A touching neurosis?

Heather Piper and Ian Stronach have just produced an interesting boot called Don’t Touch. The Educational Story of a Panic. It deals with the “moral panic” about touch in school education. It makes a strong case that this panic has sexualized, even fetishised touch, as even the 99+% of innocent adult staff are left questioning their own and their colleagues’ motives. The result is that the child who needs the consoling cuddle is denied one; and also that older children play on sexual possibilities, misunderstanding or misinterpreting a normal gesture, or making malicious accusations. The panic has played havoc with proper educational practice. Inappropriate fear of risk causes professionals to fear for their careers, and play safe to the extent of creating an emotionally sterile educational environment.

Research ethics committees ‘police’ research but can come to unethical decisions by rejecting research which is potentially beneficial to children, on spurious grounds of child safety coming from a notion of the child as victim. The criminal records bureau activities demonstrate that there are more restrictions on helping children than for buying explosives. Restrictive school and local authority guidelines make irrational and disproportional responses. Then follows case studies from nursery, primary, secondary and special education, and then Summerhill School, the ‘progressive’ democratic independent school. This draws on empirical data from interviews and observations. These give examples of taboos on touch being worked through professional contexts. There is evidence of a mix of defensive and protective behaviours (being accompanied, leaving doors open) and heroic resistance to “the chokechain” (p.7), especially by early years workers. The Summerhill example is interesting in that the openness of the school is declared to be a nightmare for paedophiles. Everything is discussed and debated openly, and positive relationships are promoted. In Ofsted’s concern to close the school down as non-compliant to national standards, one inspector called in the social services when a teacher was observed openly giving a girl pupil a shoulder massage. Such officious behaviour is styled corrupting, making spontaneity in relationship building (within appropriate boundaries) much more difficult, making the good seem evil.

The concluding chapter recommends that touch should be considered as part of relationships. Just as we need ‘good behaviour policies’ instead of focussing on bad behaviour, so we need ‘good relationships policies’ instead of ‘Don’t touch guidelines’ which criminalises innocent touch. Rather, the concern should be to encourage appropriate relationships, child to child and adult to child, in a context of openness to discussion. Most current guidance to schools is viewed as wholly inappropriate, as it treats touch as a problem in itself and not part of a larger concern for good relationships. The democratic and open practice of Summerhill School is presented as the best model for schools to follow.

Most people would agree that paedophiles and other dangerous individuals should not have easy or uncontrolled access to children in school. It is a far cry from this to get to a situation, described in this book, that professionals are not only deeply worried about false unsubstantiated accusations, and begin to question their own motives behind their care of and affection for their charges. This is having the effect that children are denied the physical contact and emotional warmth they need for confidence and consolation, and are becoming part of a generation which sexualises touch, brought up to believe that adult-child touch must always be by definition sexual. Summerhill School is given as a shining example of the opposite approach, where relationships come first and democratic empowering discussion give pupils the skills and understanding to understand when something is wrong, and to take appropriate action.

The tendency to maintain emotional distance between children and unrelated adults brought about by a Don’t Touch culture impedes the development of their relationships with other adults. This diminishes empathy and sympathy for others; this emotional distance makes it easier to victimise and even murder. The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child report (October 2008) complains of negative attitudes to children and adolescents in the UK promoting a punishment culture through ASBOs and detention. These things are linked. Helping children improve relationships with others should be a top priority for education, schools and society at large, which should over time reduce anti-social behaviour. That is, educational and school policies need to be positively proactive rather than negatively reactive, raising intrinsic motivation over punishment as the strategy of choice. This book explores one aspect that will make a difference and should be read by both professionals and policymakers. I applaud it. (Full review on http://escalate.ac.uk/4868).

The Ragwitch 2 - moral development.

