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Ecology of Family History Part 1

25/10/2014

Its always a bit disorienting coming back from Australia - the long journey of 28 hours most of which was in darkness and 10 hr time change left me feeling energyless and jet lagged but looking after the twins the day after I returned soon got me moving again. Spending time with my mum so soon after my father's death had been an emotional experience but I was delighted to see how well she seemed to be coping. I was reminded of her endless positivity and optimism some of which I am glad to say has rubbed off on me.

When I arrived home I discovered an envelope from an uncle which contained a red wallet, with the words THE SECRETARY WAR OFFICE LONDON stamped on it. Inside the wallet were my grandfathers war certificates which gave me his regimental number and told me he served in the Kings Own Border Regiment in the Great War. I had waited for this information for a long time in order to progress the book I am writing to document (or curating) our family's history. I immediately went back on to Ancestry.com and began a search World War I army records and because of the information I now had I was able to locate my grandfather from the thousands of other Thomas Jackson's who served in the army. It was quite a moment to discover all these new facts about him. He lied about his age, he was no more than 16 when he signed up, and was posted to the front in 1914. He was wounded twice but fortunately for his descendents, survived nearly 4 years in the trenches. In working through the on-line archive I also discovered more information about the role my other grandfather played in the war. It was altogether a humbling experience. Inspired by the progress I had made I then started a new chapter on my first wife's family and again I struck lucky in the on-line documents finding a treasure trove of papers relating to the immigration to Canada in 1924 of my wife's father when he was five. These three experiences proved to me the value of these massive on-line historical documentary data bases.

I once read that as parents we are custodians of our family's digital records, in other words one of our responsibilities as a parent is to curate the records, photos and other artefacts that preserve important memories of the past so that our children might enjoy their heritage in the future. But, thanks to the internet and the nuemrous on-line archives it supports, we also have the opportunity to move beyond our own family to delve into the past and curate materials that relate to our family's history. Because I enjoy writing I have begun to write a family history and publishing it for the family using Lulu. I have been conscious as I have been doing this of the way an ecology has developed to achieve this purpose: an ecology that includes my parents and other family members who have shared their stories about the family, and other more distant members of the family who have shared what they have discovered about their families which connect to my own. My ecology also includes on-line record systems that I have accessed via 'Ancestry', and personal artefacts - like letters, photographs, music, clothes, and objects that were collected and brought back from far away places by my ancestors - all help create the story that is our family history. Furthermore, google maps (street level) allow us to visit places we grew up in and houses we lived in. All of these sources of information can be used to tell the story of our lives and what was significant to us and enable us to reconstruct the lives of our ancestors so that we can see ourselves and the lives we have lived in the bigger context of the people who make up our genetic heritage.

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Men's Sheds: Social Innovation for the Social Age

15/10/2014

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Ulladulla Men's Shed New South Wales Australia

Inspiring story
You can find inspiring stories about lifewide learning everywhere. I am visiting my mother in Australia this week who lives in a small coastal town over 200km south of Sydney. I love coming to her home which she has lived in for 28 years. It's very peaceful apart from the ticking clocks and the colourful and noisy parakeets, lorikeets and rosella's that fly around continuously. The time I spend here is always good for reflection especially when I take long walks along the local beaches. The place triggers memories of different visits we have made over twenty years as my children grew up and eventually visited their grandparents by themselves. In many respects this has been the family home for the third and now the fourth generation of the Jackson clan, for we are many.

Whenever I visit Australia I'm always on the lookout for interesting ideas that I can relate to Lifewide Education's interests. I am never disappointed. On my last visit I discovered a local charity called the Dunn Lewis Foundation(1) that had been set up in memory of young people who had been killed in the Bali nightclub bombing doing a lot of good work to support young people and help them develop skills to gain employment but more generally to develop themselves as confident people. This week I discovered 'Men's Sheds' because just across the road from my mother's house in Narrawallee sits the Ulladulla Men's Shed.

Men working in the Ulladulla Men's Shed

Social Innovation for the Social Age
The story of how men formed their own purposeful social groups around the idea of coming together in a shed to socialise and make things is a great story for the Social Age. The grassroots social movement began in Australia(2) in the mid 1990s when a group of men realised that it would be great fun to have a shed in which they could meet regularly to do something practical - especially to make or fix things. The idea quickly caught on and many sheds were established in local communities and by 2006 the government set up an organisation1 to help coordinate and support the creation of more men's sheds. In fact the Men's Shed movement is now part of the Australian health infrastructure that supports programmes to improve men's health and well being. It's a great example of how a local grassroots idea, became a social phenomenon that eventually drove government policy.The value is in making friends, feeling useful, making a contribution and learning new things

The idea of meeting up with other men to do something of practical value, often making toys and furniture to raise money for charities, appeals to men both living alone or with partners and at all ages although the vast majority of 'shedders' are at or beyond retirement date. Many older men lose some sense of purpose with the loss of their work role, status, workmates, income etc and can find themselves disengaged from their community if the pub or sports is not their thing. The generality of community activities on offer do not appeal to men and with their own expectation of meeting their own needs then some level of social isolation can occur. Men with their own shed have often developed their skills and interests there but in a larger facility, with better or more equipment, with skills you can develop with others and jobs you can do for the community a Men's Shed offers something new. Finding a way of working, alongside others and with a purpose in view but without imposed demands can be exactly what many men need.

