Could you tell us how you would identify yourself as a practitioner and the context in which you’d like to work including who your audience or target market would be?

I identify as a Drama and Theatre Facilitator and Creative Education Practitioner. My current experience is specialising in Drama and Theatre as well as having direct experience working with young people. I aim to transfer the skills I have developed so far and apply them to my PGCE course in order to become a qualified secondary school drama teacher and inspire the next generation of students. 

As a drama and theatre pedagogue, I will be responsible for guiding the future generations of students through one of the most crucial and significant stages of their education. This will include their GCSE and A Level exams which will go on to affect their careers far beyond their school experience. Hence, a lot of my time will be spent carefully planning and teaching lessons in accordance with the national curriculum. However, drama is a powerful subject area as it allows students to tap into skills that are very much transferrable to other subjects. These are things such as team working, verbal and written communication, problem solving, and time management to name but a few. It is also worth mentioning that this will be something that I am also responsible for harnessing. As a teacher, I will lead by example and use teaching methods that will differ from other subject teachers. 

The context I will be working in is a secondary school environment. I will be teaching students from key stage 3 (year 7) through to 5 (A Level) and will develop, through training, appropriate methods to bring out the best in students at varying stages of their education. The school context differs from other opportunities young people may have to experience drama and theatre. My role is, of course, to encompass all of the fantastic aspects that studying such a subject encompasses. Moreover, I will need to align the students’ interest in the subject with the preparation, knowledge, and confidence necessary to pass their exams by meeting grading criteria. 

My target market, first hand, will be the students. I believe it is essential to put the young people at the heart of all I do as a teacher, if nothing else. That’s what it’s all about! It is my responsibility to ensure that the students can thrive in the lessons that I have meticulously planned. To create lessons that challenge them, engage them, and help them learn. Moreover, I want them to enjoy the subject and love how it makes them feel. 

Another consideration is for the national curriculum. I suppose they are another target market when considering the appropriateness of particular sessions for particular students and classes a differing levels. I will have to consider the planning of my lessons in relation to the nation curriculum and also maintaining the school’s values both as a community and the ethos of the school. For example, selecting an appropriate play text for the appropriate age, capability and interest of the students that aligns with the national curriculum and is appropriate in the context of school and education.  

I will also have to consider parents as target market in and amongst my teaching career. I will have to promote, through my lessons, that, drama is valuable to young people in education. With the parents on side, they can help to support the students’ needs and perhaps extra curricular activities within the school. 

In terms of this blog, I believe that my target market would be other teachers and educators. This platform is a way to candidly document my process so far and to share moments that I have found useful on my own journey. 

How is your identity as a practitioner both reflected in the portfolio; and produced by the portfolio?

Firstly, I aimed to create this professional portfolio to present myself as a young professional in a teaching career. It has been really interesting to be able to create something that has allowed me to reflect on all of the moments I have experienced so far and how they have led me to this point. I thought it was important for my portfolio to maintain and candidly expose that. My ethos as an individual is to be open and honest and I feel that, by sharing my experiences, I can create and online version of myself through this portfolio. 

Equally, I believe that it is important to create a positive first impression of myself. To be someone comes across and thinks “I’d like to work with her” or “I like what she’s doing”. This portfolio could appear in a mere Google search of my name which is why it is important that I come across well and convey my values as an individual and a teacher on this platform. 

I have designated my static homepage to be my ‘About’ page. I felt as though I wanted the viewers to see what the portfolio was about straight off the cuff. By listing the types of things they can find on the site, people can see if it’s the type of thing they’re interested in. Additionally, I spent quite a lot of time making sure the content was written in such a way that really captured my personality and values so people knew what they were getting straight off the cuff. 

Additionally, the reflections on selected projects have allowed me to explore my own work as a Drama and Theatre Facilitator. Each of these reflections has allowed me consider the skills I have developed that I can apply to becoming a teacher or what I might call, a Creative Educator. Overall, I would say that my identity as a practitioner is defined by my eagerness to work collaboratively both in the studio and applying this to my experience teaching and having an appreciation for how different sources or art forms can inform my practice. I believe I am very effective when working with others and getting the best out of people. In addition, my eagerness to work physically is encouraged by the importance of play and reinstating play into the lives of both artists and teachers alike. I have also developed and harnessed my own ability to be an ‘Articulate Performer’; to use written communication to synthesise ideas and theories alike. All of these qualities are directly transferrable when working as a teacher. 

My video pitch and story from The Blatchford Initiative draws together how my skills and experiences have allowed me to create an initiative that I feel responsible to take forward into my teaching career. Channeling my specialism in drama and theatre into bettering the teaching practices of my fellow colleagues, I aim to provide workshops that reinstate play into the lives of teachers in order to better the education of young people. 

