Memorandum submitted by Jackie
Matthews, Mullion, Cornwall
Jackie Matthews - formerly an English teacher based at Mullion School in
Cornwall and now a freelance practitioner working mainly at Mullion but also
further afield with young people aged between 5 and 18.
Having left teaching in 1988, I moved to Cornwall from London in 2000
and offered my services on a voluntary basis at the local school. After a year of working in a voluntary
capacity within the English Department I was employed first as supply teacher
and then full time. I first came into
contact with Creative Partnerships in February of 2004 and have worked with
them closely ever since. So convinced
am I of the value of this way of working I gave up job security and salary
resigning my teaching post in July 2007 to work freelance co-ordinating and
promoting this way of learning within the school and, through working on
projects with these students, out into the wider community.
My first experience of working with Creative Partnerships involved a day
supervising a class working with the Kneehigh Theatre Company. The following year we wrote a successful bid
inviting the Kneehigh to work with us for a week in return for us marketing
their shows in the village. Step
Forward (our youth marketing group) evolved from this initial project. For our next venture we made a film as part
of the Cornwall wide "Landings" project.
As a
direct result we were asked to market the Young People's Days of the
Film Festival Cornwall and have since been involved in giving presentations of
our work around the country to business organisations, representatives from
both local and national government and the National Council of the Arts Council
whilst building up our expertise in marketing other events. We are currently working with CP on Film
Festival Cornwall, Comic Relief, Chewtv and RIO. Working with CP has given us
the confidence to begin devising more projects ourselves. Having planned the project and raised the
finance, a group of Year Ten students are painting a mural for a primary
school's outdoor play area. Meanwhile a
larger number of Year Nine pupils are making their own short films, another
group of students have formed a film club and are busy making an animation for
this year's Film Festival. Others have
volunteered for the board of the Youth Opportunities Fund and are responsible
for a budget of £81,000 this year. We
have made successful bids to the Big Lottery Fund and have also raised funding
for an Apple Mac laptop plus software and accessories. We are also currently looking at working
with Young Enterprise and Young Co-Operatives.
Initially working with small groups of young people, CP projects at
Mullion have now reached twenty per cent of our school population across the
age and ability range and the numbers are increasing all the time. Students working on Creative Partnerships
projects use their work as evidence for the Arts Award, at either Bronze or
Silver Level, and CoPE (ASDAN certificate of personal effectiveness), enabling
them to gain additional accreditation and recognition for their
achievements. The Arts Award has become
part of the English Curriculum for some students in Years 8,9,10 & 11
giving breadth, depth and diversity to their work while encouraging them to
think and act creatively and independently. We are now also looking at ways to
introduce the scheme into Music and Dance at Key Stage Three with subject based
and cross curricula projects and at Key Stage Four with all Year 10 and Year 11
students through CoPE and Wider Key Skill in "Working With Others Through An
Enterprise Activity".
Introducing
"creativity based learning" has been a slow process to some extent because of
the nature of the school and staff. We
are a small rural school where transport links are poor and many people feel
isolated and insular. Many staff have
been at the same school for upwards of twenty years and are resistant to
change. However, we are getting there,
partly because teachers have been able to see for themselves how effective,
successful and rewarding 'creative learning' is for both pupil and
teacher. Initial reluctance and even
hostility from some staff in releasing young people from their subject lessons
to take part in CP projects has by and large disappeared as not only have SAT and
GCSE results improved but the young people themselves behave sensibly and
maturely taking responsibility for their own learning. I am English based but have made a conscious
effort to develop our projects in such way as to involve the greatest number of
areas of the curriculum (for example - promoting the Film Festival involves
Citizenship, Dance, Design, Drama, English, Food Technology, Humanities, IT)
and other areas of the school have felt encouraged to take on this way of
learning notably in Humanities, Art, Design and Technology.
