I have been at a three day conference with a wonderful group of Drama Educators from across the globe. I am a shy person (no, not all Drama Educators are extroverted!) and this has given me the opportunity to sit quietly and observe my peers. I share this list with you today as I feel Drama Educators are often undervalued when in reality they are a unique commodity with much to offer the educational system.

1. We are incredible collaborators. This is the core of our teaching practice. We teach kids to be collaborative and in doing so deeply etch these skills into our own lives and actions. We know how to yield to the ideas of others and extend on the possibilities together. We teach this practice daily. 

2. We also know how to work independently. Many of us are the only Drama specialists in our schools meaning we often have to work on our own which leads to resourcefulness and an ability to network beyond the walls of our school.

3. We are risk takers. Yesterday we were in a workshop and we were told there was only room for some of us to participate in the practical component and the rest of had to observe the process. This process involved improvising and performing in front of your peers. It was interesting to watch the Drama Educators move straight into the space ready to take a risk, while the researchers sat as observers. And to be honest, as a shy person this is not easy for me to do (particularly in front of my peers), but I am a Drama Educator and therefore never play it safe.

4. We are disobedient. Now you are probably wondering why I am listing this as one of our beautiful qualities. Andrew Upton (Artistic Director of Sydney Theatre Company) in a keynote speech yesterday stated that “Disobedience is vital to all art.” It is essential to the creative process. If we never break the rules, never step outside the margins, how can we discover new ideas, new worlds, new ways of doing things? 

5. We are open to working with others (other teachers, researchers, other fields) because we value relationship. In fact, we value relationship so much that we explicitly teach it. 

6. We are creative and critical thinkers. We imagine. We play. We explore. We question. It is at the heart of our nature. 

7. We love our students and place them at the forefront of what we do. Yes, of course other teachers do this too, but our love stems from the emotional and social connections we make with our students as they share elements of themselves and the world in which they live in our classrooms every day.

8. We are empathetic. Empathetic to those around us - students, parents, other teachers, administrators. When we play a character we embody them. We walk in their shoes. This is enlightening and liberating for both us and those we are empathising with.

9. We are passionate. Passionate about our subject. Passionate about Education. Passionate about making a difference in our classroom, our system, our world. Nothing can suppress this.

10. We are joyful. Oh boy are we joyful! We know how to dance like no-one is watching. We know how to teach through play. We know the importance of taking time out to have fun with our students. And this joy is catching. 

So please, do not underestimate us. 

Imagine if all Educators were incredible collaborators but at the same time able to work independently. 
Risk takers, rule breakers, creative and critical thinkers yet open to working with others.
Loved their students deeply, were empathetic, passionate and oh so joyful. 
Our schools would look a little different don't you think?

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet.”
- Juliet, Act 2, Scene 2.

I love quoting Shakespeare. I am a drama teacher. Actually, let’s go further and say I am ‘just’ a Drama teacher. And as ‘just’ a Drama teacher who else would I quote?

Maybe Julie Dunn. Never heard of her? That’s because she is ‘just’ a Professor in Drama Education and Applied Theatre. In her Keynote Speech at Game Changer 2015 today, Julie said that when she is asked what she does for a living and states that she is Professor in Drama Education and Applied Theatre, the response is underwhelming. “Oh you ‘just’ teach drama...” 

Maybe I can refer to Robin Pascoe… no wait… he too is really ‘just’ a Drama teacher. In a panel discussion on ‘What is the New Black in Drama Education?’ Robin mentioned research regarding the term ‘Arts Education’ and highlighted the need to drop the arts and call it all Education. You see by using the term ‘Arts Education’ we are collectively marginalising ourselves. I mean it is ‘just’ the Arts isn’t it?

In an opinion piece, Ellen Leanse (Apple and Google Alumni - You have heard of them right?) argues that the use of the word 'just' needs to change. She says, “I began to notice that “just” wasn’t about being polite: it was a subtle message of subordination, of deference. Sometimes it was self-effacing.” She is right.

