Radicalising Inclusion

It is people, it is people, it is people

“It is not inclusion if you invite people into a space you are unwilling to change”

- Dr Muna Abdi

Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

In many ways, I’m spoilt. Having come from the tertiary education sector, I am accustomed to having the ear of Decision Makers. To have my ideas acknowledged and supported. To be validated and consulted with.

That’s not to say that my ideas always got up - definitely not. However; they were always heard without bias, and judged on their merits.

Imagine the cognitive dissonance when starting in secondary education and experiencing an entirely different culture - where hierarchy is strictly enforced, processes are obfuscated and “insubordination” is punished (i.e. asking for clarity or having an idea).

Worst of all - you’re assumed to be incompetent, and held at arms-length from any determination which impacts your role or wellbeing.

Secondary education is a self-serving beast - it seeks maintenance of the status quo.

Yet, the status quo is serving no-one. It’s clear we need change, and to advocate for students, particularly those with additional needs.

To radicalise inclusion (in the chemistry sense): to attract others to cause damage and breakdown a system.

How can teacher aides better function as radical change agents?

1. Listen to students, amplify their voices - in any way that you can: during staff meetings, during reviews, through improvement suggestions, in-class, on duty;

2. Call management’s bluff - sometimes they actually don’t know what they’re talking about. Call them out, ask for their sources;

3. Insist on clarity - for your role, expectations, reporting lines, deliverables, strategic planning, processes;

4. Trust yourself - you are a reasonable person who cares about young people; your intuition and experiences are not wrong;

5. Collectivise - know your teacher aide colleagues; talk to each other about ideas for change/improvement; draft and submit proposals; hang out socially; uplift each other; be generous with praise;

6. Use existing structures - committee structures: LCC, Health and Safety Committee, Teacher Aide meetings, Union meetings;

7. Build new structures - pitch the idea for a working party on an initiative that you think is important; start a book club/discussion group;

8. Get angry - anger is incredibly productive. Use that drive to get results;¹

9. Lean on permanent staff - permanent staff have the security of on-going work, so they should be the first to put themselves out there to suggest improvements, criticise practices and advocate for good change;

10. Insist on 360° reviews - everyone who contributes to a student’s learning should have a say in policies and processes which impact student learning - be incredibly suspicious of people who deny your voice, due to the amount of money you make;

11. Volunteer - for positions on working parties; advisory groups; behaviour management committees; homework club; sports carnivals; performance evenings; breakfast club.

In essence, what has been lacking is a centering of people - so any strategy to radicalise inclusion begins and ends with us: talking, singing, laughing, sharing, commiserating, advocating, writing, criticising, recommending, and joining together.

What is the greatest thing in the world? It is people, it is people, it is people.²

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1. I highly recommend Chelsea Watego’s Another Day in the Colony, particularly the chapter titled “Fuck Hope”.

2. He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tāngata, he tāngata, he tāngata.