Welcome to the third issue of AEL for 2024, where we look at a future beyond boundaries, for our students, families, and profession.
“Boundaries” is a common word in our vernacular to describe the edge or end of one space or concept and the beginning of another. It is the main prop in science fiction tales, where the protagonist enters unknown worlds, and dangers loom from within every shadow! New frontiers are claimed, new ground is explored, and new lands discovered. For those who are brave enough to leap into the unknown, and clever enough to survive, boundaries are what stand between us and grand adventures!
There is another perspective we can have on this, of course. Boundaries can protect and guard those things that are valuable to us. Our lives, for a start! Boundaries in place, allow us to hold our ground, to care for ourselves and others, and to be wise as we juggle unrealistic and often unrelenting expectations of others. With all that is rushing down the pipeline, with the increased expectation that schools will be all things to all people, and with discussion over the “Right to Disconnect” legislation, the concept of “boundaries” is invaluable and essential for our sense of self, and for our well-being.
Boundaries can be walls to overcome and/or walls to keep us safe. Rather than being good or bad, black or white, right or wrong, boundaries, like so many things in life, can foster or hinder growth, depending on the situation, the timing, and the players. There is wisdom in appreciating this distinction and recognising for whom these boundaries emerge. Are these boundaries I agree to or that I accept? Or are they being placed on me by outside forces? Rules and constrictions put in place by others may sound helpful. Still, with so many agendas and opinions about every topic under the sun, boundaries imposed by others may reflect their limited imagination about what is possible or a desire to control rather than genuine concern for the wellbeing of others.
Education can, at times, be perceived as a relatively conservative profession. We can be slow to embrace changing expectations or different ways of teaching. By far, most of our schools still reflect the structure and organisational approach of factories from the Industrial Revolution. We ban what we don’t understand and fall prey to those who would have us all teach and test in the same way, regardless of our unique communities. We operate in 20th century schools, talking about 21st century outcomes as we hurtle towards the 22nd century.
Thus, we can be criticised as a profession for going too slow and not embracing the future frontiers! Yet there can be wisdom, too, in recognising that there is more to what we do than teaching about technology or AI or skills-based competencies. We also teach about values and character, and what it means to live a good life; a life where we both bear responsibility and contribute to society in a positive and uplifting way. A life where we are not always hankering for what we do not have. School communities remind our society about what truly matters in life. If we hold onto this, at the same time as we leap over organisational constraints, we will truly appreciate that boundaries can be our friend. At times, we will leap over them and refuse to let them constrain us, and, at other times, we will be grateful for their role in protecting what matters to our society.
I commend this issue of AEL to you and wish you all the best as you start Semester 2, incorporating boundaries both to protect you and to set you free. I look forward to catching up with everyone at ACEL’s national conference at the end of September. See you in Adelaide!