A post especially for my former colleagues at OSC about teachery-type stuff.
"Building the plane while flying" in many ways became a catch-phrase for the way we approached the establishment of Ormiston Senior College. It conjured up the idea of creating the teaching, learning and culture while we the school was operating. It also, for me, became a general description of the collaborative way and urgency we lived in our approach to figuring out how to put ideas into practice. As with all glib phrases it doesn't capture the depth and meaning of the process and effort that went into building the school but it provided us with a metaphor throughwhich we sought to understand and rationalise what was happening.
It was a crazy, amazing, frustrating, difficult and rewarding four years for me; an experience that I thought that I would have only once in my teaching career. But as it is wont to do, fate has pulled another plane onto the tarmac.
It is my struggle to come to terms with once again embarking on this type of educational journey that has meant this blog post (or any for that matter) has been a long time coming. I have written two previous drafts in the last three months that I just couldn't publish. They seemed too emotive and over reaching and I didn't want to post them. They were raw with frustration and anxiety.
In taking this position I was ready to approach education from a different perspective - with some distance from the classroom and space for me to explore other ways I can contribute to the wider educational field. The job description did not mention working with Modern Learning Environments or new schools and the interview panel noted with interest my previous experience at Ormiston. There was brief mention of a new school project and I gave little thought after the interview had finished. However, the work I am doing here has become increasingly focused on where I came from and the task of establishing a new school.
A little background. After a tragic arson the Ministry decided that instead of rebuilding the existing buildings that were burnt down at one primary school, they would rebuild a new school. They went on an exploratory tour of schools in New Zealand and decided they would build along the Modern Learning Environment trend. They made a decision to amalgamate two schools that were situated next to each other and they drew up some plans that drew on educational concepts and architectural designs that followed a different approach to education.
So the situation as it it stood when I started was: there was political will to begin the project, there was some understanding of the concepts around 'Modern Learning Environments', there was a commitment to the shift that this would entail and there was a building sense of urgency.
Initially I became involved with doing some broad research around what literature was already out there and cobbling it together to build more understanding and approach to where things might go next for the senior members of the Ministry. Then as the project picked up pace it was working with the design of the building - understanding what the design team had done already and working with them to make changes to better suit teaching and learning. It was exploring pedagogical design and drawing case studies to sharpen our approach. This was absorbing and exciting and had a nice balance of the theoretical with practical detail.
This all became a little too real when confronted with a big political decision. After a long time negotiating funding with New Zealand and then the Chinese governments, there was a shift in the Chinese approach and the project finally looked to start moving. The depth and gravity of the situation was made evident. Two long standing and strong schools were to be demolished. Temporary schools to be created. Staff and the community were to be dragged willing or otherwise into the project. So began an incredibly busy and intense two month period at the end of the school year. It all began moving at break neck speed. The design team had to finalise and detail the whole plan - often working to the small hours of the morning. We created and implemented a communication plan to push information out and engage the community through meetings, TV advertising, interviews and newspaper advertising. We developed plans to engage and develop staff and begin the process of readying them for their new school. We designed transitional environments where the students would continue their education while the school was being built. All at a time when schools and the Ministry would traditionally be winding down for the year and people were tired.
This is when I stopped. Was I ready to do this again? I wrote hundreds of words giving voice to my anxiety, frustration and exhaustion at this point. After doing some of this already did I have the capacity to do this again, especially as my role had shifted from participant to leader. I doubted that I was to be honest.
There was a crunch event for me - the Secretary gave permission to close three schools a week early, in order to do some work with the teachers to introduce them to some of the concepts we would be working with and to be able to work with a number of members of the Ministry team to plan for the first term. It was an opportunity, but it was fraught with many pressures and barriers. We had little time to prepare. We gave parents their lovelies a week earlier, a holiday extension... Teachers were exhausted at the end of the year and anxious about the future. We were pressing ahead with the demolition and they had farewell two important community institutions and pack resources away at the same time. It was frantic. There were many cracks with overwhelmed people struggling to meet the demands of the situation. I was anxious, tired, felt like I was carrying the mantle of MLE and vulnerable. Not the best way to start a week of PD with 60 teachers and Ministry staff. This anxiety, distrust and tiredness was reflected in the mood of the opening sessions. The Hall next to the school was huge, stark and uninviting. To cap off an inauspicious beginning the power went off and the whizz bang audio visuals did not come to the rescue. There was a palpable sense of resistance and disquiet. I was on edge. My colleagues and I put in a huge effort to expose the teachers to new ideas, engage with material differently and to try to give the the information and support they needed to make a start on their journey. Against resistance, we catered lots of food. We gave the teachers lots of time to think and plan collaboratively. We gave them structures to work with. We challenged them when we didn't.
