I show up on the first day of class, a brand-new notebook and pen in hand. I know one other pupil, the rest are total strangers - new building, new teacher, too.
And it’s a new subject: a six-week module with a big “exam” at the end, which will happen publicly in front of a full assembly. I’m excited and apprehensive at the same time.
No, this isn’t nostalgia for my schooldays, but - courtesy of a Christmas voucher from my children - me turning up for a stand-up comedy workshop.
Becoming a learning ‘newbie’ again
So, here I am, a learner with as much or as little insight into the topic as most people. It’s a small class, 14 in total, with different levels of expertise and confidence, from returning learners looking for a refresher and those who have already had some success “on the circuit” and hoping to consolidate their learning to the empty-page newbies.
I know another newbie, my daughter, Teresa, who is nervously coming along for the experience. There are introvert and extrovert learners, autistic learners, anxious learners, all with the same goal: to learn a new craft and ultimately demonstrate their learning to themselves and others.
The teacher settles the class and introductions are made, in front of a microphone on the stage - he believes in immersing you in the experience right from the start.
The teacher is Obie (John O’Brien), already an established comedian on the Scottish circuit. I’d never heard of him before, but he was soon to become a big influence in our lives.
The introduction is daunting for some more than others. Obie is encouraging, nurturing and never critical, offering advice and suggestions and giving us the benefit of his comedy experience.
This was his style throughout the course of the workshops, his objective was to get us to write and deliver a five-minute comedy set.
Obie encouraged peer assessment each week and we, the pupils, responded to his modelling of positivity, providing feedback to each other. This in turn helped each of us to self-assess and improve our own work, completing our homework enthusiastically and sharing helpful information in the WhatsApp group.
Pupils’ different approaches to performance
The performance element of the workshops highlighted, even more, the different approaches of each participant: those who clung to written notes, those who preferred digital prompts, those who admitted to being either fuelled or frozen by nerves and others who stood up confidently and delivered a funny five-minute set.
By the end of the workshops, a full complement of those seamless (almost!) five minutes had emerged.
The live gig was both our assessment and our reward for attendance, effort and application. One hundred per cent of our individual targets were achieved, helped by supportive teachers, peers and audience.
It was a joy to see my daughter’s confidence grow from day one when she was convinced she would never have anything funny to say, to a gig where she brought the house down.
Teresa and I have now performed at three gigs, with more in the diary. We are comedians; we are also - to put the terminology of Curriculum for Excellence in an entirely unexpected context - successful learners, confident individuals, effective contributors and responsible citizens.
‘New life’ breathed into learning and teaching
The experience has breathed new life into my outlook towards learning and teaching. This is what it is supposed to do: open up a whole new world of exploration and wonder through personalised learning, high expectations and positive relationships.
While I have done a lot of learning as an adult, it has generally been quite academic - always interesting, not always fun, sometimes a chore. The comedy workshops have reawakened the idea that the fun element should always be present in learning and teaching.
How can I take this “comedy gold” and transfer it to my schools? We already do a lot of great work with great results, but is that enough?
Importance of fun in schools
Teaching and school leadership have become much more challenging of late. We face so many limitations, and have we become jaded? We need to find ways to bring back and continue the fun.
I am head of two schools and curriculum development is among the priorities in both school improvement plans. The profile and complexity of our pupils with additional support needs has changed significantly and continues to change, but the curriculum has not adapted apace.
I and my senior teams will rethink priorities to reintroduce the fun element for both staff and pupils.
While we pride ourselves on our individualised approaches, we need to ensure that personalisation and choice are constantly there for our children and young people and that they are given meaningful opportunities to build on their learning by acquiring skills to assess their own and peers’ work.
While my senior teams have been aware of my stand-up workshops and how they’d got me thinking, I had not disclosed my new hobby to all my staff when I wrote this piece - but, in the interest of learning and teaching, I’ve decided I should.
Dr Bernadette Casey is president of AHDS, the national primary school leaders’ body in Scotland
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