And it doesn't stop at making things there are also activities such as making music and cooking. Like the Melton Men's Shed, 45km northwest of Melbourne, where every Tuesday men prepare and cook a two-course meal. It's part of a national trend where older men who have been looked after by wives who are no longer with them, can learning to cook for the first time.

Emerging global phenomenon
There are now more than 1,200 sheds in Australia and the scheme has gone global. There are nearly 200 sheds in Ireland and over 100 in the UK with a new shed opening every three days (4). The growth of Men's Sheds is an emergent social response to the need for men, particularly over the age of 50, to make themselves useful by finding new purposes in life when they have experienced a significant life change such as retirement, loss of a partner or debilitating illness.

Social isolation, loneliness and stressful social ties are common amongst older men, and are associated with poor physical and mental health, higher risk of disability, poor recovery from illness and early death. According to a 2014 survey by Age UK (4), more than one million people over 65 in the UK are often or always lonely, an increase of 38% on the previous year. Two-fifths of respondents said that their main form of company is the television. The UK is among the most socially isolated countries in Europe, according to research published in June 2014 by the Office for National Statistics. Asked whether they feel close to people in their local area, 42% said they did not – the highest proportion after Germany. The Campaign to End Loneliness, a national network set up in 2011, believes the issue is a “public health disaster” waiting to happen. Scientific research shows that for older people, loneliness is twice as unhealthy as obesity, as it is linked to high blood pressure, strokes and a weakened immune system.

Older men use fewer community based health services than women, and are less likely to participate in preventive health activities. They also find it harder than women to make friends late in life, and are less likely to join community-based social groups that tend to be dominated by women. Finding acceptable social interventions for lonely and isolated groups of disadvantaged older working class men is a challenge: one that is being addressed by the Men's Shed movement.

A synthesis of research on Men's Sheds (5) points in particular to the health and well-being benefits of men coming together in a purposeful way. Participation in a Men’s Shed, a community garden or other activity, is linked to older men’s desire to engage with their peers in work-like activity. This gives them a sense of identity, self-esteem and value and provides a space within which they can re-create a sense of masculinity in older age. Overall findings from these studies indicate that Men’s Sheds and other gendered interventions provide an array of benefits for older men including: learning new skills, sharing knowledge; personal achievement; community engagement; the opportunity to meet and interact with others. There is a strong association between having good social relationships through leisure and other forms of activity with good health. However, to date there is no robust measurable evidence that involvement in Men’s Sheds has a significant effect on the physical health of older men.

Personalising this story
My father spent many years of his retirement, until he was well into his 80's, working voluntarily with a group of pensioners to make children's toys to raise money for a local charity that provided holidays for disabled children and their families. He also had his own shed (garage) full of tools neatly arranged and labelled on the walls and a heavy duty work bench where he made toys for the grandchildren and more recently great grandchildren - a dolls house for the girls and a garage for the boys . When he died six weeks ago my mother invited the men to come over from the Ulladulla Men's Shed across the road to help themselves to any of his tools. They had been so appreciative of the gift so I went over the road to introduce myself and say how pleased my dad would have been to see his tools being put to such good use. Apparently many 'Men's Shed's' receive donations of tools and equipment in this way - another great example of men helping other men even in their passing.  I met Barry (left) who had started the project over 6 years ago - apparently the Ulladulla Men's Shed was number 35 in the whole of Australia. Barry had seen one on the north coast and decided it would be a good idea to have one in Ulladulla so he set about trying to raise awareness and money. The local council were not interested in supporting the project but a church was, and donated the land on which the shed sits. Over the last six years the project has grown and there are now over 100 men making use of the facility. On the day of my visit there were about 10 men busy working in the garden and workshops. Barrie told me that they receive very little financial aid but people make donations which are tax deductable. Mostly though, the Shed survives on the money they raise themselves through selling what they make or grow in the garden. While it might be tough to sustain the enterprise it is not only sustaining itself but there are plans for extending the shed to accommodate more men. Having seen it for myself you cannot fail to be impressed by the power in the idea and the even greater power in the implementation of it.

