It was a busy and eventful year. Retirement is thought of as a time to step back and slow down. I remain busy and choose to do so, as health permits. I had pieces published and presented at two conferences. If anyone wishes to read or browse the book chapter, two articles, and a draft, I uploaded them to Academia. A by-product of one presentation, Re imagining Teacher Education An Andragogy of Hope, was an interview with the Fig Tree Online Magazine, published in October.
The emerging themes are pedagogies and andragogies of hope and peace. Teachers are vital to opening spaces of hope and peace. For various reasons e.g. time, education, assignments, top-down authoritarian dictates, etc., teachers struggle to infuse pedagogies of hope and peace into their teaching. In a role as a field instructor for student-teachers, I observe teachers and student-teachers who lack the education, confidence, and support in these areas. Furthermore, there is interference from outside the classroom as to what can be taught and there is a risk someone complains if a teacher teaches something someone is unhappy with. In Alberta, the government changed rules about complaints going to school and district administration to a committee of largely non-educators and complaints increased noticeably .
In a world where civil discourse is at a premium and we often equate rhetoric to its colloquial meaning of bombast, we need faculties of education to educate and teachers to continue their education in ways that support pedagogies of hope and peace. Dialogue and the proper use of rhetoric, as eloquent speech and deep listening, are essential to make headway to deal with issues that polarize people into competing ideological camps.
Currently, I am preparing for a conference about teacher education as an andragogy of hope, peace, and non-violence. As well, I submitted a proposal to present at a holistic education conference where I hope to show how hope, peace, and non-violence tap into the spiritual domain often overlooked in teaching and learning. What is essential is to focus on what we can change and how we can each make a difference in our small corners of the world. Prudence can make small differences adding up to larger differences.
Several years ago, we were in Arizona and hiked in a regional park on an every other day basis. During our hikes, I took pictures of cacti that were blooming. Nature demonstrates hope even in challenging ecological settings. The contrast of the pink with a dull green and brown background serves as a beautiful reminder of hope in challenging times.
I share the Prayer of St. Francis as it has deep meaning in our family and it often referred to as the Peace Prayer. The word peace appears once and is the overarching message. Hope is an integral part of achieving peace.
Here is Sarah McLachlan‘s video of the Peace Prayer.
Teacher as Transformer 
Congrats on all of your successes!
Thank you Eunice.
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We will do this together.
Hi Ivon, I just had a book published, “Wake Up Call: Daily Insights for the Spiritually Curious” and belatedly realized I mention you by name twice. I just sent you a LinkedIn invite. Once we connect, I will send you a pdf copy. Tom
Hi Ivon, I just had a book published, “Wake Up Call: Daily Insights for the Spiritually Curious” and belatedly realized I mention you by name twice. I just sent you a LinkedIn invite. Once we connect, I will send you a pdf copy. Best wishes for 2024, Tom
Thank you Tom. I will do that right away. It sounds like an interesting read and might fit with some of the things I am into now. Have a wonderful 2024.
I hope, over the years of our bloggy world friendship, you have learned from my commenting and actions, how highly I respect your years of service, in teaching others, your education, expertise, values, etc.
I ALSO really love that I learn the meaning of ‘new words’ all the time, because I have to look ’em up, even though, once, long ago and STILL, sometimes, people laud or get mad over my way of writing/saying things or words I use to try to convey the nuances while describing something –
That said, in today’s day and age, there are SO many in need, and social media, memes, 2.5 second wing it, say it at 6th grade level and EVEN in accessibility to make online world understandable to many? And easy for them?
I’m learning that even in the chaos of political times and fights, even in the world of ‘make it short, sweet, impactful, one line with grace and humour’ and understandable by everyone who runs across it?
Well! Let me tell you what! During my course of providing online tools, doing training days, refresher training days, tech support via email, text, in person learning?
Ah – NOW I must learn more about ‘andragogy’ – simply because, methods and techniques used to teach adults? Is what I, non-college educated, need to learn, but seriously? In my experience?
Teachers who were in ‘class’ I was teaching so they could know how to log in, post their own info, fill out their bio, etc., (circa 2014-2016 before I told the people in charge of budget, it was a waste of time and money!) well…
Even my own teacher of my days in that same, durn, school, who was the guide to me perfecting my skills in Office, work, creation tools of the time? Who got really mad if she suspected we weren’t paying attention?
There she sat, in the back row, talking to her friend next to her, cell phone in front of her and I later learned she was posting to social media during that time about how cell phones should not be allowed in the classroom and her frustration over it….
At the time, of presentation, I wanted to stride back, stand in front of her and say, “Your turn – tell me the steps to log in, fill out your short bio and save it to your profile? What? Weren’t you paying attention – gimme the phone, go sit up front, away from your friend, and maybe you’ll learn something….”
Afterwards? When I got home, and in pure ‘fleeing away’ from the collossal failure of making ‘training for professional teachers’ a success and useful and helpful?
I saw her Facebook feeds, and the time stamp – and I thought – well, hypocrisy abounds in many places and well….no sense losin’ my temper or being mad – it is rather FUNNY this is what she was doing, while in her own continuing, education, workshop, training day – she sucks at being a student, eh?
LOL. Does that mean I hold teachers and those with higher degrees in eduation in low regard?
Nope….it just means, “ah – I’m not cut out to teach adults – because I often want to treat them like children and I’d back my kids any day of the week against their attention skills”
LOL
As an adult who returned to earn three degrees, I observed how university was merely an extension of K-12 where we were expected to accept what was said passively.
My first class, a lecture with about 300 students, was my first taste of this and echoes what you say about the hypocrisy. A number of us were standing at the back without a seat to be found. The professor walked out and, without introducing himself, told us we would easily be able to find seats after the Canadian Thanksgiving or mid-October as 40% of us would have dropped out. This professor fancied himself the arbiter of what was good in society and what needed to be corrected. He saw no inconsistencies in his comments.