A story with a portal to another world borrows directly from C S Lewis's Narnia books. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe even has the evil witch/queen. Written in the 1940s and published in 1951, that story starts with the blitz and evacuation. The witch/queen's destructive domain represents the Nazi preference for power over ethics and her defeat by children is a moral call to arms. C S Lewis in turn borrowed the idea from George Macdonald, whose forays through the portal are highly symbolic - Phantastes, and Lilith towards the end of the 19th century. Macdonald took this idea from German developmental novels. I take it therefore that adventures in parallel worlds represent inner struggles from which personal growth develops. Most deal with struggles between good and evil, wisdom and folly, and loyalty and betrayal.
In The Ragwitch, evil is a reality which can overcome decent people through fear and powerful magic. It exists 'out there' and should be left severely alone if disaster is not to occur. Once awakened, it cannot easily be put back to quiescence. In real life, rage and hate erupt from time to time but are human choices rather than demonic possession. The genocides of the past century have been deliberate political strategies by powerful groups, exerting power through a mixture of fear and persuasion. Humans are apt to lose moral constraints very easily, particularly if the 'other' can be dehumanised as 'the enemy' or 'another race'. Evil is a human direction or set of choices in which selfishness and greed are promoted rather than the common good.
Stories such as the Ragwitch emphasise loyalty to decent people, compassion and the importance of heroic resistance. These are important lessons for children (and adults) to learn.

Garth Nix. The Ragwitch. 1990

Julia picks up a rag doll in rubbish, is taken over by the evil spirit within it, who uses her body to regenerate herself as The Ragwitch, the former banished evil queen. She goes back into her own world, Julia is imprisoned in her mind, to be tormented before becoming totally absorbed. Her brother Paul sees this, follows them through the portal, and starts an adventure trying to rescue Julia. He has Narnia like adventures in this parallel world, whilst Julia inhabits a different world inside the Ragwitch exploring her memories and evil designs as she sets about destroying her world which had previously defeated and banished her into the rag doll.

Inside the Ragwitch is Anhyvar the girl she used to be, a girl who communed with evil forces to better her world. She is imprisoned in an ice restrainer, as evil took her over. Julia finds Anhyvar with Mirran her former lover, also imprisoned in the Ragwitch mind. This little group, with Lyssa, the spirit of the rowan tree, are heroes, heroic resisters of evil forces who attach the Ragwitch from within.

Paul is the hero in the outside world. He is instructed to draw strength from nature, the elemental forces earth, air, fire and water and goes on a quest to meet the personifications of these. He receives from them a token which can help him draw on their powers. At key moments he wins wisdom by planting caggages and picking potatoes. The Ragwitch knows that these elemental forces are her biggest enenmy and pursues Paul relentlessly.

The story is one in which evil is a power which can be destroyed. Julia avoids being overcome by it by holding positive images in her head, of happy moments. The Ragwitch holds her power by bullying, usually making threats she is able to carry out. Her power is maintained by the creatures who through fear support her, and those who are brainwashed to go along with her wishes. These are described as The Glazed.

As an allegory of life, evil is shown as a pervasive temptation that once given into can take over one’s life. However, inside every one is a core of goodness, a paralysed Anhyvar, which can be reactivated to overcome evil with good. We need to recognize evil as actions which harm or destroy others, and become heroic resisters, openly challenging these actions despite the threats against us.

Forests, woodcraft and the human condition

Today we are interested again in conservation and outdoor pursuits, even adventures as an important part of a child's education. The "forest school" has returned to the fore. I am reading two related books currently, Leslie Paul's An Angry Young Man (1952) and Trail of an Artist-Naturalist, the autobiography of Ernest Thompson Seton (1951).

Leslie Paul's title gave rise to the phrase 'angry young men' being used of various writers and playwrights in the 1950s. Leslie Paul, a Londoner, founded "The Woodcraft Folk" in 1925 to introduce inner-city lads to the joys of the countryside, with an emphasis on building inner strengths and on conservation. Now under the wing of the cooperative societies, the movement is still thriving and has many local groups. Paul took many of his ideas from scouting, but without the militarism it had at the time of the first world war. Beyond that he drew on the work of Ernest Thompson Seton who began the Woodcraft Movement in America, and from it developed the American scout movement, of which he became chief scout. Readers are more likely to have heard of his daughter Ann, who wrote fiction as Anya Seton.

