Headmaster's

Message

The Truth is Between Us

Some of the earliest historical evidence of academic study was of Jews studying their Scriptures. From ancient times, the study of the Torah was a social, and even communal, activity. It was usually undertaken in pairs using a method known as havruta, meaning fellowship. These days, pairs usually choose to learn in a study hall, together with other pairs, where the sounds of discussion and debate fill the air. This is often how teachers design learning at Blue Mountains Grammar School.

 

In havruta, the pair struggles to understand the meaning of each passage and discusses how to apply it to the larger issues addressed and even to their own lives. They do this by analysing the text, organising their thoughts into logical arguments, explaining their reasoning and really listening to their partner's reasoning. Their goal is to question and sharpen each other's ideas and hopefully arrive at entirely new insights into the meaning of the text. This is the type of collaborative learning towards which we strive at Blue Mountains Grammar School.

 

One of the keys to the success of havruta, and the quality that makes it so beautiful, is that the partners consider that ‘the truth is between them.’ The learning they experience is often quite profound because they enter their conversation on the understanding that no one perspective is more valid than the other, but that together they will discover a truth more profound than that which they each understood going into the conversation. On behalf of our whole community; students, staff and parents; this is the type of learning towards which I strive in my most idealistic moments.

 

I have experienced this type of learning on two occasions recently. 

 

This week, the School’s teachers and some of our Learning Enrichment Educators began a program of coordinated professional reading. We met for the first time in Professional Reading Groups and discussed the Learning Power Approach; one of the schools of thought, along with Harvard University’s Cultures of Thinking, at the heart of Blue Mountains Grammar’s educational philosophy. My group had a rich and nuanced discussion that enriched each participant’s understanding.

 

Last week, at the Term 2 Ad Altiora Parent Workshop, the parents who came explored the role of challenge in the Learning Focused Home. Parents were very positive in their reflections on the content presented and engaged strongly in vibrant table conversations about the everyday strategies they use to grow a culture of learning in their homes. We discussed the different ways in which young people learn knowledge and skills, but more importantly, learning dispositions and character. We highlighted the importance of growing value, intrinsic motivation, role models, imitation, practice and reflection. There was much practical wisdom shared and parents certainly sharpened each other's ideas and arrived at entirely new insights. Of course, this was only because each participant was prepared to accept that ‘the truth is between them.’ 

 

Mr Ian Maynard

Headmaster