Parallel Worlds

While I may never work in the medical field, I tried to make as many connections as I could to the teaching profession as I read Vicente's (2004) chapter 7: Management Matters: Building Learning Organizations. I also tried to connect what he has written in previous chapters to this current chapter.
He summarised very well the need for management to be designed as well as the hard products a company may produce. I particularly appreciated his call that management needs industry specific knowledge (p190). This deepened my belieft that it will our jobs as educational technologist not only to be leading in the classroom but to be leading at the department, school and system level as the technological advances in education begin and continue to accelerate for the years to come. There will be a need for those with research and experience based Ed Tech specific knowledge to be able to lead this revolution in education. Furthermore, I agree with Vicente's claim (p190) that management is an indispensable aspect of technological system design and it is just as real and important as the creation of hardware and software. He continues (p191) to further strengthen his position and my beliefs that the design of hardware and software aims to achieve an affinity with human nature at the physical and psychological levels, but the design of management structures should aim to achieve an affinity with human nature at the organizational level.

While reading, I kept questioning in my mind about the possibility and plausibility of the types of error and and safety reporting systems in place in the medical field and attempting to make parallel connections to the field of education. Are these possible in Education? Are they feasible? Would they benefit teachers, administrators, students and parents? I'd like to argue now that they would.
The features of the ASRS reporting system were that it was voluntary, confidential, non-punitive, objective and independent. Why couldn't we have this same system established in education. I am certain many teachers, including myself, have left a classroom thinking that they could have taught that lesson better, been more patient or empathetic with a student, not raised their voice or disempowered a student. But who would admit to this? Vicente (p161) gave a reason; overbearing, intimidating attitude make people keep quiet and not question authority. Teachers and medical personnel are in that position of power and authority and by admitting their mistake they risk losing their power, authority and possibly their job.
Could we implement this at the teacher training level? Student and first year teachers are overwhelmed, much like interns, with the amount of work, the amount of learning and the pressures associated with being just one-step ahead of their charges at all times. I believe they are in a prime position to make mistakes with a child's life and learning hanging in the balance. I believe that a system such as the ASRS for new and student teachers would be extremely beneficial for them so ensure that they not only reflect upon their actions, but get the support and help needed so that the mistake does not reoccur. As Vicente (p214) calls, we need to look beyond blaming individuals and focus on the multiple underlying system failures which shape individual behaviours.
The Walker family (Vicente, p221) resisted the urge not to punish and blame the nurses that killed their daughter but to use their mistake as an opportunity to help others believing this would be "their daughter's legacy". Do parents feel the same way when teachers make mistakes in the classroom? I can assure you that they do not. I can recall numerous parents charging me with the duty of fixing their child as another teacher broke them in grade 4 fractions!!
Such a reporting systems would be of great benefit to all stakeholders. Teachers, like the nurses described on page 225, could be an increased sense of fulfillment and accomplishment. Teachers could begin to work together towards improving student learning by reflecting on their practice. Noques (2008) called this act the most important act a teacher can perform for the betterment of their practice and students. There is far too much at stake to keep repeating mistakes when the knowledge on how to do better already exists.

References
Noques, C. (2008) The Reflective Practitioner. Presented at the University of Calgary CLL Summer Institute series "International Trends in Leadership". Calgary, July 2008.
Vicente, K. (2004)The Human Factor: Revolutionising the Way We Live with Technology. Vintage Canada, Random House. Toronto.