As a boy in Canada, Ernest set up his own Indian tribe in 1874 in order to enjoy outdoor activities. Before long it had been renamed as "The Robin Hood Band", and once outgrown the attraction of the outdoor life continued. He made studies of animals and plants, and published many stories based on the forest. He prized the wisdom of the "Indian" first nation tribes on bushcraft, which he called "woodcraft". In setting up an education programme for boys, Robin Hood became replaced with the last of the Mohicans, of Fenimore Cooper's story. The movement was named The Woodcraft Indians. He devised a range of "exploits", each of which had a badge, starting with physical activities, and developing to mental development towards the highest "spiritual" level of "service".

He described his strict Calvinist Christian upbringing which assumed "the total depravity of human nature" [p.291]. He was a rebel, and (happily) thought himself depraved. As a young cowpuncher, he notes that his very rough mates all loved their mothers, and went to church mainly so they could tell their mother that they had been. In one service in a schoolroom, the preacher said "in sin did our mothers conceive us", at which one jumped up saying his mother was a decent woman and if the preacher insult her he would fill him full of lead. Ernest came to the view: "all children come here direct from God and are pure as God can make them. We do not have to reform them, but rather to keep them from being deformed [p.292]. He bought a derelict farm to turn into a conservation area, complete with Indian village, but the local lads declared total war as their age-old haunts were now off bounds. They did nightly damage. Instead of bringing in the law, as advised, he invited them to an adventure weekend with free food and no rules. 42 came, and the Woodland Indians had begun. The area criminal was democratically elected the Chief, and, taking his responsibilities very seriously, this began his transformation. There were rules - mainly for safety and against vandalism. The cardinal virtues were chivalry, kindness, courage and honour. The motto was "The best things of the best Indians". Feathers were awarded for "exploits", 'can do' skills but not competitive. They all received the 'can swim' feather because they could all swim. Fifty years later, all 42 had made something significant of their lives.

Lina and Adelia Beard, promoting scouting for girls in America,produced An Outdoor Book for Girls in America in 1915, recently republished. There is a chapter on ‘woodcraft’ which begins with the importance of the balsam fir tree: like a Christmas tree, it has aromatic needles and makes the best outdoor bedding. These are the trees on the Woodcraft Folk logo. The book teaches girls about how to track, swim, take wildlife photos, camp, find food and cope with accidents.

There are lessons here for families and schools - such personal strengths are not built up in front of televisions or in the back of people-carriers. Skills for life cannot be taught. But they can be encouraged, facilitated, directed, respected and applauded.

Positive and negative delusions.

Reviewing another book (http://escalate.ac.uk/4866) this time a diatribe against 'therapeutic education' (which it only vaguely defines); it turns out to be a polemic against two things - 'positive psychology', and pathologising people and emotions (thus promoting the dependent diminished self). These two points at least I have sympathy with. 'Positive psychology' promotes optimism and happiness as ways of coping with life and thereby living longer. It takes an objectivist realist view of knowledge so they are positive positivists. They see themselves as enemies to constructivist psychologists, who use qualitative methods. Positive psychology promotes the pursuit of happiness into a therapy - the solution to all life's problems is to find a way to make negative experiences meaningful, learn from them and achieve this 'real' contentment. A negative psychology would be to recognise negative emotions as OK and helpful, to accept them and learn from them - not rejecting the negative and turning it to a positive, but learning to relax with it. Research has shown that dreams are full of latent anxieties; a recent BBC competition to write your life in 10 words resulted in most being negative; learning to tackle anxieties and conflicts have the potential for developing growth and inner strength.
Unreasonable optimism is a delusion; it may be helpful but will ultimately disappoint, unless we keep revising our unreasonable delusion. Ambition is full of unreasonable optimism, but the ambitious tend to get more jobs than the unambitious. Ambition which incorporates reasonal optimism keeps its feet on the ground, but may under-estimate what is reasonable.
Many negative emotions are of disappointments or bereavements. Am I to see the death of my child as meaningful? or a premature death to illness as meaningful? Or death by a bomb? I think not. I am left with the sadness, the pointlessness, and have to live with the event without becoming emotionally paralysed. This may be personal growth, but it is not the cause of or reason for the disaster.
Religion it is true has created unreasonable delusions to explain death, such as an afterlife, eternal life, or rebirth; but worshippers normally do not thereby welcome death, unless there is some mental instability or brainwashing.
Our negative delusions may be pictures of ourselves as worthless, or mental pictures of anxieties as entities - demons, the devel, forces of evil. Films and pulp fiction make much of this.
Can I replace a negative delusion for a positive one? To turn an incompetent me into a demigod by dint of imagining 'I can do it' and 'I am special'. To some degree a negative image can be neutralised; but to go further like a Hitler is psychotic and delusional.
There is no wisdom in delusion, only a temporary coping strategy if it is positive delusion, a crutch to help us continue. The wisdom is to see the delusion as delusion, to recognise it and go beyond, to throw the crutch away.

