If You Want to Go Far, Go Together: Reimagining Relationships and Place in Education

“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”
— African Proverb

Early in my teaching career, I tried to play the part I thought I was supposed to: the all-knowing expert at the front of the room. The "sage on the stage." It didn’t take long to realize it wasn’t working—at least not in the way I hoped. It felt performative, disconnected from my instincts, and most importantly, it only reached the students who already knew how to play the game of school. The rest—those who needed something different—remained at the edges.

That early discomfort became a powerful teacher. I began to ask different questions:

What if the classroom wasn’t a stage but a gathering space?
What if my role wasn’t to lead from the front, but to learn alongside?
And what if connection—not control—was the real foundation of meaningful learning?

This blog builds on that reflection and expands the ideas from What story is your school really telling?, where I explored how school culture is shaped by the unspoken narratives embedded in our spaces. Here, I invite you to think about relationships, place, and collective imagination—not as extras, but as essential to reimagining education. Because if we truly want to go far, we must go together.

Drawing from thirdspace theory and Dr. Heather Michael’s call to rewrite dominant narratives, we’ll explore how space, relationships, and collective meaning-making can transform schools from sites of sorting to spaces of belonging.

From Sorting to Supporting

Too many systems in education still operate as sorting machines—tracking students, streaming classes, narrowing possibilities before they’ve had a chance to begin. As Dr. Michael notes, even course selection systems can send a message of who belongs where—and who doesn't.

What if we stopped sorting and started supporting? What if our spaces, schedules, and systems were built not to separate, but to connect?

The Role of Educators: Co-Creators of Culture

This is more than a design exercise. It’s a professional identity shift.

Educators are not just deliverers of curriculum—we are architects of culture, keepers of story, and stewards of place. When we act with intention, we help write a school story that includes every student. When we act together, we move farther than we ever could alone.

In that spirit, try the reflective activity linked below to explore the hidden stories your school spaces tell—and how they shape inclusion, belonging, and learning. Great for staff meetings, PD sessions, or leadership retreats.

👉 Download the free activity handout below and start mapping your school’s story.

Together Is the Way Forward

The path toward inclusive, meaningful, and just education isn't paved by individual brilliance. It's built through relationships—through dialogue, space-sharing, trust-building, and the slow, courageous work of co-creation.

So let's keep asking:

• What does our school story say?

• Who does it center?

• What do we want it to become?

Because if we truly want to go far, we must go together.