Little has changed in the past 35 years. Despite this, I think most aspiring and existing teachers want something different. You hit it on the head when you alluded to the fact adults want something different in their education. This becomes evident in junior high where students want to test their understanding of the world, which can be flawed. My view is we need something different and teachers would generally agree. It is those outside classrooms who do not concur. This includes community members, bureaucrats, technocrats, politicians, business people, etc. We need a framework that allows teachers to teach within their context, including in adult education.
I agree AND disagree – overall – what we need is a world of adults who are endlessly curious and ask, “why is the sky blue? ” or “Can we have class outside, today? it’s such a beautiful day” and teachers that say, “Okay – we’ve been working hard” to learn such and such, OR teachers that say, “sure, let us go out into the world, I shall walk beside ya, as you explore, and if ask the question, I’ll answer to best of my ability, but I, too, am still learning – and we both will continue learning as we go, won’t we?”
One of my fave teachers, in high school, was one who was required by local standards to ‘dress appropriately’ and was traveling 3 times a week, to take night courses, far from our rural community, to get her Masters in her discipline she loved – and tired, in her biz skirt, blazer, panty hose, etc., she once said to our small class, “IF you want to learn, ya have to make it a priority! Guess what girls? I haven’t shaved my legs for weeks now! The panty hose is what I must wear to keep my job, and it sure does chafe when I don’t take time to shave my legs – but I want to complete my classes, get my paper approved, and graduate MORE than I want to look good or feel comfy while doing – and so – I’m tired – you’re tired – and shall we walk out to the playground for a bit? Your lesson for today is to describe the playground to me speaking only Spanish – my lesson for today is to stay awake while you report in, and say so” – :D. She was fun – was also my drama teacher, writing teacher, English teacher and in honor society sponsor, who ended up hating me for a bit, because I took her advice and never looked back and said so, etc., but still, she is one I STILL remember, right along the coach that despaired over me ever getting a passing grade in Physical Education, the music teacher who despaired over me ever working hard to be better at music, the cheer & gymnastic coach that despaired of me ever being graceful and ‘landing’ with aplomb after flying through the hair – and yet, each of them? THE very moment I loved them MOST was when they said, outloud, “Yeah, me too – ” and the most I ever cared to fight for teachers, was when I first learned others NOT in their daily class, wished to be ‘rid of them’ for other various reasons – such as you described – thus, for me, always, it comes down to shutting out the noise and showing up for the conversation, for better or worse, over and over and over – a never ending battle while me and so many others, are so frickn tired and just want to go out to the playground for a bit and remember, for each of ourselves, why the heck we thought dedicating our life, just now, was a good idea…. LOL
Yes, somewhere along the line we lose that curiosity. To some extent it is schooled out of us. I often see university students who simply want to know what they have to do to get through. Your favourite teacher is a shining example of what and who we need in classrooms, someone dedicated to their learning and, as a result, a role model for those around them.
When I completed my dissertation, the teachers I interviewed shared two things of importance. First, they remembered the teachers who inspired them and, second, if they didn’t have one who inspired, they wanted to be the teacher they would have wanted to inspire them. The first group spoke about the relationships and stories and the second about the lack of them. For me, I have teachers who inspired and I wanted to emulate in small ways as I found my path forward.
I love that hymn. And it’s great hearing from you again, Ivon. All of the top down issues that you mention are reasons I did not stay with teaching. Perhaps the model is changing, let’s hope! Blessings and good health to you in 2024! 🙏💕
Thank you Bela. She has a lovely voice, which fits the song beautifully. Plus she is Canadian.
The top-down was one of the reasons I left K-12 in 2013. I found myself being cut off from the things I felt were important to teaching in my setting. I had no issues with a framework and accountability. It was the shrinking choice and less agency that concerned me. The model has not changed. It has gotten more so. I hope to begin to create little pockets of resistance in how teachers can approach their own education prior to and after entering the profession.
Take care and have a wonderful 2024
Thank you, Ivon! And thanks for your motivation to resist. I subbed K-12 years ago, and it was bad enough. (And let me point out, the administrators were not bad people! But they, too were constrained by school boards, etc.) I did not wish to enroll as a full-time teacher, due to what I believed to be a system focused more on discipline than training young minds. And I had no patience to try and change the system – too busy raising my own girls, conducting my emerging practice as a Medical Intuitive, and hosting a radio program. But I digress. To top it off, we were in a great school district! I can only imagine how things have changed since that time – over 30 years ago. In my opinion, kids are just too smart for most education models anymore, human ‘evolution’ demands these models change. It will take a village of dedicated educators, to be sure.
I have long loved your handle “Teacher as Transformer.” Because it is true, in its essence. I had great teachers, my daughters also. But my husband was in an underfunded school system, and did not love it as the three of us did. It can make all the difference.
Blessings to you and Kathy. Carry on!
Thank you Bela. I will carry on as best as I can and hope others find ways to join in their own ways.
Your point about children being taught in much the same way as before is bang on. The school model has long been outdated, but we persist. The same applies for our post secondary teaching, and you are right, it is not the people in the classrooms or K-12 schools who are at fault. They are hamstrung by the political machinations.
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Congratulations
Beautiful read and song, Ivon. I see hope in nature and in the faces of the children.
Those are definitely two places we find hope. Children are full of hope and the Camus quote about there being hope in winter speaks to nature.
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The prayer of St. Francis of Assisi is one of my favorites both in word and in song. It speaks to my heart.
Kathy and I used as one of the readings at our wedding. It has played an integral role in my life from my earliest memories. It is one of those prayers or poems that does easily speak to the heart.