You Matter
Now, more than ever teachers, should be asking young people the question “what would you like to do a drama about?” The question invites children to reflect on what is important to them. We live in an era where it appears that in schools, knowledge is all that matters; it’s certainly all that is measured. We have a crammed top-down curriculum that teachers are expected to “deliver.” There is very little room in our current system for children to genuinely share their thoughts or express their feelings. The drama studio is one space where this should happen socially and drama teachers should resist the pressure to just deliver knowledge and instead engage deeply with those they work with, helping them to make sense of the world.
Having posed the question, it may be that the teacher asks pupils to write their response down anonymously. The children could then draw responses from a hat and seek to order them in a way that identifies recurring themes or issues. This might be an opportunity for the teacher to nurture high level thinking skills and talk about consensus and democracy. They will also be assessing the coherence of the group, emerging leaders and those who might withdraw if their theme isn’t chosen.
There will of course be children who just say “football,” “horses” or “fighting.” The skilled teacher will respect and upgrade such responses asking questions such as, “I wonder if we could create a drama about how footballers break through? To what extent is a good footballer born and to what extent are they trained? What might life be like for footballers as they grow up? I wonder what sacrifices they might have to make?”
As these reflective questions are thrown out the teacher scans the group for a flicker of interest or engagement looking for “a way in.” For example, it might be that the class work with their teacher using the art form to carefully build a short improvisation that features friends who are going to a party. The footballer refuses to attend as it is just before a big match. This might lead into an exploration of the commitment and dedication need to achieve excellence. What might happen if the player did choose to attend, only to be spotted by the coach as they leave?
The teacher should also reflect on what it is about football that those in the group are really attracted to? What is the subtext? Is it around adulation of fans, respect from peers, fitness and athleticism? The aim is to blend what Geoff Gilham called the play for the class with the play for the teacher.
I would argue that in the example above the children are learning:
- How to achieve consensus and the virtue of Democracy
- How to use art to explore and make sense of an idea
- Drama techniques and conventions
- The relationships between fame, talent and hard work
In a period where child mental health and democracy are under significant threat, teachers must get alongside their pupils and help them find their voice.
Matthew Milburn
Mathew began his career as a Drama teacher in Oldham, Greater Manchester. He became a Curriculum Leader for Creative and Media Arts at the town’s Sixth Form College before becoming a Deputy Headteacher, Curriculum at Brigshaw School in Leeds, an 11-18 school.
His first Headship was at Kingstone School in Barnsley where he initiated a drama based Key Stage 3 course entitled “Cultural Studies.” Content from Geography, History, PHSE, Drama and RE was taught using dramatic contexts. Colleagues such as Hywel Roberts were taught to use pedagogy promoted by Dorothy Heathcote that saw children develop an emotional and academic understanding. Kingstone was one of a handful of secondary schools to be named a School of Creativity by Creative Partnerships. Results improved as did outcomes from inspection reports.
After eight years in Barnsley, Matthew returned to Oldham to take up a second headship at Saddleworth School. Working with Debbie Kidd, he oversaw the development of a unique KS3 course entitled “English with Philosophy.” This course involved English, RE, PHSE and Drama, again, taught through a single dramatic context based on key texts from the English curriculum.
In 2017 Saddleworth was named as a National Support School by the National College for Teaching and Learning and Matthew became a National Leader of Education. He went on to support numerous schools across Greater Manchester before retiring from teaching in 2020.
Matthew works part time as a coach with head teachers and executive school leaders as well as advocating for drama in schools to anyone who will listen. He works closely with leaders at a rural school in Uganda and is Trustee for Barnsley Youth Choir and a Patron of NATD.
