Krissy’s previous reading of teachers aswhingeingand Natalie’s perception of
them asenemieshad prevented them from seeing thetoleranceof teachers or the
way in which theyworryabout their students. However, engaging in the workshop
exchange produces a shift in this interpretation, unsettles the dominant story, and
allows a new one to form.
This rethinking of teacher operates in parallel with a rethinking of student on the
part of the trainee teachers. Jane (teacher) describes how she becomes able to see
thepersonwhere previously she saw thescary mob.
...it gave you a chance to meet them as a person, and see Them, not this scary group of
students....On rounds I used to go in and they were just this mob of people who I was
scared of basically...(Jane, teacher)This is an embodied and experiential form of learning. Jane appreciates the located
and kinaesthetic nature of the work, making a distinction between theory (talk) and
practice (doing), and between the verbal forms of knowing and an embodied form
of knowing.
I think you needed to do the role-play because a lot of times you can talk and talk about
something but until you actually see it or feel yourself in that situation you don’t have an
understanding of it. (Jane, teacher)Ginafinds that the Hidden Thoughts Gamemakesthe person go on a deeper level.
The questions inherent in the form not only position, but alsorequirethe players to
think in a certain way and to extract a different sort of knowledge.
I really liked the hidden fears. So making not only fears come out, but also making the
person go on a deeper level because you really have to think and go“Ohh, what is beneath
that for me?”and that kind of process was beneficial not only for the individual, but for the
people watching. Because you don’t always think about what is actually causing your
behaviour and what is actually underneath it. (Gina, teacher)Butler argues that“that new norms are brought into being when unanticipated forms
of recognition take place.”(Butler 2007 ) (31). When there is a‘rupture’in our
recognition, or when the familiar is disturbed, uprooted, or contradicted, we can
come to see or understand someone or something differently. Potentially, the
encounters in the Learning Partnerships workshops provide this rupture or at least
the opportunity to recognise the other. If so, the pedagogy can potentially help to
generate new norms in the student–teacher interaction. Thesefindings from the
initial wave of the study are echoed in the second wave, discussed below.
14.8 Research Findings from the Second Wave
of the Study
The survey data from both teachers and students following the 2013 workshops with
four classes makes clear that they valued the experience very highly. The teacher
survey showed that 96% rated as highly useful the opportunity to get feedback and
218 H. Cahill and J. Coffey