Brian's Blog

You don't need to be in education to see being a teacher is one of the most rewarding professions in the world. There is nothing quite like seeing the light bulb go off in a student's head when they finally understand a concept. Or watching them grow and mature in character and competency as they progress through their education. But teaching can also be challenging and complex. There are long hours, demanding parents, and ever-changing curriculum standards. Over the last few years, it can be easy to feel discouraged and want to give up. But I encourage you to never give up on your students. They are counting on you. They need you to be their champion, their guide, and their role model. Remember why you became a teacher in the first place. You wanted to make a difference in the lives of young people. You wanted to help them reach their full potential. You wanted to see them become people of character and influence. A mentor of mine recently reminded me, "you can do it, you...

  Education in today's world is a challenging environment, with the complexities of many competing demands brought on by political agendas, curriculum reforms, school strategic plans, budget restrictions, individual learning requirements, student wellbeing, programming, compliance and risk management. Reading this list, it could quite easily be seen as an overwhelming proposition if you were not able to see beyond the immediate.      As an educational leader, I often spend time with teachers who lose sight of why they came into teaching and get caught focusing on items contained in this list. Being honest, there are times where I too have fallen into this trap. When our eyes are down, we focus on the problems, we may become filled with frustration and anxiety.      If you are like me and many other educators, you came into education because you had a heart for making a difference and leaving an impact on the lives of students. Our students are the ...

This Easter, I have been spending a week with my extended family in the NSW Snowy Mountains. While this may appear to be an idyllic situation, being in the mountains with my family, it brings to the surface the reality of the myriad of ideas, thoughts and agendas each individual has and how these sometimes cause friction. It is similar to life within a school, where we all have our own expertise, philosophy, belief structures and ways of working. Often unless this falls under a collective vision and as a collective we use our capacity and expertise, it causes tension, stress and upset. Like in families, generally, this is unintentional; however, the fact is unless we can work to overcome this challenges and work with those who cause us this frustration we can tend to hold onto it and become resentful.   Working with people who challenge us can be difficult, but it's also an opportunity for growth and personal development. Whether it's a colleague who always seems to disagree w...