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Christina Luzi - Kaleidoscope Movement
St John XXIII Catholic College | Stanhope Gardens, NSW
Our country is in one of the biggest moments of social change, with our workplaces becoming increasingly complex as we navigate the differing value systems of Gen X, Gen Y and Gen Z, in the world of education this challenge becomes increasingly complex as our key stakeholders Gen Alpha bring another dimension to the table.
One of the biggest challenges we face as educators is the way that Gen Z and Gen Alpha are perceived by society. In their most recent 2024 Trends report, McCrindle highlighted that nearly 50% of their participants perceived Gen A and Gen Z as “superficial, selfish, fragile, materialistic and entitled”. I know the educators who were in the room with me as these statistics were shared were challenged by these perspectives. How do we combat these opinions and highlight the great power and perspective our young people have?
At St John XXIII Catholic College in Stanhope Gardens NSW, we have sought to work alongside our students to co-create learning environments and community experiences that give our learners genuine autonomy and agency of their educational experience. Perhaps one of the biggest mistakes organisations (including education) make is giving “voice” to their stakeholders. For a long time, we sought feedback and suggestions from our students and found that we were left to try and implement the changes they identified or were unable to execute them due to resourcing or plausibility. While we were trying to empower them, all we did was give their opinions weight and ourselves the workload. A quick “shift” in our perspective allowed us to change this dynamic and place the responsibility on our learners, we no longer gave them a “Voice” we sought “Agency” which is the responsibility to raise ideas and then execute them.
To change a workplace culture you need to see differently, think differently, and act differently. In the world of education, this is challenging all the hidden rules which enable us to continue doing things we have always done. It is developing skills to ask beautiful questions that are provocative and challenge and open up the possibilities instead of seeking to reduce them. It requires one to understand how to define problems and reframe solutions. Our workshop introduced these creative practices and methods and gave educators the tools to go back to their communities to disrupt the current education system.
If you are a passionate educator who is tired of trying to navigate the complexity of our work with the current tools in your tool kit, you need to prepare yourself to think differently. Start by buying a ticket to the Future of Education Summit, start by listening to our podcast The Kaleidoscope Movement, and set yourself and your community up to enable the change we all know is already here.
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