Our Legacy

Our stories are powerful. They are our wisdom that often lies hidden within us. When we are called to reveal our stories by others, we are challenged to find our voice. We truly find our voice when we are empowered by others.

Through our storytelling, we are awakened to our truth. Knowing and revealing our truth can make us feel vulnerable but, if we choose to courageously sit in it, we might come to realise the role it has in empowering us. For it is often our truth that becomes our why.

From deeply knowing our why, we might realise our purpose, ponder our potential and shift our own narrative identity. Our truth is our ultimate motivator. My truth certainly is mine.

I was called to tell this story, to decipher and reveal the truth that lies within it. In this story, my narrative and the narrative of Griffin have been intertwined. My story cannot be told without the Griffin story, such is its impact.

This storytelling journey has led me to some uncomfortable truths as I deeply reflected upon my own school experience and the school experience I have given others in my career. It’s also led me to many delights. These snippets are shared willingly yet vulnerably, in order to highlight powerful whys that you might relate to as a student and educator. Through sharing my story, I hope I have, at the very least, made you curious about the need for the new school story, a new learning narrative for us all.

We all know that in our modern world, the only certainty is change. The school story we enact must change alongside it if our learners are to thrive. As 21st Century educators, we are called to cultivate learners whom are prepared for and flourish in uncertainty.

Our children must be learners, not students. We, as educators, must be guides, not knowledge-keepers. The old story of school is no longer sufficient. We must give them a learning experience worth having, one that truly guides them to define and own their narrative identity and step into their potential. An experience that is joyful and life-giving. We must give them an education in which learning is alive.

A new story of education, schooling, teaching and learning is emerging – many are seeking it. The journey is undefined, uncertain, and uncomfortable. Its pursuit requires not answers but great courage, bold experimentation, and collaborative reflection. It's from courage that we might realise our greatest potential. It's from bold experimentation that we might envision the way forward. It's from collaborative reflection that we might collectively co-author the new story of school.

We must find the courage to step outside our fate as educators. We must become learners in order to cultivate learners. We must shift our practice in order to shift the narrative. We will change the school experience only if we are willing to change ourselves. A new story of learning will be our legacy. Believing Eyes will get us there.