The culmination was the final day where the collaborative teaching groups would present their learning and planning to senior members of the Ministry and we would share an end-of-year social. That morning where we opened with a hymn and a prayer (as are all meetings and gatherings here) I made the decision to offer to lead the prayer and sing a hymn. I was absolutely exhausted and wouldn't normally be comfortable sharing spirituality with a large group, but I sang a hymn that is important to who I am and shared the history with the group. Mo Maria is the first Catholic himene composed in NZ Maori and holds a lot of resonance for me personally - it reminds me of my turangawaewae, my whanau and a number of emtional experiences. As I was wobbling through the second verse the teachers were picking up the harmonies and even though they were unfamiliar with the words they joined me. That was incredibly moving. In that moment there was some clarity for me. That this was a shared experience and that there we had formed a sense of collective identity and purpose. Moreover, there was some trust and a sense of the willing. We gave out certificates to the teachers and had presentations. There was celebration, song and laughter. I was relieved and felt a sense f accomplishment. I felt connected to my colleagues and thankful for their support and that now the journey was shared.
This week, the new transition buildings open for the year. They were built, renovated, furnished all during the holidays. An extraordinary accomplishment. The teachers are unfamiliar and nervous, as are the parents and students. Already I have heard and seen conversations about furniture and space between teachers - unheard of! Students are excited and the teachers are developing a sense of them self and their culture in these spaces. One of the transitional spaces is a refurnished 90 year old school building. We have breathed new life into it and it looks great and is a great place to have a modern learning environment - old dogs new tricks! The other is a community hall where we have retrofitted a mezzanine floor and breakout spaces. It was a hectic week and I am totally exhausted. The teachers and kids have realized it is not as bad as they thought and there is a positive vibe in the two spaces.
It is still the beginning, but I am ready for the challenge ahead. There are many opportunities ahead. Building relationships with the Remarkables Primary and their inspirational principal, teachers and students. Taking a group of teachers to freezing Queenstown, to Ulearn in NZ and my Fulbright trip to the States. All firsts for me or the Cooks in one way or another. Although I am still uneasy about the responsibility, it is becoming more and more a shared vision - and in turn - a stronger and more collaborative project. A large part of the anxiety did come from knowing what hard work Ormiston was. But so too a large part of the resilience and understanding I need to make this work. A very reflective time for me at the moment and I have enjoyed thinking about the past and the present. I felt alone in walking aboard the plane at times last year, but now the plane is filling with passengers and I am ready to buckle up, Even if I am putting the seat belt on extra tight and smashing the drinks trolley!
Let's go!
"Building the plane while flying" in many ways became a catch-phrase for the way we approached the establishment of Ormiston Senior College. It conjured up the idea of creating the teaching, learning and culture while we the school was operating. It also, for me, became a general description of the collaborative way and urgency we lived in our approach to figuring out how to put ideas into practice. As with all glib phrases it doesn't capture the depth and meaning of the process and effort that went into building the school but it provided us with a metaphor throughwhich we sought to understand and rationalise what was happening.
It was a crazy, amazing, frustrating, difficult and rewarding four years for me; an experience that I thought that I would have only once in my teaching career. But as it is wont to do, fate has pulled another plane onto the tarmac.
It is my struggle to come to terms with once again embarking on this type of educational journey that has meant this blog post (or any for that matter) has been a long time coming. I have written two previous drafts in the last three months that I just couldn't publish. They seemed too emotive and over reaching and I didn't want to post them. They were raw with frustration and anxiety.
In taking this position I was ready to approach education from a different perspective - with some distance from the classroom and space for me to explore other ways I can contribute to the wider educational field. The job description did not mention working with Modern Learning Environments or new schools and the interview panel noted with interest my previous experience at Ormiston. There was brief mention of a new school project and I gave little thought after the interview had finished. However, the work I am doing here has become increasingly focused on where I came from and the task of establishing a new school.
A little background. After a tragic arson the Ministry decided that instead of rebuilding the existing buildings that were burnt down at one primary school, they would rebuild a new school. They went on an exploratory tour of schools in New Zealand and decided they would build along the Modern Learning Environment trend. They made a decision to amalgamate two schools that were situated next to each other and they drew up some plans that drew on educational concepts and architectural designs that followed a different approach to education.
So the situation as it it stood when I started was: there was political will to begin the project, there was some understanding of the concepts around 'Modern Learning Environments', there was a commitment to the shift that this would entail and there was a building sense of urgency.
Initially I became involved with doing some broad research around what literature was already out there and cobbling it together to build more understanding and approach to where things might go next for the senior members of the Ministry. Then as the project picked up pace it was working with the design of the building - understanding what the design team had done already and working with them to make changes to better suit teaching and learning. It was exploring pedagogical design and drawing case studies to sharpen our approach. This was absorbing and exciting and had a nice balance of the theoretical with practical detail.