And this is where I get to my point. You see last week in a meeting a colleague of mine turned to me and said, “You are ‘just’ the Drama teacher.” Yes, I was angry. However, looking back I am not actually upset at her, I am upset at myself for not saying the following:

I am not ‘just’ a drama teacher.

I am a mother, a daughter, a wife, a friend, a lover of Drama, a director, a theatre goer, a creator, a learner and wait for it…an educator. An educator that helps shape, form, support and challenge the individuals that I meet in my classroom and the playground everyday. I don’t teach drama. I teach humans through drama. I teach life.

And this is where we turn things around - not ‘just’ for Drama teachers, but for all teachers. Maths teachers, Kindergarten teachers, English teachers, Science teachers, Primary teachers, Music teachers, Geography teachers, History teachers, Language teachers, Early-childhood teachers and teachers of teachers. 

Imagine an educational system where we were all called 'Educators'. Educators of humans. Educators of life. A system where we all treated each other with the same value regardless of where our specialisation lies. A system where we didn’t feel we needed to apologise for what we were passionate about because it wasn’t valued by administrators or policy makers. A system where we stopped segregating each other, stopped segregating ourselves and worked collaboratively to awaken joy, life and energy in the learners we are responsible for. 

So, herein lies the question,
“To be, or not to be..." 
Will you be 'just' a teacher?

(Note: After writing this blog I feel like I need to rebrand myself as The Joy-Fueled Educator.... but hey, what's in name?)

I am attending a conference titled ‘Game Changer’ for the next three days. 
Game changer…… Game......changer.....

This phrase ‘Game Changer’ calls the advocate, the educator, the leader, the innovator to arms. It instills fear in the complacent, the exhausted, the traditionalist, the inflexible, the resistant. 

Now let me be honest here. I want to be a Game Changer. It sounds heroic and who doesn’t want to be a hero? But, I enter with three questions - What is the game? Why does it need to be changed? And am I truly a game changer?

What is the game?
The ‘game’ we are referring to is this system we call education. 
A game has a starting point and end point. Education runs from Preschool to Post-Grad.
A game needs someone to play it. Education has administrators, teachers, parents and students.
A game has rules. Education is not short of these. Think syllabus, policy, curriculum, outcomes, assessments and marking guidelines, reports … etc.
A game has challenges that need to be overcome. Education is filled with them.
A game has an outcome that must be achieved. Education’s outcome is give students knowledge, instil in them a love of learning and bestow on them the tools to become life long learners.
A game generally has a winner and a loser. 

And here I will stop, because I believe there should not be winners and losers in education.

Education should not be a game. 
Isn’t a game. 
Should never be treated like a game. 

Why does it need to be changed? 
There are probably many reasons, but there is one that answers this question beyond all others.

There are losers. 

There are kids that don’t make it. Don’t make it through school. Don’t make it to class. Don’t make it to living out joyful lives.
There are kids that are told they are will never succeed because they don’t follow the rules.
There are kids who don’t have the skills to pass one form of testing. Are labelled stupid, yet have knowledge of the word beyond their years.
There are kids who feel so much pressure to succeed, but they crash and burn at the last hurdle because they no longer have the mental capacity to give any more of themselves.
There are the kids that are isolated for looking different, sounding different, thinking different. Kids who can barely make it out of bed in the morning let alone drag themselves to class.

And there are teachers who have lost their passion, their joy, their own personal love of learning.

Yes, there are losers….. and as long as there are losers we need change.

Am I truly a game changer?
No. Because I don’t play games. I refuse to make education a game.
In my classroom there are no losers. 
Not on my watch.
Not on my time.
Not in the microcosm in which I teach.

I am not a game changer, but I am a joy-fuled educator. An advocator. A leader. An innovator. 
And I will make change. Change the way we view education. Shift it from a game to a passion; to a joy that burns deep in the heart of administrators, teachers, parents and students. 

Let's say I want to be an 'Attitude Changer'. Are you with me?