I was doing some relief teaching for someone else's class recently and there on the board was the 'thought of the day'. So I added my own.
'Oz never did give nothing to the Tinman that he didn't already have'.
I actually want to get this printed on a T-shirt (after the one that says 'Human's deserve extinction')
When I pointed my thought of the day out on the whiteboard the only response I got was 'You can't use a double negative like that'. Oh well, he was probably too young to know that it was a lyric from a very well known song by America. That would be showing my age. But knowing about the 'Wizard of Oz' would be enough to reveal the meaning wouldn't it?
I am new to the teaching profession, just 3 years into it at a late stage in my life. I really love it and I am learning as much as my students. But I have a very clear philosophy and that phrase encapsulates everything I believe in. Teaching is a privileged role and one that can be easily abused in the power dynamic that operates between student and lecturer. The misuse of that 'power' (which is illusory anyway) - is my pet hate, because as an art student I have suffered on the other side of it.
As a 'teacher', I believe I am a facilitator for someone else to discover their own strengths and abilities. It is an honour to support someone else on their own very individual journey. Now I am not a 'soft touch', I expect things from people, punctuality and respect (which is mutual). And I am really tough on self-responsibility, because I believe it is empowering for everyone. It means that people can take control of their own progress. Sometimes students are so eager to please and I have to remind them 'you aren't doing this for me you know, you are doing this for yourself'.
I have had some great teachers for which I will be eternally grateful. I wish I could tell them what a difference they made to my life.
The TIN MAN philosophy