Growing the brain.

When I was young, there was a belief that eating fish feeds the brain, so I guess there are some smart sharks. Today the obsession is that drinking water feeds the brain. The simple truth is that thinking feeds and develops the brain. Over the past decade we have the benefit of various brain scanning devices and are getting to know both what the brain looks like in detail, and how it works. But it is slow business and nothing is definitive yet. So therefore beware of any book or system, especially those over ten years old, that claims to know how the brain works, and worse tells you definitively how to develop it. They are likely to be over-simplistic, or simply wrong.
The brain develops by mental stimulation, by growing connectors between different parts of the brain. The more we think, and the more disciplined we get, the more connections are created and the brain changes as a result. This much is the starting point of modern neuroscience. Children's brains are growing rapidly throughout schooling, and adult brains have a similar potential. Our message to pupils is that their brains are capable of most things, through disciplined hard work, putting their mind to the task. This will permamently make them smarter. It is a message that needs emphasising to children from infancy onwards, by parents, teachers and others; and also that 'can do' attitudes can also be fun and give a great sense of achievement.
See more on: http://www.tlrp.org/pub/documents/
Neuroscience%20Commentary%20FINAL.pdf

Therapy, education and therapeutic education

I have just reviewed a book on "therapeutic education" (http://escalate.ac.uk/4752) which raises issues. The authors mean positive pupil-centred education which is non-conflictual: since the book's educational focus is a special school, this is described as 'healing', hence therapeutic. It is defended through reference to therapists such as Maslow and Rogers. Of course, the authors are describing 'good', motivating and positive education per se and the work 'therapeutic' is a misnomer. A therapist will have had substantial education and training to develop a knowledge and expertise to contribute to health care and child development. A speech and language therapist for example helps children with communication difficulties. Teachers and educational professionals who are untrained in these fields cannot replicate their work. Equally a talking therapist (a psychologist, psycho-analyst or counsellor) work with particular insights and skills which the untrained cannot hope to match.
However, there are few therapists on the ground and their time and involvement is expensive. They therefore can only deal with acute cases. In practice, pupils are referred and join the waiting list. There are general things that teachers can do to help children with non-acute developmental delay or with emotional and behaviour difficulties which are not severe. Indeed this helps the therapist because some ground has been covered and acute cases better identified - there will be some pupils who make progress and don't need to be referred. Although we might call this 'good' education, based on positive relationships, teachers and others do need both training and consciousness raising to change practice.
For example, behaviourist rewards and punishments are often a school's only strategy to deal with challenging attitudes and behaviour. This aims at submission rather than personal growth and actually doesn't work. Punishments escalate to exclusion when the problem gets passed on to others and the pupil remains stuck. Education should be 'healing' in a broad sense, and promote personal growth. This is main focus for the training needed - a simple message to understand but more difficult to put into practice routinely.