Ouroboros

by Greg Ashman

Ouroboros is the ancient symbol of a serpent or dragon eating its own tail. It represents not only an infinite cycle but a creative process of constant death and rebirth. I this book, ouroboros is used as a metaphor for how bad ideas are constantly reinvented in education. It also stands for some of the processes that could perhaps help us break from this cycle.

102 pages, ebook

First published January 28, 2016

About the author

Greg Ashman studied Natural Sciences (Physics) at Cambridge University before completing a teaching qualification at the Institute of Education in London. He worked in comprehensive schools in London for 13 years, the last two of those as Deputy Headteacher. In 2010, Greg moved to Australia with his young family. He now works as head of maths and head of research at an independent school in Victoria. He is also studying for a PhD in instructional design.

Reviews

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting book full of insights on learning styles, teaching styles and evalation methods. Ashman warns us that teachers shouldn't always go for what is new and exciting and we musn't be afraid of choosing the cirriculum over entertaining our students for an afternoon. We can generate the much desired instrintic motivation from encouraging students to turn to their studies and help them experience academical success and achievement. He also gave me some insight in the complexity that comes with setting up an assessment rubric for writing. It is interesting to consider how the relationship between the teacher and student plays in to this, as well as the underlying bias of the assessor.

Though I need to think over his ideas on limiting differentiation for a while longer, I largely agree with what he has to say about how we teach and how should teach. His comparison to the Ouroboros becomes clear near the end of the book, where he says we must escape the cycle of our actions but also take what we can from this continued experience and harness it for the future. I think he is right! A teacher's job is rarely perfect and never finished.