Another blog another rant. Well maybe it is not a rant, but a self-debate about how to enhance my teaching. Reading Gloria Dall’Alba’s article on “Improving Teaching: Enhancing Ways of Being University Teachers”, what struck me was that Dall’Alba’s approach may not provide enough guidance for teachers who are just starting out in their careers, who may be struggling with specific teaching challenges or are not teaching in humanities and social sciences. Teachers in more technical or scientific fields may find this article less applicable to their teaching practices. Where is the guidance for scientists, business teachers, technicians? 

On the other hand, what I really liked was the insightful perspective on the importance of personal development of university teachers, their ways of being as a teacher and how crucial this is for effective teaching and learning. By encouraging teachers to reflect on their own beliefs and values, and to engage in ongoing personal development, Dall’Alba provides a valuable framework for teachers to improve their teaching practice and their own well-being. 

Her exploration of the relationship between teaching and learning and how intertwined they are, struck a cord with me. The importance of creating a supportive and inclusive learning environment which fosters critical thinking, creativity and engagement. Seems so logical and simple, but from what I have seen in my limited time teaching, is definitely not the case. Not sure if this article has found me or I found it, but it feels like it was written in the starts for me to read it. It gave me reassurance, that my own inner exploration, my beliefs and values are such important factors when developing my teaching practice. Dall’Alba’s report is not a sufficient report on it’s own, but it certainly give me guidance of how higher education teacher s can improve their teaching and own well-being. 

I had a write a reflection on the article by John Holmwood: Race and the Neoliberal University. 

I come to London at 15 years old, not speaking the language or knowing the culture. To say it was a sock to the system and has affected, deeply, the rest of my life is an understatement. My family and I escaped the war in ex-Yugoslavia and came here to find a better life. My dad had a job, but we were still looked down upon by the English community.  

What resonated with me reading through the article was the unfairness of the education system. Why does someone with lots of family money deserve a better education then me. I went to a state school to finish my secondary education and then to university. Luckily by that time my parents had £3000 to pay for my yearly tuition and I was able to pursue my dreams of higher education. But why am I so special, why am I allowed to embrace this learning opportunity? Isn’t the purpose of education to make the world a better place? So how come only the privileged people are allowed to exercise that purpose. 

Now, in my 40s and on the other side of the education I still question it and cannot let it go. Being part of UAL EDI committee, my role is to challenge the status quo and, together with my EDI peers, come up with solutions to intergrade all and we do mean all. It’s not just being allowed to study but also what content we are teaching and who and how we are teaching. Are we teaching facts or are we teaching exploration and development of thought?

But the higher education system is just like private lower education. Is this market correct? It appears to highly skewed towards the wealthy? Does education fuel capitalism? Are we teaching money, status, greed or our we teaching something else? 

What would be interesting to see from this article is data. Data on when the education was free, what happened to the university graduates then. Where did they go, what did they do, how did they lives turned out? The interesting thing would be determining the questionnaire criteria and the success measures. What is success and how do we measure it? Money, impact to the society, wellness, community…. The list goes on. 

Microteaching session overview 

Not sure if this is part of my assessment or not, but I wanted to write about my experience yesterday during the microteaching seminar.

I got an immense amount out of my peers’ presentations and all but one got some fantastic crits. I’ve listened and learned and wasn’t judgmental about any teaching styles or the topics they were teaching. Some of them were quite obscure for a mathematician like me, but I was open minded and willing to learn. The same attitude wasn’t offered to me. I was the one who didn’t get a good crit. I have to admit, I was unprepared and wanted to have a discussion session rather than a 20 min presentation, which turned into a vicious attack on me. The dynamics of the group were difficult and rather judgmental, which I wasn’t ready for. The attacks were personal and very hurtful. I was made to feel unprepared, not a teacher, not being able to control the room and ultimately stupid. I’m very new to teaching and am now seriously considering if this is the right path for me. I don’t feel welcomed, supported or safe in that toxic environment. All of my peers and tutor felt offended about the topic that I chose. I do understand that the data analytics and online shopping is a taboo subject for creatives in the room, but that is the reason why I chose to have a lively debate. The whole concept was misunderstood but I wasn’t given a chance to explain. The attacks kept on coming and I shrunk, disappeared. This experience has alienated me from the group and is making me reconsider my choices. This programme was about learning in a safe space, but it certainly didn’t feel like that to me. So much judgement was present yesterday and people’s own insecurities highlighted. 

I love sharing my knowledge, I love the energy of young students, their desire to live, play and learn. I get so much out of teaching, but yesterdays’ experience has put a negative spin on it. I’ve learnt so much from microteaching. All the different techniques, all the different interactions with the audience, tools we can use to get our point across. The silence and body movement were particularly interesting ways to teach, but sadly most of the content from microteaching cannot be used in teaching my units, the business side of fashion. The one thing I will take from the seminar is kindness and how important it is. Regardless of circumstances, everyone deserves it. Not me yesterday. 

What a day yesterday. 

We had our first face to face all day session and it was fantastic. Not just because I was in a room full of people with similar ideals, values, issues and concerns, but also the content we have covered. 

The morning was all about different quotes and what they mean to us, how do we interpret them. The discussions were very insightful and what resonated with me was turning fear into excitement, risk into opportunity. The students and us as teachers have a level of fear in us, but that fear is manifested with the same body reactions as excitement. It’s only our brain telling that we are scared rather the excited. Working on the our and our students thoughts will hopefully turn a quiet group sessions into lively atmospheric events. 

We also talked a lot about risk and how students don’t want to talk, express themselves as there is a risk of failure. We, again as teachers, need to instil in them safety so there is a constant flow of information without the risk of losing face in front of their fears. There was a great comment from one of my peers, about how different cultures have different levels of risk and we have to very mindful of that. 

The afternoon was about different sizes of group work their pros and cons. Lectures, seminars, tutorials and crits/presentations. It was very insightful listening to everyone’s opinions about different sizes of group sessions and how they find them. What I found very interesting is how many negative things come out for tutorials and I always thought these are the best, most enriched sessions. This brought of pastoral care for students and another huge discussion began. Why are we taking on so much responsibility for students wellbeing and there is so much pressure on us. Some great suggestions were made, but this has left me feeling a bit vulnerable. It is my duty of care and being a mother of 3, the students are someone’s’ child, so it’s my duty to protect them and help them while they are not in the safety of their own families and homes. Or is it? Something to think about. 

Silva