Friday 30th October

Our class today began talking about KED schools. In order to create a new educational environment, KED schools decided that a complete new system was necessary. They changed the whole approach to teaching and learning, focussing on the student's autonomy and independent work. The kids are supported by individual tutors and are involved in a coaching process. They also have a learning portal, which organizes all the contents in step courses. Technology is a key point in these schools, as students need access to their learning resources and materials. But the most relevant aspect is the way education is organized. Pupils are not grouped according to their age, but according to the step course they are following. They focus on achievement, goals, coaching and assessment. But I wonder if we could reallistically apply the KED schools system in our own classrooms. Is it possible to implement a specific aspect or element of this learning approach within a rigid schedule that is so hard and difficult to modify? Would it make any sense using specific techniques that only seem to work when they are framed in a coherent system?

Francisco also reflected about how to allocate resources in order to improve our schools. Francisco thinks that investing money in buying technology – for example, one computer per child – is pointless unless teachers know what to do with these resources. This is what happened in southern Spain, but it didn't really work. Instead, he considers that we should spend money in teacher training, making it our priority. When teachers have the knowledge and skills to manage their classes they will be able to promote a real change in their own schools.

This launched a very interesting debate about the differences between the English educational system and the Spanish one. Francisco also explains how this particular training programme for teachers was first held in Ireland, but it didn't seem to work. So the authorities from Madrid decided to change its location to Chichester, where the summer training course for bilingual teachers worked quite well. Anyway, Francisco insists in the importance of creating a network of teachers who can work together and share their resources, materials and reflections. If we manage to set up a network, the outcomes of our training programme will have the opportunity to spread and reach many more people in Madrid.

Personally, what I find stressful and rather uncomfortable in this approach is the way it pushes every individual to make the most of his/her own skills in order to obtain a maximum productivity. This particular frame of mind seems to be obsessed with efficiency and effectiveness, with a never-ending process investing in our own improvement, eternally revising our own performance. Moreover, we are encouraged to monitor this process using objective and clear indicators, which can be combined and measured in a rigorous way by ourselves or eventually by external inspectors also. Within this peculiar frame of mind, nothing seems to be good enough, as there is always the possibility of improvement. Perfection is unattainable, and neurotically trying to achieve it can be exhausting and depressing. Perhaps we should learn to accept our own flaws, our own limitations and our own imperfections. I don't picture myself as being an unhappy, unsatisfied and anxious teacher in perpetual search of outstanding performance. Why should be get involved in this tiring and continuous effort in order to be the best teacher ever? I would rather be a happy, imperfect and human teacher that tries to do his best without getting obsessed to become an ideal model of teaching effectiveness.

I guess that our teachers at Chichester University consider that this peculiar group of 20 Spanish teachers could become the vanguard of a revolutionary change in our way of teaching and learning. Sometimes I feel they are pushing us a bit too much, forcing us to abandon our comfort zone and throwing us into the unknown and hazardous space of risky pedagogical innovation. According to Francisco, “Whenever there is stability, there is no progression”.

I imagine that both our teachers and the educational authorities that are paying them hope that this training course might launch a chain reaction in our own educational system. But first they have to convince us that such a change is positive, convenient and necessary. Personally, I consider that feeling that our traditional way of teaching is being put at stake is not only challenging, but it might also be counterproductive, as it can be discouraging at the end of the day.

This makes me reflect about the safe permanent posts that Spanish teachers get after passing their competitive examinations and becoming civil servants, in comparison with the situation of English teachers, who are regularly assessed and whose position is always threatened by an adverse Ofsted report. Is this the best scenario to enhance the teacher's performance, motivation and happiness? Do we really want to transform the Spanish educational system in this direction? Isn't it better for the teacher – and also for the educational system as a whole – to concentrate on education rather than on struggling to get and maintain a good position in a highly competitive scenario? Are we sure that introducing market criteria in the selection, assessment and professional development of teachers is the best way to become a human and happy teacher?