Two projects
give a clear idea of the impact working with Creative Partnerships has had on
our school. Late in 2004 we were
invited to join a Cornwall wide project commemorating the 60th
anniversary of the end of the Second World War and chose to make a short film
(something we had never done before and had no experience of whatsoever). By the time our film was shown in Trebah
Gardens the following summer about 50 pupils (10% of the school roll) from
across the age and ability range were involved and the rest of the school knew
about it and attended showings of the film alongside Major Hibbert, an Arnhem
veteran and the owner of Trebah, and local members of the British Legion. The filming and public screenings generated
a huge amount of interest from locals and tourists, with a Dutch couple
requesting e-mail information about the processes involved. Stills from the film appear on the website
of the 29th US Infantry Division, the regiment of the soldiers commemorated on the
film and the school received a particularly moving message from the public
affairs officer of the unit saying "thank you so much for remembering and
honouring the heroes of the 29th and their sacrifices".
This was an
exciting cross-curricular project - a short film telling the story of an
imagined meeting between a GI and an evacuee on a Cornish beach the evening
before the Normandy Landings. Local
filmmaker Stuart Lansdowne kick-started the project with an intensive one-day course in the art of filmmaking, culminating in the
pupils recording, editing and screening a short film sequence. Next, historian and actor Steve Manning
spent a day with the group discussing the Second World War with particular
reference to the role of American GIs based in Cornwall. The historical research was completed with a
visit to the Cornwall Studies Library, where students discovered information
about the area in wartime to incorporate into the film. All this material was collated and handed
over to the team of scriptwriters, who had only a week to produce rough
drafts. A day with writer Denzil Monk
helped them turn their drafts into a professional working film script. While students with acting roles learned
lines and rehearsed (assisted by professional actor John MacNeill), others
worked on costumes, hairstyles, make-up, props and locations, all of which had
to be as authentic as possible. The
film was then shot at various local sites over the next few weeks. One of the most successful elements was the
village hall dance sequence, recorded in the evening of the first day of
filming; this was great fun and got the whole production off to an excellent
start. Professional dancers involved
through 'The Works: Dance and Theatre Company' had taught a group of pupils the
`lindy-hop` - and, of course, for authenticity, our 'GIs' had to have
haircuts! Further dance routines
preceded the first showing of the film at Trebah. Students edited film and sound, added the Pathe news section at
the beginning and created the 'glorious Technicolor' wash to give a more
authentic 1940s feel. Then they
prepared for the first public screening in the 'cinema' (summer house) at
Trebah Gardens where a team acted as "usherettes" and performed a period
dance. Pupils also designed and produced
a DVD which includes over 50 still images from the making of the film. A Y9 English group opted to market the film,
designing posters and leaflets, writing press releases and creating a
promotional campaign for 'Far From Home', which was entered for the Cornish
Film Festival. Other students then took
on the responsibility for marketing the Young People's Day at the
Festival. Another group of students
went on to help at a presentation ceremony for 'land girls' where they
entertained the ladies with songs and dances from wartime.
On all levels
the project was a great success. Many
orders for DVDs have been received, and the film certainly raised awareness of
the Second World War and its impact on this part of Cornwall, not only in the
students involved, but also in the school as a whole and in the wider
community. Model aircraft enthusiasts
from nearby RNAS Culdrose helped film a sequence involving replica WWII
aircraft and Bodmin Railway assisted in the filming of the evacuees'
arrival. Other people lent costumes and
music of the period, gas masks and other memorabilia, and even an American
jeep! Students from Camborne College
taught Mullion pupils how to style hair and make-up for the 1940s, and, of
course, staff at Trebah Gardens helped a great deal
On a school level, a broad cross-section of staff and TAs were involved,
while the PTA and other parents also gave support. Most of the work was done in curriculum time, although some film
sequences were shot during evenings or weekends. The project was cross-curricular involving English, History,
Geography, Dance, Drama, Music, IT, Design and Technology, Food Technology and
Media.
