Dr Ben Knight, Benjamin3.Knight@uwe.ac.uk.
Architecture Media & Politics Society (AMPS) annual conference, Toronto, Canada.
26th-28th April 2023.
Last month I presented a paper entitled ‘Exploring the Complex, Emergent Choreography of Classroom Teaching & Learning’ at the annual AMPS conference at Sheriton College, Toronto. Delegates came from over twenty different countries and each speaker brought their own particular take on the complexities of education at all levels in a fast-changing world.
My own interest in complexity and education stems from my interest in complexity theory as a framework for understanding the emergent and non-linear ways in which educational systems, from classrooms to national curricula operate and how bottom-up and top-down forces collide to create change. There were a number of other complexity theorists present and it was great to be able to have informal and fruitful dialogue about our work and possible future collaborations. In particular, two colleagues from Edinburgh University are keen to stay in touch and work towards some joint outputs.
There were also speakers who interpreted complexity in the more general sense and presented about the challenges of adapting to Covid lockdowns, about the complexities of intercultural learning and about balancing learner autonomy with curricular and pedagogical constraints. The keynote, delivered by the Dean of Sheriton College, focussed on the challenging world of work-related learning and proposed strategies for designing programmes which productively combine university and industry-based learning experiences. As a teacher educator working in a changing professional and political landscape this topic was of particular interest. My own talk was about the complexity of classroom learning, how learning does not wrap itself into neat 60-minute packages or appear on cue when teachers would like it to. I discussed evidence from research and from the classroom itself that learning is a messy, unpredictable and indeterminate phenomenon which demands expert judgement from teachers. My central thesis was that since learning is not a single, mechanised process or a predictable ‘product’ of teacher input, teaching cannot be scripted. Rather, classroom expertise relies on teachers’ capacity to problematise pedagogical dilemmas and critical incidents. I drew on my doctoral research and some of my subsequent publications, and was able to promote my forthcoming book on teacher professional judgement. My presentation was well received and followed by a lot of questions from the floor. A highlight was being able to share the below model for teacher judgement which I’ve been working on. The model situates judgements as occurring during and away from the moment of teaching, mapping loosely onto Schön’s (1987) concepts of reflecting in and on action.
In particular, I emphasised the value of systems thinking and how understanding the classroom as a system with multiple internal moving parts which mutually influence each other can help teachers to make productive organisational judgements. It was so helpful to be able to stand up and articulate the above model to others for the first time, get feedback and answer thoughtful questions about it.
It’s always nice to present on day one of a conference. Firstly, because you can then relax, enjoy the remaining presentations and focus on others’ work, but also because it leaves plenty of time to engage with fellow delegates who have had the chance to listen to your work. Meals out on the two evenings provided ample opportunities for this. Informal conversation over a meal and a few drinks with colleagues from different parts of the world always offers opportunities for new learning, but also always reminds me of how similar we all are irrespective of our different experiences, how similar education is and how as educators we share similar triumphs and make similar mistakes, wherever we are in the world. The jetlag wasn’t fun, neither was the mouse in my hotel room at 3am, but despite this I’ve come away from this conference having:
- Strengthened and clarified my own ideas and work through exposing it to peer scrutiny
- Learned from colleagues sharing a diverse range of educational ideas and complexities
- Networked and forged some promising connections for future collaborations
Promoted my book
- Sharpened my thinking
- Become a Toronto Leafs ice hockey fan (go Leafs!)
