Principal's Message Week 6 Term 4

I am reading a book on pedagogical practices for educators now. One thing that has struck me is not the teaching and learning approaches, but a line about what we value. The author, Ritchart (2015), claims that we can identify what we value through two key measures, and these are: where we spend and invest our time, and what we spend our money on.

We often hear “I’m so busy”. I get a little tired of that one at times. We’re all busy. We live in a hectic world. However, we will still make time for those things that are of import to us. It might be indulging our passion for sport, music, or culture, or it might be a craft or club to which we belong. It might be that we are trying to get ahead financially so we work a second job. Because we value what these things bring to us.

Equally, if we interrogate our spending patterns – let’s take a good look at our bank or credit card statement each month. It will certainly tell us in stark terms over time what we value, because this is where the literal spend is. Of course, we value our home, so we pay the rent or mortgage, and naturally, you value education because you are investing in your son’s schooling. What are the other things you value that take your money?

On a simpler level, I wonder what the picture of time and money spend and investment looks like for our boys? It might be a worthwhile exercise to do with them. It might be surprising to them to hear that this is what they value.

From a cultural and educational perspective, I would hope that there is time invested in being of service to others. This is a key hallmark of an Edmund Rice education, and particularly one where service is a key pillar at ATC. I would hope that there is some time invested in prayer, meditation, and/or reflection. I also hope that there is a considerable amount of time devoted to study, homework, and preparation for and submission of assessment tasks. After all, being a school student is their full-time job!

I also hope they invest some of their time, and perhaps their money in doing things that bring them joy, and give them a sense of self, purpose, and that feeds their passions and interests. Someone without a “love of” something, is usually not a very interesting social prospect!

The old adage of we value what we measure, and we measure what we value is not anathema to this logic of time and money spend either. If we value something, we should measure to what extent we are investing in it. And if we measure something, like checking where our discretionary spending goes, and what we really do with our time, then we clearly value it.

I’m off now to check my credit card statement, and my calendar. I’m hoping the former doesn’t give me any nasty surprises, and that the latter reflects a healthy balance of work and play.

Dr Craig Wattam