Statement of Being Conductive Education Teacher

As I mentioned in my last note I think I started my blog in a very illogical time. Yes I did, because I had no time to introduce what I want actually in this E -site and why I started it.

Let’s start to describe it with why. – Well, it takes a lot of time (to sit down and write) what I definitely do not have however; it gives publicity to my thoughts related of Conductive Education. CE world is a small world therefore I think we have to share……so,… I wanted to share.

Before I started my blog, I was thinking hours, days, years what would be a great statement of being Conductive Ed Teacher and I was always formatting the text of it in my mind. During my holiday I have had enough time to sit down and write some of my former thoughts and add my present ones. I created a not finalised but current STATEMENT:

Statement of Being Conductive Education Teacher

I teach, deal both to change the world and to transform myself. Whether consulting with clients; parents, pupils, students, adolescents, adults or colleagues, friends, my goal is to help people think critically and take responsible action in personal, professional and civic life. I believe the aim of education should therefore be human development—the growth of the capacity to think and take action with ever-greater creativity and complexity.

To foster this development, I use a variety of active learning methods with one theme in common: All give practice at both reflecting on reasoning and experimenting with different ways of doing things. When clients participate, they often begin to move from thinking in polarities to taking context and circumstance into account, in this case testing how well they have understood others and themselves rather than assuming an idealized transparency.

Most people, especially disabled people, change their habits of thinking and acting only very slowly and gradually, in an often painful, iterative process of progress and regress—as demonstrated by much theory and research in learning and development. To support people as they encounter their challenges, I place great emphasis upon creating an environment of trust and empathy—in the classroom with clients and parents. Two ways to build such trust are to validate clients’ feelings as they are challenged, and to show them that I too face challenges and continue to learn from my mistakes.

One of my most fruitful teaching mistakes occurred when a client protested that the structured series of tasks of exercise was “unnatural, stupid, and we don’t need it.” At the time, I simply moved on, largely ignoring the protest, as I was a fresh conductor teacher, fearing my authority was being challenged. Upon later reflection, I realized I should have stopped and commented, “What a good point, active participating could feel very awkward, especially in CE. You also make me realize that I often assume that people should necessarily welcome new experiences like this. I should question that assumption.” I realized from this oversight that a “resistant” comment, instead of being avoided, could be highlighted directly, and thus provide an opportunity to model critical reflection and empathy for the struggles vital to learning.

What I find is often missing from conductor training is a focus on how to handle the unpredictability of events during classroom discussion. Having learned from the above incident, I responded differently in a subsequent situation in Munich, Germany. Some participants, when asked to share their opinions on a deeply personal issue, said they were not comfortable doing so publicly. This time, rather than either imploring or ignoring, I thanked them for saying so and asked how many others shared their concern. Finding a good split of opinions in the room, I described some of the aims and tasks then suggested we shift and use that very issue instead of my originally planned one, and people agreed. After acting like this, several participants remarked that my willingness to veer from my plan earned their trust, showing them I cared more about them than my method. I learned that such live group dynamics often provide the most teachable moments, as they allow the instructor to demonstrate a learning mode of self-examination.

I design assignments to tap intrinsic motivation and propel further inquiry. Those moments—when I discover how I have helped others but also find myself transformed and provoked to further thought and learning—are what sustain my endless fascination with teaching in CE. The dynamics make the process like an ongoing gardening experiment, where I am forced to modify my methods continuously, investigating just what different conditions are needed for different kinds of growing beings to flourish. Thankfully, the challenge never ends….