Relating this to the Social Age
So you might ask how does this relate to the Social Age? one of the themes Lifewide Education is exploring this year(6). In many respects the situation we are seeing in which men are physically coming together in the same space for companionship, to make themselves useful and to learn and be creative through the things they make, is more akin to the Manufacturing Age into which many of these men were born and learnt their values. It demonstrates to me the idea that each 'Age' of learning does not obliterate the earlier Ages, rather it subsumes and enriches it with new tools and approaches. I did not see or hear of Men's Sheds going digital but in my internet searches I discovered that there are opportunities for men to learn about computers and Web 2.0, and digital photography and in this way develop new skills that will enable them to participate in the Social Age of learning. And thanks to 'my sisters dongle' I was able to sit in my mother's lounge in Narrawallee and discover lots of things about Men's Sheds that I never knew before. In checking my twitter feed I discovered a blog by Steve Wheeler(7) that explained the theory of constructionism  - a cognitive theory that relates to learning by making things and this seems like a useful theory within which to view what goes on inside Men's Sheds. The culture of learning we associate with the Social Age is all about participation and what Men's Sheds is all about is encouraging men to participate in their own self-determined projects within what Douglas Thomas and John Seeley Brown call 'collectives' (8). It's also about co-creation and the bounded spaces of a Men's Shed is full of creativity and co-creativity. It is in the sense of belonging and participation in a 'collective' for the purpose of creating and co-creating in order to contribute to society and to personal wellbeing where Men's Sheds intersect with the Social Age.

Acknowledgement
A big thank you to Barrie Wilford for inspiring me with the story of the Ulladulla Men's Shed.

Sources of information
1 Dunn Lewis Foundation http://www.dunnlewisfoundation.org.au/
2 Mens Sheds Australia  http://www.mensheds.org.au
3 UK Mens Shed Association http://www.menssheds.org.uk/
4 Howard E (2014) ‘If I didn’t come to the shed, I’d be alone, watching TV’. The Guardian, Wednesday 8 October 2014 http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/oct/07/mens-sheds-movement-isolation-loneliness-mental-health 5 Milligan C, Dowrick C, Payne C Hanratty B, Irwin P, Neary D, Richardson D (2013) Men’s Sheds and other gendered interventions for older men: improving health and wellbeing through social activity. A systematic review and scoping of the evidence base. A report for the Liverpool-Lancaster Collaborative (LiLaC) and Age UK
http://www.ageuk.org.uk/documents/en-gb/for-professionals/research/men%20in%20sheds%20age%20uk%20brief.pdf?dtrk=true
6 Lifewide Magazine Issue 11 Exploring the Social Age and the New Culture of Learning http://www.lifewidemagazine.co.uk/
7 Learning and Making Powerful Ideas http://steve-wheeler.blogspot.co.uk/2014/09/ learning-making-and-powerful-ideas.html?view=classic
8 Thomas D and Seeley Brown J (2011) The New Culture of Learning
http://www.newcultureoflearning.com/

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Beijing, the wild mountains and friendships

10/10/2014

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I just love this sign which I discovered on a walk with my dear friend Profesoor Hong Chengwin (BNU). He shrewdly asked me what such a sign might say in the UK and I said I thought it might say - 'DON'T CLIMB ON THE ROCKS'. But the idea of 'cherishing your life' struck both of us as such a powerful expression of the responsibility we have as human beings to value, love, look after, nurture our own life so that we can, if we choose climb in the wild mountains.

I have been in Beijing nearly a week and the experience has had a profound effect on me. I have felt cherished from the moment I got off the plane and was met by two BNU postgraduate students who have cared and looked after me all week. They gave me significant amounts of their time generously and with kindness and did not seek anything in return other than a little friendly companionship. I am so touched by their lesson of graceful service and I hope I can do something for them one day.

I came to teach but because of a public holiday the time I could spend teaching was more limited than expected but the two sessions I did were some of the most enjoyable I have ever done. I felt like a teacher again and it made me realise how much I miss teaching and interacting with young people who are keen to learn.

As for my own learning I learnt many things many of them relational and cultural that I will take with me when I fly out tommorrow. I saw many interesting and awesome sights like the Ming Tombs, Summer Palace and Birds Nest Olympic stadium, not to mention the wild mountains and waterfalls of Yanche. But the thing I value the most is friendship. I also thought freshly about things I have thought about many times before and gained some new understandings that I will cherish. That is what teaching does it forces you to think about stuff with which you are familiar and particularly when I try to represent ideas in pictures, as I 'indwell' in my own learning ecology, new understandings emerge, its mainly an incremental process with very occasional jumps usually as ideas are reassembled, connected and synthesised in a different way - the mini-c creativity. It seems to me 'cherish your life' is a great metaphor for paying attention to our own lifewide development in all its intellectual, physical, emotional and spiritual glory and whenever I see of hear that word I will think of my friend Professor Hong and of climbing the wild mountains of life. Oh yes I also rediscovered what it felt like to be a geologist again thanks to our walk in the wild mountains - the geology was stunning and I was reminded of the fantastic stories that are in the rocks if we can only read them - thanks to many years of trudging the wilds of Saudi Arabia, UK and elsewhere I have taught myself to read the stories in the wild mountains of China - there must be a lesson there for my lifewide learning as well!

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Ecology of Family History Part 1

Men's Sheds: Social Innovation for the Social Age

Beijing, the wild mountains and friendships

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Ecology of Family History Part 1

Men's Sheds: Social Innovation for the Social Age

Beijing, the wild mountains and friendships

Purpose

Archive

Categoriesthese are the tags I've used

Categories
these are the tags I've used