This all became a little too real when confronted with a big political decision. After a long time negotiating funding with New Zealand and then the Chinese governments, there was a shift in the Chinese approach and the project finally looked to start moving. The depth and gravity of the situation was made evident. Two long standing and strong schools were to be demolished. Temporary schools to be created. Staff and the community were to be dragged willing or otherwise into the project. So began an incredibly busy and intense two month period at the end of the school year. It all began moving at break neck speed. The design team had to finalise and detail the whole plan - often working to the small hours of the morning. We created and implemented a communication plan to push information out and engage the community through meetings, TV advertising, interviews and newspaper advertising. We developed plans to engage and develop staff and begin the process of readying them for their new school. We designed transitional environments where the students would continue their education while the school was being built. All at a time when schools and the Ministry would traditionally be winding down for the year and people were tired.
This is when I stopped. Was I ready to do this again? I wrote hundreds of words giving voice to my anxiety, frustration and exhaustion at this point. After doing some of this already did I have the capacity to do this again, especially as my role had shifted from participant to leader. I doubted that I was to be honest.
There was a crunch event for me - the Secretary gave permission to close three schools a week early, in order to do some work with the teachers to introduce them to some of the concepts we would be working with and to be able to work with a number of members of the Ministry team to plan for the first term. It was an opportunity, but it was fraught with many pressures and barriers. We had little time to prepare. We gave parents their lovelies a week earlier, a holiday extension... Teachers were exhausted at the end of the year and anxious about the future. We were pressing ahead with the demolition and they had farewell two important community institutions and pack resources away at the same time. It was frantic. There were many cracks with overwhelmed people struggling to meet the demands of the situation. I was anxious, tired, felt like I was carrying the mantle of MLE and vulnerable. Not the best way to start a week of PD with 60 teachers and Ministry staff. This anxiety, distrust and tiredness was reflected in the mood of the opening sessions. The Hall next to the school was huge, stark and uninviting. To cap off an inauspicious beginning the power went off and the whizz bang audio visuals did not come to the rescue. There was a palpable sense of resistance and disquiet. I was on edge. My colleagues and I put in a huge effort to expose the teachers to new ideas, engage with material differently and to try to give the the information and support they needed to make a start on their journey. Against resistance, we catered lots of food. We gave the teachers lots of time to think and plan collaboratively. We gave them structures to work with. We challenged them when we didn't.
The culmination was the final day where the collaborative teaching groups would present their learning and planning to senior members of the Ministry and we would share an end-of-year social. That morning where we opened with a hymn and a prayer (as are all meetings and gatherings here) I made the decision to offer to lead the prayer and sing a hymn. I was absolutely exhausted and wouldn't normally be comfortable sharing spirituality with a large group, but I sang a hymn that is important to who I am and shared the history with the group. Mo Maria is the first Catholic himene composed in NZ Maori and holds a lot of resonance for me personally - it reminds me of my turangawaewae, my whanau and a number of emtional experiences. As I was wobbling through the second verse the teachers were picking up the harmonies and even though they were unfamiliar with the words they joined me. That was incredibly moving. In that moment there was some clarity for me. That this was a shared experience and that there we had formed a sense of collective identity and purpose. Moreover, there was some trust and a sense of the willing. We gave out certificates to the teachers and had presentations. There was celebration, song and laughter. I was relieved and felt a sense f accomplishment. I felt connected to my colleagues and thankful for their support and that now the journey was shared.
This week, the new transition buildings open for the year. They were built, renovated, furnished all during the holidays. An extraordinary accomplishment. The teachers are unfamiliar and nervous, as are the parents and students. Already I have heard and seen conversations about furniture and space between teachers - unheard of! Students are excited and the teachers are developing a sense of them self and their culture in these spaces. One of the transitional spaces is a refurnished 90 year old school building. We have breathed new life into it and it looks great and is a great place to have a modern learning environment - old dogs new tricks! The other is a community hall where we have retrofitted a mezzanine floor and breakout spaces. It was a hectic week and I am totally exhausted. The teachers and kids have realized it is not as bad as they thought and there is a positive vibe in the two spaces.
It is still the beginning, but I am ready for the challenge ahead. There are many opportunities ahead. Building relationships with the Remarkables Primary and their inspirational principal, teachers and students. Taking a group of teachers to freezing Queenstown, to Ulearn in NZ and my Fulbright trip to the States. All firsts for me or the Cooks in one way or another. Although I am still uneasy about the responsibility, it is becoming more and more a shared vision - and in turn - a stronger and more collaborative project. A large part of the anxiety did come from knowing what hard work Ormiston was. But so too a large part of the resilience and understanding I need to make this work. A very reflective time for me at the moment and I have enjoyed thinking about the past and the present. I felt alone in walking aboard the plane at times last year, but now the plane is filling with passengers and I am ready to buckle up, Even if I am putting the seat belt on extra tight and smashing the drinks trolley!
Let's go!
