I had the privilege of attending the Snow Camp with students from Year 10 and 11 over the last weekend. It was a fantastic camp, and it gave me the chance to connect with some students who I didn’t know that well. I was so proud of the behaviour of the students on the Snow Camps. There were many people who commented on the good manners and attitudes of our students whilst away. The students were positive ambassadors for our school, even when the bus broke down on the way home from the second camp and they got stuck at Goulburn Maccas for three hours.
Now I have never skied before, so when it came to going out on the snow, I have to admit I was quite fearful. As an older person who has had one ACL reconstruction already, I was aware that if something went wrong I could be living with the consequences of a fall for a long time. That fear stopped me from really giving skiing a genuine go. I didn’t take a big enough risk to really master skiing. I played it safe and never put my fear to one side. Thus, I never got to enjoy skiing because my fear did get in the way.
On reflection, I realised that many students can let fear stop them from learning. I have always been a good learner, and thus the classroom has never presented any type of apprehension for me. It is clear from my years of teaching that many students are fearful learners. They can be scared to join in classroom discussions in case they say the wrong thing and look “dumb” in front of their peers. Making a mistake is something to be avoided, and their chances of learning are limited by fear.
In Learning for Life we often refer to the Learning Pit, a place where hard work and perseverance can help us to overcome new and challenging learning. I don’t have simple solutions for helping students become brave learners, but reflecting on my experience in the snow, I will endeavour to help students overcome their fear in the classroom so they can have the best opportunity to learn.
Mr David Collins
Head of Secondary School
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