and rather than the explosion of battering ideas against each other, we begin with the simple step of valuing and respecting the job of teachers and support staff in schools. Again, this is easy to say. However, I genuinely feel that this experience, this entire covid calamity that has impacted all of us, can lead to brighter days. And maybe, just maybe, the respect for teachers and our schools could be brought about by the renewed appreciation and respect for an effective education system and the unparalleled importance of that system within our society.
Ben Taylor - The English Lab
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