As we begin Term 4, I find myself reflecting on the goals and aspirations which underpinned our start to 2022. I remember stating that while the pandemic brought with it a good deal of anxiety and uncertainty, it did afford educators the opportunity to reflect on their practices in order to improve educational outcomes for all students. I also remember thinking that it would be such a shame if the insights gleaned from the pandemic were forgotten, and life simply went back to our pre-COVID ‘normal’. Having witnessed the flourishing of some students and the disengagement of others during remote learning, I became powerfully aware of the critical importance of quality relationships, effective communication, the ability to read and write, and the promotion of the will and the thrill of learning.

Last Monday’s English faculty meeting provided staff with the opportunity to share some of their significant discoveries and learning experiences after three terms of yet another challenging and fragmented school year. Our faculty mantra, ‘Know Thy Impact’, became the focus of discussion and fuelled a commitment to ensuring that the final ten weeks of the school year continue to provide rich and authentic learning experiences for our students. In support of this endeavour, Mrs Laura Penfold subsequently spoke to the English staff about the knowledge she had acquired as tutor for the NSW Government’s COVID Intensive Learning Support Program. This initiative was designed to support students whose learning had been affected by the COVID-19 interruptions. Mrs Penfold returned to Mount Carmel in this role after twelve months’ maternity leave. Prior to this, she held the position of Assistant English Coordinator.

Mrs Penfold’s presentation focused on student learning, the critical role reading has in the learning process and the teacher’s role in fostering a love of books, a desire to learn and a pathway to reading success. She posed a number of interesting questions: How do we challenge students in a way that makes them want to learn? How do we nurture creative and critical thinking? How do we encourage students to invest in the act of reading? And how do we entice students to take ownership of their learning? In response to these questions, Mrs Penfold advised teachers to be counter-cultural in their teaching and learning, to reflect regularly on their policies and practices, and to read professional texts as much as possible. She astutely remarked that there are some factors impacting on our current educational context which are beyond our control. However, the one factor that is in our control is our own learning. Therefore, she urged teachers to immerse themselves in academic reading which will enhance their knowledge of their subject and how best to teach it. She also advised teachers to read the books which are part of their students’ world and allow choice to dictate student reading preferences. She concluded her presentation by discussing practical ways to enable students to see reading as a craft and to realise that there are tangible skills they can master.

Listening to Mrs Penfold’s presentation on Monday convinced me more than ever that the most significant effect on student learning – both in challenging and less challenging times – occurs when teachers become learners of their own teaching, and when students become their own teachers.