📑 Glenn Savage on Gonski 2.0

Bookmarked Glenn Savage on #Gonski2 (Filling the pail)

Having taught curriculum theory for many years, my personal view is that I think we need to be careful not to get caught up in curriculum fads that do much to celebrate the notion of transcending so-called ‘siloed disciplines’ in favour of what, in reality, can often be an atmospheric assemblage of dispositions we’re apparently supposed to structure learning around. - Glenn Savage

This continues Savage’s commentary on Gonski 2.0 (see The Conversation and listen to the ABC.) He raises a number of concerns about jumping straight into implementation, arguing that we need to run a number of pilots to test some of recommendations before over-investing. He is also wary of fads and solutions.

I can tell you, I’ve worked in some of the most disadvantaged schools in the Western world and when I arrived at work in the morning, the challenges I faced weren’t poor kids with fixed mindsets. Instead, I had poor kids who hadn’t had breakfast, who were shivering because their parents couldn’t afford uniforms, or who were suffering trauma from their time in refugee camps. Mindsets had nothing to do with it.

From an ideological point-of-view, he does not think that approaching the document from only one lens offers much. Instead he offers a number of plausible interpretations to demonstrate the possibilities.