Let’s embrace change
On this day in the year 1184 BC, the Greeks entered Troy using the wooden horse. No-one is certain whether this is real or myth but the story has survived for 3000 years as both entertainment and a powerful lesson.
The learning from this parable is easy – it never pays to fester ill feelings of revenge and one should also be wary of drinking too much at a party. (And what a party there will be when we come out of lockdown!) Most importantly, one should learn that we place many mythical barriers in life but with some clever out-of-the box thinking, all hurdles are surmountable.
The Trojans’ belief in their impregnability had become complacent and they did not anticipate the ingenuity of the Greeks. Indeed, although change has been forced upon us by this pandemic, we would do well to learn from the ancient Greeks as we deal with the many effects of this situation.
Like the Trojan Horse, the coronavirus hit us when we weren’t prepared and yet it had been under our noses for a while. But it has happened and life has changed. Our worldview has altered and, although there will undoubtedly be things we cannot wait to do again given the chance, we now must embrace change if we want to move forward. The ancient Greeks were the masters of embracing change and we can be too.
As a school, one of the unplanned benefits is the fast-track development of technological understanding and this will enhance learning for the long-term. I do not believe anything can beat face to face interaction in the classroom and I am very wary about screen-time but I do believe these new-found skills will benefit the pupils and teachers a great deal. I am loving what I am seeing and hearing. The efforts to interact and engage; the inventive ways to challenge thinking, inspire creativity and embed subject matter; the feedback on tasks undertaken. Superb!