Language Is Power - Education Jargon

In education there is no denying that the use of pointless and confusing education jargon is being increasingly forced upon schools and colleges by the government every day. These sets of phrases and buzzwords given by the ‘big man’ are made to make schools seem more professional and ‘on track’ as such with their tasks and learning. It is often ordered that all teachers and students must use this jargon and it also tends to cover up and overlook many real issues in schools. And by this I mean that to parents and communities it may look as though a school is perfect and has no major problems, yet all they see are a few buzzwords printed on an Ofsted report, and really the school’s students are facing real problems and struggling to learn. Many of the phrases used are vague and frequently changed to please the parents and the media, which makes it very hard for teachers and students to understand what is required of them by Ofsted and the government.

Some examples of education jargon that are:

-         “Critical thinking” – which refers to a person who has the ability to analyse something. This phrase can be seen as unnecessary education jargon because it would be much more understandable for both teachers and students to use a phrase such as ‘analytical thinking’ or ‘ability to analyse’, as it is immediately clear what is meant from the phrase when it is read.

-         “Disruptive technology” – which you would think refers to technology such as mobile phones and mp3 players which disrupts a child’s learning. But in fact it refers to technology which revolutionises the way students learn!

-         Acronyms such as “WILF” and “WALT” – I completely support and understand the idea of having a learning objective so all the students and any inspectors know exactly what they will be learning in a lesson. But what I don’t support are acronyms such as the ones stated above which stand for “What I’m Looking For” and “We Are Learning To”. These acronyms are forced upon schools to make it more “clear” what they students will be learning, but in reality there are so many of these different acronyms these days that it’s hard to remember what they all mean, let alone use them to explain something in a classroom!

These are just a few of the annoying jargon placed on schools in order to impress parents and media, but with the list growing faster every day, students and teachers in schools everywhere are finding it harder and harder to keep up and understand what they mean. One of the only ways to get past these confusing buzzwords is to use them when it’s necessary but, for the sake of students, when in the classroom only use phrases if they are easy to understand. It’s inevitable and unavoidable that at some point in everyone’s lives they will come across education jargon, whether it’s as a student or in a profession working in schools. And so the easiest way to protect ourselves from it is let the these new phrases be put in, but carry on using what’s understandable and comfortable for you unless you are in a position where you absolutely have to use buzzwords, because in the end the most important thing is that children and young adults and taught in a way that allows them to be successful.