Core Values & Identity –
Sprint One
Explain a situation where you have had an ethical decision to make. Discuss how you weighed up the values involved in that decision, the decision you made, and the consequences of your action.
When I was teaching, I had a student in my class who enjoyed learning graphic design and was committed to coming to class every day. However, she had some significant learning barriers including being neurodivergent and managing anxiety. Although I gave her as much support as I could, and she had a private tutor outside of class, by the time we were nearing the end of the year she had not completed or passed any of the assignments for the course. Her mother reached out to me to let me know that her daughter was considering progressing to higher level studies and to ask for my feedback on this.
In deciding how to respond to this request, I had to weigh up my core values of integrity and giving honest feedback, with also wanting to be kind and not discourage this student from continuing to study. Ultimately, my genuine desire to support her to make the best decision meant that I decided to have an honest conversation with her mother. I recommended that she not pursue further studies given the challenges she was facing, but suggested some alternate study pathways that may have been better suited to her abilities. As a consequence, her mother took my feedback on board and appreciated my honest feedback, and the student began to explore other options for her future.
Describe how your culture has influenced your values and identity.
I grew up in Nottingham, in the north of England. I come from a small family, and it was always important for us to spend quality time together. I think this taught me a lot about caring for others and being empathetic. Being from a small family, I also valued my friendships a lot and today I love meeting new people and building new relationships.
British culture isn’t known for being the most emotionally available, but we approach a lot of situations with a dry sense of humour to connect and help us get through. Humour is something I use every day to connect with others and I enjoy making people laugh and knowing I’ve made their day a bit brighter.
I was exposed to a lot of art when I was growing up (both my parents were creative people) and I was encouraged to play and experiment with Lego, explore in the garden, and to draw and paint. Creativity and curiosity are some of my core values today and I consider myself a life-long learner.
Evaluate your strengths and limitations in terms of your learning and career development.
My Myers-Briggs personality type is ENFJ - the Protagonist. I approach situations with optimism and enthusiasm and I naturally take a leadership role in group situations. I’m a confident public speaker and I get a lot of energy from motivating and supporting others. One of my strengths is getting people to work together and communicate effectively, and I’m a reliable and hard-working person. On the flip side of this, a limitation I’m aware of in my career development is knowing when to slow down and allow others to take the lead. In terms of my learning, I can also struggle with being able to focus for long periods of time by myself, particularly when work is theoretical and not people-focused.
Identify which of your strengths might help you in your learning journey and how they intersect with learning obstacles.
My people skills and leadership abilities will support me to succeed when working on group projects at Dev Academy. My ability to motivate others and communicate clearly will enable the team to stay on track and complete high quality work. These skills also mean that I’m not afraid to ask others for help when I need it. One of my strengths is creative problem solving, which will support me in my learning. If I can’t immediately resolve an issue, I know how to go back through a problem, reframe it, consider alternative approaches, research possible answers, and try new things until I have a solution.
Share an example from your experience of where you were trying to work productively with others, but there was resistance or tension. Discuss the strategies you used at that time, how effective they were, and your reflections on what other strategies you would try now and why.
In one of my previous roles, I had some spare time and thought it would be a good idea to animate the company logo to use on social media and other platforms. However, my supervisor did not feel this was a good use of time and was resistant to me doing this work. At the time, I pulled together research on the effectiveness of animation as a marketing tool and tried to use this to bring her on board. This was not entirely effective and she remained somewhat resistant to the idea.
If I were to approach this situation now, I would spend more time asking her why she didn’t feel the work was a good use of time and what she felt I should be spending my time on instead as at the time she gave me no other direction. This way, I could better understand her perspective and we could agree together on how I prioritised my work. Now I feel I have a much better grasp on understanding people, what they want and how they best respond in social/work situations.
Testimonials from close friends
Trent K:
Throughout my years of friendship with Ash I’ve always known him to be a compassionate and selfless individual. He goes out of his way to make sure people are comfortable and enjoying themselves in any given situation, whether it be parties, dinners or in a work environment. Ash has proven this time and time again and in doing so I’ve seen him establish strong social connections and friendships.
Grace B:
Ash is someone who has a strong work ethic and wholeheartedly has everyone’s best interest in mind and always does the right thing even if it is not the most popular decision. He shows this through demonstrating effective, honest communication in the classroom and teaching others to practice accountability and the importance it can have not only in their studies, but outside of the classroom.