I remember having a conversation with my friend MD a couple years back. She was a year ahead of me in high school, and she is a teacher too, working for a charter school in California. I wish I had more opportunities to see her teach; she is an absolutely incredible educator. In this particular chat, MD was telling me about some of the awesome student-initiated projects that her kiddos had done throughout the year. We agreed that in order for learners to be able to do this, the teacher needs to trust them. Many teachers I know (myself included) have some control-freak tendencies, and this can be a scary idea. "Give away control? To the children?!" Even though my inner control freak did not always like it, I strove to share classroom responsibilities and ownership of learning with my students. That's so much of what inquiry is about, after all. It wasn't always easy. However, it truly crystallized in my new role this year.
Recently I received a "spotlight" comment (a feature of our schoolwide goal-setting software, commenting on a colleague's work) from one of our administrators, Ms. R. She coordinates the MYP and DP curricula, and her eighth grade son is in my drama class and on my tech crew. He is a spectacular kid, and a natural technician. He just joined the crew in August, and I honestly cannot believe he's only been doing it for a trimester; he has taken to the work like a fish to water. She has the unique perspective of seeing my work as a faculty member and as a parent.
In her spotlight, Ms. R commented on the very thing I grappled with as an elementary school teacher - in her words, "enabling students to take on leadership positions and own their roles." But as I reflected on it, I realized that this year, it hadn't been hard. In fact, it was necessary. I have said to my student crews after every show this year, "I could not have done it without you," and that is 100% true. I share the responsibility because I HAVE to - there is no way I can be everywhere at once and do everything that needs to be done. For them to operate the expensive and dangerous equipment that are trademarks of any theatre, I HAVE to trust them.
The way that I train my student technicians is, by necessity, through the inquiry model that I had striven for in previous teaching roles. I find it applies even more naturally and authentically in this setting; quite frankly, when teaching these skills, there is no other way to do it. My kiddos will not learn what they need to from a lecture. They have to play, explore, fail, wonder, break things, and learn how to fix them. They tell me what they want to learn more about, and we create learning opportunities together that will allow them to do that. We run into real-life problems and collaborate to solve them. And as I tell them again and again - and as a few of them are really starting to believe it - the best way for them to really learn is by working on a show and being thrown in headfirst. Experiential learning is a cornerstone of our school philosophy. Performances are also where the technicians end up with their greatest sense of accomplishment.
Ms. R's comment came at the perfect time, when I was really able to reflect upon it and apply it to my work, past, present, and future. Seeing how the student tech crews have grown and developed and flourished throughout the year, I have seen firsthand what I already cognitively knew: this is the best way for kids to learn. There are a few key factors that have allowed that to really come to fruition for me this year. I have the advantage of working exclusively with students who have chosen to be there, so the engagement and the buy-in are already there. We do not have the added pressure of formal assessment (although work in live theatre does present a different sort of pressure). I have a lot of great "experts" within the crew who can mentor during productions or lead mini-lessons during our club blocks. And as I said - I need these kids! It is crucial to the success of the theatres that I trust these students to do their work. The stakes are high.
So finally, my takeaway. Obviously, I am not saying anything that hasn't been said a thousand times before (inquiry teaching works, give students leadership and they will own their learning, etc. etc...what else is new?). This post is mostly for me as part of my reflective practice, my growth as a teacher. Having spent the semester teaching in this way (without always being aware of it), I can now step back and critically analyze the factors that work, and find ways to replicate them or bring them with me when I return to a more academic classroom setting.
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Currently reading: still devouring Talking As Fast As I Can
Current high: three sleeps 'til tapas, museums, parks, and family!
Current low: last night's concert made for a late night and a sleepy Wednesday
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