Half Hour Call

In this month's episode, and the last episode for Series 2, Holly Barradell is in conversation with Dr Krystal Wilkinson and Caroline Biddle. 

"What do we really know about family formation?" and how can we educate and empower people to understand more about the work life interface, the complex journey of fertility and how can we raise awareness with different stakeholder groups? Through Drama - well Ethnodrama to be specific. This episode discusses the huge challenges people face when faced with infertility and Caroline Biddle, a former Drama teacher herself now turned Fertility coach and fertility workplace consultant supports teachers specifically facing infertility and the upheaval this brings to their personal and professional lives. 

Listen in and find out more about pronatalism in the teaching profession and how ethnodrama gives a creative platform to disseminate research findings.

"Drama does bring things out in a much more engaging way than we could ever get just through talking or writing papers" Dr Krystal Wilkinson

The episode references the following support, further reading and research:

https://fertilitynetworkuk.org/

https://www.tommys.org/ 

https://gateway-women.com/

https://www.fertilityissuesinteaching.com/

Link to the survey that Caroline references: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfEwDbNwEwZcoz1DDmbXw0WM59oap2y99UuMZ6smMeI9MB3Sw/viewform

Example of some of the research performed: https://mmutube.mmu.ac.uk/media/MMU+Man+Up+av.mp4/1_q1xy9cn4

In this month's episode, Ali Warren is in conversation with Janet Shell. Janet provides voice coaching and communication skills to teachers. Janet is an experienced classroom teacher herself who has also had a long career as a professional opera singer and singing teacher. She now brings her broad expertise and her technical knowledge of the voice to offer personal and targeted training in healthy voice use.

Alison and Janet talk all about the vocal health for teachers, how voice communicates meaning, how voice supports behaviour management and considers the importance of teacher well being with voice work. As teachers are we straining our voices? Do we even realise if we are?

Janet has written book which listeners might want to read: https://www.talkingvoice.net/talkingteachers.html

As trainee teachers, have you thought about how you are using your voice? Janet's work is all about making us more aware and having the tools to be better speakers. 

"...our voice is not an instrument you put away at the end of the day, you carry on using it...and yet you expect it to keep working and you've already compromised it by the amount of use it has..." Janet Shell.

In this month's episode, Holly Barradell is in conversation with Steve Mel 'Mr Mel' (Head of Science and Computing at Hayling College) founder and creator of 'Teacher Fast Feedback' a device created with the intention of improving teacher well being by reducing the number of hours spent marking and giving feedback to students. 

It has been trading since October 2021 and by the time this podcast was recorded in May 2022 it has already sold over 1000 devices. The device and it's software are easy to use with so many creative ways for Drama teachers to use it, from starter questions printed and given to students as they come into a drama studio to printing key lines, or students using it themselves to print out review comments or feedback to peers! The possibilities are endless as Holly alludes to in the episode. 

"..improve the well being of teachers" Steve Mel, Creator of Teacher Fast Feedback

Read more about it in this review from HeadteacherChat: https://www.headteachers.org/directory/teacher-fast-feedback

Watch the support videos here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCS4uPdJpqnXBzdzTVVfjIKg

Read more about it on the website: https://teacherfastfeedback.com/

In this month's episode, Holly Barradell is in conversation with Hetty Steele (Head of Drama at Bishop Stortford High School) and Bindya Chauhan (Head of Drama at Kellett School, British International School in Hong Kong) talking all things parenting and drama teaching. 

In the month that followed International Women's Day and Mothering Sunday it felt apt to discuss the difficulties and barriers many drama teachers face when having parental leave and a young family thrown in the mix.

During the episode Holly, Hetty and Bindya talk about being meticulously organised to ensure the extended day can happen with the care of their own families to consider, the risk assessments made when still at work pregnant, the consideration of returning to work at various point post baby and how to continue breast feeding, the pressures faced from society, having interviews whilst pregnant and thinking about whether our views and opinions change as teachers now that we are parents ourselves. 

This conversation came about through the MTPT project, which we are proud to raise awareness of, read more here: https://www.mtpt.org.uk/  

In this month's episode Ali Warren, Open Drama UK Co-founder and champion for the South West is in conversation with Lucy Cuthbertson, Co-Director of Shakespeare's Globe Education department. 

Lucy is a former teacher herself and has been in post at The Globe since September 2019. Having worked for the bulk of that time through a pandemic she is definitely the epitome of the famous line "Be not afraid of greatness" she has some brilliant top tips to share, speak very candidly about her role and how lucky she feels to be in post with so many exciting projects coming up.

"It is good for young people to interrogate him [Shakespeare] if you think he is godlike and put him on a pedestal that might not be helpful!" Lucy Cuthbertson, Co-Director of the Globe's Education Department.    

