In my research I am seeking to understand power and agency in ways that allow an attitude of gentleness, rather than an attitude of control, to be my default baseline. Gentleness is here understood as the dynamic that happens when the expectation that uncertainty can be or should be eliminated does not dominate in our relationships and in the situations we negotiate. One of the specific notions that I have been exploring is a "pedagogy of gentleness". From this research I have drawn the following principles for my pedagogic practice, among others:

1. There is nothing more personal, political, or relevant for me than attending to the character of my own emotional attitude in my role as an educator. How I feel on the day will have a major influence on the character of my teaching. This is what Teresa Brennan (2004) referred to as the ?transmission of affect?. As Brennan outlines: ?By the transmission of affect, I mean simply that the emotions or affects of one person, and the enhancing or depressing energies these affects entail, can enter into another? (3). This is consistent with the later work of critical pedagogist Paolo Freire and his insistence on the importance of ?being with? (Freire 1998). I also find it important to note Megan Boler?s insistence that: ?A pedagogy that recognizes emotions as central to the domains of cognition and morality need not preclude intellectual rigor or critical inquiry? (Boler 1999:110).

2. It is important for me not to seek to prescribe the outcomes or direction of a classroom. The character and quality of the interaction in the room is of greater importance to me than a clear trajectory, and the quality I am seeking to foster is consistent with Mark Smith?s characterisation of ?local education? practices: ?Instead of aiming for particular changes in individuals, we look to the nature of the interactions we foster ? we move from a focus on product to a concern with process and praxis? (Smith 1994:36). The emotional climate I seek to foster in my teaching and learning is very much a conversational one, with an openness to detours and divergences in direction: ?The specific goal may not be clear at any one time, either to educators or learners, yet the process is deliberate. Educators in these situations seek to foster an environment in which conversation can take place? (Smith 1994:63). Learning outcomes, then, are used for the module as a whole but are not used for each session. I am reminded of the words of Derrick Jensen:

?I cannot control what my students want or are able to learn, and I have no desire to. Nor can I control whether the students like the class, and I have no desire to do that either. Nor can I control whether they are at a place in their lives to learn from anything I have to offer. ? What I perceive as the direction they need to head may bear no relationship to the direction they actually need to head, the direction they?re capable to heading, or the direction they indeed end up heading. And I need at all times to defer to that uncertainty, that mystery? (2004:109-110)

3. Confusion can be fruitful. In my pedagogy I offer students an invitation to ?trust your confusion? in expectation of the conversational quality of the interactions. This can be unsettling for students at times, but it can also facilitate a space of creativity and opportunity; Megan Boler speaks of a ?pedagogy of discomfort? in which students are invited ?to leave the familiar shores of learned beliefs and habits, and swim further out into the ?foreign? and risky depths of the sea of ethical and moral differences? (Boler 1999:181). As my friend and colleague says to his students, "Find your place of uncertainty and build a house there".

These courses invite you to acquire skills of critical thinking and analyis that will generally be of help to you in your life. Be prepared, though, to work through some moments of confusion and uncertainty in the process. It might be helpful to think of the lecture situation as a learning laboratory, in which you are invited to consider new ways of thinking and then critically compare them with ways of thinking with which you are already familiar. It is hoped that you will find the lectures personally and ethically challenging.

You are strongly encouraged to attend the lectures. Lectures will start on time. The purpose of lectures is not to dispense basic information relating to the field in question, but rather to focus upon specific issues, themes, and questions, the exploration of which are, I feel, of particular importance for approaching the relevant topic from a critical perspective. The critical perspectives which I will promote are person- and relationship-centered. They allow us to consider the implications and effects of certain ways of thinking and doing for the ways in which we relate to others in our lives. I will be most critical of ways of thinking and doing that blind us to those implications and effects.

Each student comes to the course from a different place. Students are encouraged to draw upon the whole range of their experiences in their contributions to discussions. No sincere thought-process is too weird. If it makes sense to you, give it a go.

When you come to lectures, I would be grateful if you come with a willingness to listen to others. Listening does not mean waiting to speak. A little respect can go a long way.

I would also be grateful if you come to this course with a willingness to question yourself and others in a helpful fashion. To get a sense of some of your unquestioned and foundational assumptions, ask yourself: "What am I willing to fight for?" You may find some of the issues under consideration controversial and they may at times elicit strong emotions. Try to remember, disagreement can be voiced without being oppositional.

It’s okay for others to question your opinion, and it’s also okay for you to question yourself. Remember, you don’t have to think the way that someone else thinks, but neither do you have to continue thinking the way you think. Ask yourself: "What ways of thinking are most helpful to me?" "What would I like my thinking to be helpful for?" As (now historical) TV character Judge Harry Stone once said: "I like to keep an open mind, but not so open that my brains fall out." A couple of proverbs that I find useful to keep around: It’s always darkest at the foot of the lighthouse; Even monkeys fall off trees.

Find those things that you are most willing to attack or defend, and start your questioning there ...