Drawing on evidence from your portfolio, what would you identify as the most significant moments of insights to your learning as a practitioner?

Before evidencing the portfolio, it is worth mentioning that throughout my degree, I pondered what career I might choose for myself once I had graduated. I pondered a Masters, I pondered working as a freelance artist, I pondered working in a coffee shop for the rest of my life. 

But when I reflect on my time through university, one constant is the feedback and continued support I have received from my tutors.

• “You have been able to explore the proposed tasks with a sense of playfulness and curiosity.”
• “You were able to continually bring yourself to a state of authentic presence, and at the same time to let go.”
• “Emily you are an exceptionally playful and creative person.”

I feel that my time spent at university has really consolidated who I am as a person and what I have to offer thanks to the ongoing support from my superiors. In turn, my self belief and confidence as flown as I know my purpose as a practitioner which I think is truly invaluable when moving forward in my career.

I also believe that having the chance to study Drama and Theatre as a whole as opposed to tailoring my degree to education has allowed me to discover who I am as an artist and to be able to appreciate and learn about other art forms that I may not have had access to if I tailored my degree to teaching. I can take my passion and love for Drama and Theatre to inspire young people from my own learning. 

When reflecting on the most significant moment of independent learning during my drama and theatre degree that is evidenced in this portfolio, it would be wrong to not pinpoint Independent Practice as Research (IPAR) project.

Unlike many of my peers, I worked alongside another artist to create our final performance ‘Filthy Gorgeous’. Working with a fellow artist is a blessing and a curse. I learnt to compromise, communicate and to appreciate the working styles of people other than myself. I know that may sound somewhat naive but I think sometimes it is easy to forget that not everybody operates in the same way that you do and being able to manage that and understand that has been really helpful when considering the different colleagues I will come across in my teaching career.

It also goes without saying that working so closely with other people, day in and day out, becomes tiresome. Because of the nature of our work, our rehearsals were emotionally and physically demanding. Being sensitive and kind are qualities that are often understated but should be held in high regard to anybody in any career anywhere in the world. 

Additionally, because the module meant we were left to our own devices, my organisational skills have categorically gone up a notch. Bec Richmond and I would often start rehearsals at 7am and, as a commuting student, this meant that I had to wake at 5am in order to get to university for this time. My commitment to both Bec and the module was proved week-on-week as we planned sessions that would be productive and efficient. Again, the ability to meticulously plan and commit to the process will be very prominent in my teaching career and I am grateful that IPAR gave me the chance to harness this skill. 

Having had experience in a secondary school and also having direct experience with young people, I can completely appreciate the skills I have developed through the IPAR process in relation to my teaching career. I can totally see how they would be completely necessary and invaluable. 

What do you want to do next and how do your think your portfolio evidences and helps this ambition?

After completing my degree in Drama and Theatre, in September 2020, I will begin my Post Graduate Certificate in Education with the White Rose Alliance. I hope to achieve Qualified Teaching Status as a secondary school drama teacher. Upon completion of the course, I will be able to apply for positions as a Newly Qualified Teacher. During the year of teaching as an NQT, I will be monitored and assessed to ensure that I can continue to teach to a high standard.

My portfolio evidences my ambition to teach through the listed work experience in my Personal Statement and CV where I share my experience of both a primary and secondary school placement as well as demonstrating my experience working with young people in my job with Thomas Cook prior to my degree. I completed the voluntary positions alongside my degree to demonstrate my eagerness to join the profession when applying for teacher training courses. These experiences were useful to reference during the interview process and showed the interviewers that I was a credible candidate. The willingness to invest my spare time into gaining school experience showed that I was keen and curious about the profession. Equally, it was paramount in understanding the role of a teacher and how duties and responsibilities go far beyond just teaching lessons and going home at half past 3. 

Once I have obtained a secure position in a secondary school, I wish to begin to set up The Blatchford Initiative. Firstly, in my own school and possibly then surrounding schools. More details of this are explained at The Blatchford Initiative page. 

It is also worth stating that I aim to continue to inspire myself and the next generation of students by going to see live works. I will continue to develop my own passion for drama and theatre by reading, listening, watching and experiencing art. I aim to continue to perform in amateur dramatic shows and continue to have positive relationships with my peers from York St John to be involved in future work. Finally, my ambition is to use this platform to continue documenting my journey and reflecting on how far I’ve come as this platform is good way for me to reflect and possibly help others. I will continue to be kind, to laugh really loud, and to be a positive influence to those around me.