Today I hosted a lunch for a group of alumni called the Old Lads. These gentlemen are a social group of alumni who are united in their love of the School. Celebrating a time of young men, upholding Christian values, in a golden era of the School with numerous academic and sporting records attained and a boarding house boasting over 170 scholars with an equally vibrant day boy cohort in those magical years – the 1940s-1960s.
It was an afternoon of renewing friendships, swapping memories and camaraderie, with the celebration of traditions of the time and their life success.
Events such as this, for me, pose 3 pivotal questions:
- What is the purpose of a Grammar education today?
- What is it that we will do as a School to create an experience of engagement and learning? That will mean, in 50 years from now, our students will come together to celebrate and remember their time at School with great pride and deep affection.
- How will we as educators work with our students and their families to provide future generations the opportunities to enjoy success?
As the Principal leading a talented and dedicated staff team, I know that we will not shirk from finding the answers to these questions. The success of our efforts and ambition may never be known by me. However, it is obvious, that an education today must meet the current and future needs of our students to enable them to experience life success just as earlier generations have.
In some ways, learning will always have a familiarity of experience largely driven by the relationship between students and their teachers. But, in many ways, the education for our students needs to evolve to embrace different approaches to learning. Education 4.0 is an emerging model which excites us, challenges us and provokes us to do what is right for the children of today and tomorrow.
Acquiring enduring cognitive (analytical) skills must be developed in learners. The engagement with creative and critical thinking, digital skills, problem-solving and systems analysis, challenge us to have a sophisticated set of learning contexts. The complementary interpersonal skills required to succeed in life must also be learnt. Students must understand and be able to harness the power of effective collaboration, clear communication, transparent negotiation, and high-level social and emotional awareness.
Grammar learning programs must address the shaping of character that is grounded in an ethical and strong values framework. The personal and social dispositions required for success are many and varied from regulating self, to service, to the community and our environment. We must create opportunities for deep learning in these areas just as we study specific disciplines of knowledge. A strong and robust well-being program is required to enable our young people to face a future that may be far more challenging than anything previous generations have experienced.
We are all bearing witness to an incredible digital transformation. This week Michelle Bradley, Head of Digital Technologies, and I were discussing the rapid evolution of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its impact on learning. It is apparent that previous forms of digital tools in education were to be used at our discretion. We had the choice to embrace or seek alternative digital applications. But the emergence of ChatGPT and the associated plethora of AI applications means that we do not have the discretion of time to choose. It has arrived and we are being led by its presence and it is not going away.
We can adopt a wait-and-see approach, but such is its accessibility we know our students and their families will be working in this space regardless of the School’s choices. We know that AI evolution will rapidly transform learning and education. If we are to honour our contract to our parents that we will prepare students for life success, then we must create a learning environment that is instilled with experiences and understanding of how to best use digital technologies to serve the best interest of ourselves and the greater good.
As a learning community, our willingness to embrace and understand the nexus between well-being, academic and cognitive learning, and the impact of digital transformation will determine our ability to deliver an education that is worthy of our future generations. It need not be a revolution, but it does need to be considered, researched and a best practice framework developed. Our learning culture and framework need to be agile in its evolution and firmly grounded in our mission.
This is the conversation we need to have as a community over the coming months so that we may ensure that in fifty years’ time, the current generation are able to gather and celebrate with pride the traditions of their school, the power of the friendships made and the opportunities it afforded them for lifelong success.
Enjoy the long weekend. The cool weather gives our students (and perhaps our mums and dads) the perfect opportunity to indulge in a “doona day” or to recharge in the great outdoors and engage in other pursuits. Whatever your choices, may they be enjoyable and an opportunity to connect with family and friends.
Dale Bennett
Principal