"I like the feeling of risk we have at The Globe." Lucy Cuthbertson, Co-Director of the Globe's Education Department.   

In this month's episode Dorset Champion for Open Drama UK, Carl Dunnington is in conversation with Professor Dan Rebellato from Royal Holloway, University of London.

Dan is a Professor of Contemporary Theatre, specialising in British Contemporary Theatre. Dan has lecturer for over 30 years and his wealth of experience gives us a unique insight into how graduates have changed over the last three decades.

Carl and Dan discuss openly the disconnect between Level 3 teaching of Drama and what then happens for young people starting undergraduate study of Drama. Dan is very positive about the impact that Drama teachers are having on the quality of students they are receiving at Royal Holloway. 

"Drama teachers are giving us extraordinary, confident, creative students." Dan Rebellato

Dan talks about the different ways academics assess understanding of Drama and Theatre in undergraduates and how these vast methods support the employability of their graduates.  

"Drama has a so much more all embracing notion of what counts as intelligence" Dan Rebellato

This month, Lucy Bellingham from We Teach Drama guest hosts the podcast and is in conversation with Open Drama UK's Holly Barradell and Drama Early Career Teacher, (ECT) Sarah Woodman. 

During this month's episode Holly and Sarah talk through the new Early Career Framework (ECF), it's purpose, how it impacts across whole school and what it feels like for a Drama ECT in particular.

Although the episode is upbeat and positive, Holly does reflect on the challenges of the new framework and Sarah is very honest about how she has trained and started her career throughout the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. 

Sarah gives her top tips for other ECTs and Holly shares detail and context helpful for teachers at any stage in their careers. 

"You're not expected to be in the classroom being amazing - there are still things for you to learn... when I think about it that's why this new framework works, it leads nicely on from the PGCE" Sarah Woodman. 

This month Holly Barradell is in conversation with Annabel Thomas from Trinity College London. Annabel is Head of Business Development for the UK & Ireland Arts team at Trinity College London where she oversees several suites of qualifications and a range of different employed and freelance staff. 

During this month's episode Annabel gives us an insight into the range of qualifications on offer, their new guide created to support parents/carers to see the value of arts enrichment for young people, we discuss the new projects and resources created by Trinity whilst debunking myths around Arts Award and Artsmark and explaining more about Arts Council England and Bridge Organisations that are there to support and strengthen arts and culture.

To contact Annabel you can email her on: [email protected] or follow her on twitter @ArtsEdAnny 

Trinity's enrichment guide that Annabel references can be found here: https://learn.trinitycollege.co.uk/arts-enrichment-guide-full?utm_campaign=UKI%20enrichment%20leads%20Mar%2021&utm_source=shared%20link

Trinity's resource for Drama Games can be found here: https://resources.trinitycollege.com/en/drama-games

"When I found youth theatre, I found my home..." Annabel Thomas, Trinity College London 

This month, Holly Barradell is in conversation with two Drama teachers who now find themselves in very different but related roles. This month's episode complements our November themed focus for Early Career Drama Teachers, "All about you and being new!"

Joining Holly in conversation is Kate Miller, Head of School at St Marylebone CofE Bridge School (a special school for 11 to 16 year olds with an SEN provision for Speech, Language and Communication) but Kate was once a Drama teacher and Head of Drama and she shares with us her insights and wise words for those on the ground in the Drama studio. Being Dyslexic herself, Kate is so passionate about supporting all young people to achieve and advocates for the power of the arts to have life long positive impacts on young people. 

"Drama teachers make the best Headteachers!" Kate Miller

Also joining the conversation is Gemma Woffinden, our Co-champion for West Yorkshire and once upon a time Drama teacher and Head of Faculty who is now a Youth Theatre Director with an extraordinary array of experiences in the classroom, rehearsal studio and professional theatre. Gemma is very open and honest about her views on teaching and gives she fantastic advice for those of us still in the classroom, especially those in their early career - where taking time to reflect and consider is needed. 

"You are enough. The job doesn't have a full stop." Gemma Woffinden

This month Ali Warren is in conversation with Mark Bishop, Participation Coordinator at the Natural Theatre Company based in Bath. 

The Natural Theatre Company are street theatre specialists who produce 'surprising performances in surprising places' and have done so since 1969.  

If their interactive, immersive and intimate theatre approach (with an anarchic vibe) sparks an interest making you want to learn more then please join us as we collaborate with the Natural Theatre Company to bring you face-to-face CPD once again, this November, in Bath. 

Book your place at one of the workshops here.

"...this sort of work, can work brilliantly in the school environment it enables everybody to participate regardless of their confidence or their ability." Mark Bishop, The Natural Theatre Company.