Finding our way
I love a road atlas. I remember when they were essential for any long-distance journey. They could be found in the boot, a glove compartment or under the back seat of every car. Often dog eared or slightly torn they were nevertheless extremely precious.
Using these ubiquitous books was a joy. They provided an idea of the relationship between places and plenty of ‘aha’ moments when you quietly said to yourself “oh so that’s where that place is”. They required careful scrutiny but they delivered all the information you needed.
Most importantly regular use of a road atlas made you proficient in map reading and you became more and more familiar with the geography of the country. The value of a road atlas should certainly not be taken for granted.
Recently I was speaking to a university student who was studying 150 miles away from his family home. I happened to ask him about which route he took to his campus. I was mildly interested in the answer, but the question was more about maintaining polite, low-level conversation than burning curiosity. I was staggered by his response. He revealed that he had no idea of the roads he usually travelled on, the towns he passed through or even if there was an alternative scenic route. His approach simply involved typing a post code into a Sat Nav and blindly following the instructions.
With a self-satisfying smile on his face, he further elaborated to say that the Sat Nav gave him the proposed time of arrival at his destination, information about en-route services and accounted for changing traffic conditions.
I regularly travel a relatively short distance south along the M6 and then join the M5. On these journeys I had been intrigued to see an increasing number of cars slowing dramatically and indicating left to join the inside lane, adjacent to the junction before the intersection of these two motorways. The manoeuvre did not appear to be triggered by the giant signs on the overhead gantries and it made no sense to be heading into the nearside lane just as traffic would be looking to join it immediately after the junction.
It wasn’t until I made the same journey with someone using a Sat Nav that the penny dropped. As the car driving south drew level with the huge Swedish Furniture store on land parallel to the motorway the well-spoken lady floating above in the satellite, softly told the driver to indicate left and join the inside lanes. Drivers, anesthetized by the robotic voice duly did as they were told completely unaware of the multitude of signs they had recently passed informing them that they were a mile away from the intersection. It wasn’t the speed that the car was travelling at, the weather conditions, the amount of traffic or even a back-seat driver that determined when to change lanes. No, it was the lady from above. In my head I could picture her filing her nails as she calmly gave out her orders. You don’t have to think. All you have to do is drive!
As someone who would normally view stopping to ask for directions as an admission of failure, I of course recognize some benefits of using a Satellite Navigation System. Benefits that clearly made the student so happy. At the same time however, it occurred to me that he may well have been missing the point. What about ownership! What about thinking on your feet! What about developing your knowledge! The pleasure and gentle satisfaction of arriving at your destination using your own planned route should not be underestimated.
It appears to me that the more I see classroom practice the more I encounter the lurch towards a Sat Nav approach. From somewhere in the ether, we have arrived at a point where some new ‘magic ways of working’ have become accepted as the way forward. The only route to success. A set of easy to follow instructions that structure the lesson. We have sleepwalked into a position where you don’t have to think, all you have to do is teach!
The advocates of these prescriptive methods strenuously argue that their approach works and often cite that ‘it is what Ofsted’ wants to persuade everyone to follow. To further compound the situation the ever-increasing number of middle leaders appearing in schools monitor teachers to death and ensure that these approaches are universally adopted under a regime of fear. Teachers are told that schools need consistency of practice and this mantra is repeatedly used until staff are beaten into submission.
Such is the self-belief of these leaders there isn’t a hint of doubt that they are right. No questioning, no thorough consideration. The lady on the Sat- Nav has confidently told them they are right!
There is however a significant consequence of the Sat-Nav approach. Just like the drivers who switch off their geographical brain so teachers can become anesthetised to the possibilities that exist within their classrooms. A step-by-step recipe, religiously followed regardless of the appropriateness of the content quite simply kills creativity! There are 32,00 schools in England, and they are all different. Common sense tells me that following the same route in every school cant be as effective in each one.
There are far too many variables involved. These include the delivery style of the teacher, the years of experience they have, the resources they have available and the context in which they operate. Is there a universal approach that is equally effective everywhere, from the rural village to the urban city.
Of course, there are undoubtedly principles of good practice that apply across all settings but teachers and indeed schools need space to be creative, to explore, initiate and excite.
On the driving test the assessor notes your ability to control the car, gauges your responsiveness to the traffic and checks your knowledge of the rules of the road. If you pass you are given permission to drive and develop your skills and become more proficient. The more driving you do, the better you become. Teaching is the same. It is an art developed and fine-tuned by experience. Also, like driving, it is best performed when alert and confident! Beware of our teachers becoming robotic, unmotivated and simply going through the motions. Children deserve excited adults , thinking on their feet, delivering bespoke teaching and forming the positive relationships that make our schools the special places many are. We can't let the Sat-Nav lead us to a dead end.