A Love Letter to Education

Dear Education,

This year, you reminded me why I fell in love with you in the first place. You are so much more than classrooms, curriculums, or policies. You are people—students, teachers, leaders—coming together to create something bigger than themselves.

This year, you reminded me why I fell in love with you in the first place

In 2024, I saw your heart in so many places. In the Northern Territory, students took charge of their schools' futures through the Learning Commission, Youth Voice Peak Group, Round Table, and Leaders of Tomorrow. They challenged decision-makers to see them as equals. In South Australia, leaders and learners dared to redefine things and values so deeply: learning, strategy, partnership, sustainability, and boldness in action.

You showed me your global side through British School Jakarta, reminding me that learners know what great learning is and make those same connections. Even though they learn different things in different places, good learning is a global common. And closer to home, at Mount Scopus Memorial College, you reminded me how deeply values and identity shape what it means to belong in a school community.

Through the Game Changer Challenge, you lit up classrooms across New South Wales with the energy of design thinking, showing students and teachers the power of creativity and collaboration—and earning a Gold Award along the way, proving that Education belongs at design tables. You even made space for big ideas with collaborators like the GELP participants, Ministers, CEs and Round Tables like the UNSW Gonski Institute, whose work helped bring clarity to the complex.

We had big, loud fun together in the many happy rooms; the joy of hundreds of South Australian Primary Principals coming together was seriously fun and funny...and our Business Managers / Finance crew in Darwin too. So many laughs and brilliant work filled my head and heart with the good things I needed more than anyone will ever know. Many NT, SA, and NSW rooms were full of students with their data sets bursting out into dance and song at just the right time. Zoom rooms were full of learning, and people in PJs sharing ideas and insights while giggling at tech fails. You test and exhilarate us, Education!

But Education, you also showed me your quiet power...

• In Tasmania’s We Are More Initiative, where communities came together to imagine shared futures.
• In corners of social media where you proudly profiled great educators in the ABC Education Class Act series.
• In Camberwell Girls Grammar School, at St Patrick’s College where learning is becoming an act of design, curiosity and courage.
• In taking me back to the classroom with my IDEO U colleagues to challenge and push my skills at all times of the night/early mornings.
• In the Intercultural BRIDGE Program, where Australian and Indonesian educators explored the connections that make us all stronger through design thinking. 
• In the Kings Trust Group, where we continue to grow and evolve, Achieve, making skills impactful for learners now and later… the impact education makes here won’t be seen for years, and that’s part of the magic, too. 

And always, you gave me people

And always, you gave me people. And selfishly, I needed their strength and brilliance this year. A student nervously presented their ideas and walked away braver. A teacher who embraces their agency to redesign what teaching and learning could look like. A room of leaders leaning into discomfort because they believe real change is worth the effort. A clever network of system leaders choosing co-design over comfort. Many colleagues who turned up to celebrate, collaborate & commiserate. Education, you are so social and welcoming and thank goodness you are.

Education, you are not perfect. You are messy, complex, and often too slow to change. But that’s part of why I love you. You demand that we listen, learn, and act with intention. You are alive in every conversation, every bold experiment, and every moment of design and transformation. And I am so glad you are a great love of my life.

2025 is nearly here, and I am full of gratitude for what you’ve taught me this year and for the privilege of being part of your story. I have over 1300 photos of learning (mostly post it notes) to show and share the joy of learning and design in action. What a joy and gift that is.

To the students, educators, leaders, and collaborators I’ve worked with this year, you are the heartbeat of this profession. Thank you for your trust, your bravery, your humour and your belief in what we can build. Our shared love of Education is the key to us doing great work together.  I look forward to more mess, awe, wonder and design with incredible people in magnificent places in 2025.

With admiration and hope; always,

Summer