Are teachers now too scared to really get to know their students?

Greg Cudmore

By Greg Cudmore
Community contribution / April 20, 2017

Too often in response to a perceived problem the resultant solution goes too far. Many teachers today are now afraid to relate to their students other than teaching disembodied brains. Ultimately the educational enterprise has become impersonal and less efficacious.

The Royal Commission into child sex abuse will paradoxically further damage the educational enterprise.

Essential to effective education is the ...

Mathematics Teacher (Permanent or Temp Opportunity)

Emanuel School 18-20 Stanley Street

We are seeking an experienced Maths or Maths/Science teacher to join our team. Full time position from mid Term 2, 2026. Perm or temp opportunity.

Teaching - Secondary / Mar 13, 2026

Physics Teacher (Permanent Opportunity)

Emanuel School 18-20 Stanley Street

We are seeking a full time Physics Teacher to join our team. This is a permanent position commencing from Week 6, Term 2, start date negotiable.

Teaching - Secondary / Mar 13, 2026

Director of Wellbeing Education

Canberra Grammar School Red Hill ACT

The Director of Wellbeing Education ensures that Canberra Grammar School adopts a unified, sustainable, and educational approach to wellbeing

School Management / Mar 13, 2026

By Greg Cudmore

Community

Greg Cudmore is a retired teacher with 45 years experience working in Australian Schools. He recently published 'Even More Elephants in our Classrooms (2026) ' (amazon.com), the third in his 'Elephants in the Classroom' trilogy, which critiques contemporary Australian education, a primer for aspiring and practising teachers and for those, like Mark Twain, who never let schooling interfere with their education.

Similar news

School news / Much too specific: schools hamstrung by narrow bullying policy, expert says School news / Students knead to know about fractions Opinion / We need to get to know each other

Latest comments

Kia Ora Initiative like this are great enticing hinges. Learners need motivation through actions and participation....

— Melvin Din on Aviators In Schools: The New Program Bringing Real-World Expertise Into Classrooms

Top events

School news / Australian boys groomed into despising ‘woke’ school system

Commercially-motivated influencers in the manopshere are indoctrinating Australian boys, teaching them to reject the authority of teachers and the ‘woke’ school system, one expert has warned.

School news / ‘Surface-level mastery’: cognitive atrophy a risk of schools’ unchecked AI use

The excessive and unstructured use of AI in Australian schools risks derailing students’ acquisition of foundational skills and knowledge and is setting young brains up for atrophy, an expert has warned.

School news / Ground-breaking program underway to steer children from crime

A WA Government initiative to divert young children from crime is being trialled in Armadale, a south-eastern suburb of Perth, and Geraldton a coastal city 425 kms north of the state’s capital.

School news / British breakthrough: new tool uses unique approach to support neurodivergent children

A questionnaire tool to identify the support needs of neurodivergent children and young people ahead of them potentially receiving a formal assessment, is being trialled with exciting implications.

School news / Furious Victorian public school staff receive green light for strike action

Australian Education Union (AEU) members in Victoria’s public schools have voted to take stop-work action over low pay and excessive workloads.

School news / School’s Idle Off campaign seeks to reduce toxic car fumes harming kids

It's as easy as disengaging a button or key but it's taken a long time to spread the message that idling engines near schools is a danger to children's health.

School news / NAPLAN meltdown: teachers, parents slam communication chaos

Parents and teachers have called out the chaos of NAPLAN testing after a widespread outage wreaked havoc across thousands of schools.

School news / Australian boys groomed into despising ‘woke’ school system

Commercially-motivated influencers in the manopshere are indoctrinating Australian boys, teaching them to reject the authority of teachers and the ‘woke’ school system, one expert has warned.

Opinion / Long-term financial challenge: the reality of HECS debt for teachers

It’s easy to talk about cost of living as something remote and theoretical, with casual statements about belt tightening and cutting back on non-essentials.

School news / NAPLAN push contributing to ‘moral injury’ and hastening of attrition: expert

NAPLAN season is here again this week, with technical glitches proving stumbling blocks for many, but while much of the focus as ever is on student performance, one education expert says more attention needs to be paid to its impact on teachers.

Comments