By Sophie Murphy
It is now just over a week since The Age shared the story of my experience on Flight JQ527. To briefly recount the tale, I was flying home from Sydney but the plane was unable to land in Melbourne because a 14-year-old boy with Down syndrome was feeling unwell and lying in the aisle.
As we circled the city at night, the plane running out of fuel, a cabin announcement called for help from a teacher, specifically a special-needs teacher. I was proud to be asked to help.
Special-needs teacher Sophie Murphy
I found the boy, Shamran, on the floor at the back of the plane. He was genuinely ill, scared and unable to move. I knew it was important to develop a relationship with him, by using the right tone and language.
It was late and the energy in the plane was strange. It had started as one of hostility and anger between passengers – nasty remarks and negative body language – and needed to be diffused. How wonderful that the Jetstar crew thought outside the box, taking a chance on the idea that positive remarks and warm body language might ease the situation.
Relationships and the power of voice have always been passions of mine. I have been a teacher for more than two decades, with experience co-ordinating special-needs programs. I moved to the University of Melbourne in 2015 to complete a PhD with a focus on the use of language, the power of our questioning as teachers, and what effective language looks like in the classroom.
I have had help. My supervisor is Professor John Hattie, chairman of the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership, director of the Melbourne Educational Research Institute and deputy director of the Science of Learning Research Centre (both at the University of Melbourne). He is an inspiration to teachers all over the globe.
Teachers know the relationships they develop with their students are the most important foundation for learning. Connecting, knowing their name, showing you care, being mindful and smiling are not just good behaviours to display – they are integral.
On the plane, I got down on the floor in the aisle with Shamran. If he was going to move, I needed to introduce myself, find out his name, connect, let him speak, listen to him, see what the problem was, and not panic him or be punitive. I knew I needed to lock onto his eyes and show empathy. I learnt his favourite books, not as an ice breaker or an introduction, but to construct a real relationship, however brief.
The story that followed in The Age touched the hearts of many more than I could have anticipated. I have received messages of tearful happiness from all over the world. It connected most with teachers, with those who know a teacher, with those with special needs, and those who have children with special needs.
I am told the story has been shared more than 25,000 times on Facebook, and that it has been read by hundreds of thousands of people. I have experienced a whirlwind week, being interviewed by Raf Epstein, Neil Mitchell, Hughsey and Kate, as well as Richard Glover in Sydney and National Public Radio in Washington, DC.
I can only speculate as to why so many wanted to hear the story again, but I imagine it was because of the interaction with Shamran that took place in extraordinary circumstances – high in the sky in a packed plane running low on fuel.
What stands out to me, though, is how unspectacular the moment was: helping a child find comfort in the world is something teachers do every day.
Teachers wear many hats. They are responsible for the learning of others but also – and equally importantly – ensuring the students in their care feel emotionally and socially supported. Teaching is not just a job, it is so much more. You live it, breathe it, and become it.
The wonderful teaching stories I could share are countless. Ask a teacher some day to tell you one of their favourite moments in school and you will hear some extraordinarily beautiful things.
As we move into a week dominated by NAPLAN tests, remember that teachers will not only be administering national testing, they will be teaching the essentials of the curriculum, along with values, creativity, innovation, inclusiveness, diversity, the complexity of the world, the future and how to be kind.
They will believe in their students, whether it is the student who needs assistance academically, or the student who pastorally needs extra care. Teachers see the spark in all students. So please continue to embrace our teachers, advocate for them, and understand that what they do is far more than sums and sentences, dates and places, classrooms and homework.
Sophie Murphy is a special-needs teacher based in Melbourne