The level of knowledge of, and interest in, the Second World War
instilled in the pupils as a result is impressive. They learned much about everyday life in the period, as well as
having the chance to experience all the skills involved in the complete process
of planning, making, editing and marketing a film. Additionally, they learned to work in an adult way - in teams, sometimes
supported by staff or professional adults, but often with no outside support,
instead having to rely on their own ideas and judgement. They developed the ability to work
independently or in teams, sometimes in areas in which they felt confidant but
more often in areas entirely new, across subject boundaries and age/friendship
groups. Most importantly, the young
people learned to think creatively in a variety of situations, gaining the
confidence to take on new challenges, as well as gaining new skills.
As it was a one-off initiative working to a specified time-scale (the
week of screenings), students did miss some curriculum time. However, what they brought back
significantly enriched their learning experience, and, through conversation in
and out of lessons, that of their peers.
Overall, it was a very positive and exciting venture and was a hugely
enjoyable experience for the students involved!
A very different project has been our involvement with Comic Relief, a
partnership brought about by Creative Partnerships. Last summer, June 2006, we were asked to provide a team of pupils
to advise Comic Relief on their marketing ideas and strategies with regard to
young people. Large numbers of students
across the school were questioned about their ideas on celebrities,
entertainment and merchandising which they felt appealed to them in promoting
Comic Relief's work and which they would like to see associated with Red Nose
Day 2007. The material was collated and
Laura Martin from CP worked with the team producing 'dream boards' of ideas
which they took to London as part of their presentation to senior staff at
Comic Relief. Their efforts received positive feedback and we have been asked
to work with Comic Relief again, this time in a more
in-depth and, hopefully, ongoing manner as
young consultants looking at the merchandising, piloting fundraising ideas and
potentially being filmed and included in DVDs for national circulation to all
schools for broadcast on the day of Sport Relief next year. Project visits, work on blogging their
experiences at UK Comic Relief and Sport Relief projects are also planned.
Although only four students travelled to London the effect has been huge
ultimately affecting every child in the school and now reaching out to the
surrounding area. Mullion is a rural
school in an area of high unemployment, few opportunities, low wages and low
aspirations. Many of our young people are disaffected, feeling cut off from the
rest of the country. Involvement with
Comic Relief (courtesy of CP) is helping to change that. As a Comic Relief Challenge Teachers TV,
working in collaboration with RNAS Culdrose, kidnapped three of our staff
filming their training as part of an air/sea rescue team while our students
raised the ransom money. In the current
climate of celebrity culture a partnership with Comic Relief has a positive
effect on the young people while raising their awareness of charity work and
giving them the opportunity to be part of a 'real' project.
Groups of young people worked independently and in teams promoting the
work of Comic Relief both within school and within the wider area. This involved a variety of marketing skills
- design, press releases, and public speaking - and reached across the
curriculum involving most subjects. The
success of the project was dependent on the young people working effectively as
teams, taking difficult decisions, working to very tight deadlines, using their
own initiative with next to no adult help.
Two years ago we raised nearly £700 on Red Nose Day, this year we
trebled that. And we benefited in that
young people at Mullion now feel their views and ideas count and this time
they're being heard nationally.
In conclusion
working with Creative Partnerships has begun to bring 'creative learning' into
Mullion School. And the young people
want more! Through this relationship
they've acquired a wide array of practical skills they'll take with them into
adult life. They've also taken on board
the demands of the real world - working to deadlines, to budgets, team work,
decision making, thinking out of the box, taking responsibility, raising
finance and many more. Working this way
is helping them develop into confident, aware and mature young people more in
tune with the real world and with others.
And it is not
only the young people who benefit. "Creative learning" shakes us all out of our
comfort zones - introducing new ideas, people, scenarios and ways of learning
to teachers as well as pupils.
In my role as
an Arts Award moderator I visit schools and youth groups across the
country. All have embraced to a greater
or lesser degree "creative learning" and the feedback is overwhelming that this
is a powerful and effective way of reaching young people. At a summer school last year for young
offenders one student felt his GCSE results were "irrelevant" but he was
overwhelmed at achieving a Bronze Level Arts Award having amongst other things
composed the lyrics and music for an "anti-gun crime" song and led the whole
group in performing and making a DVD of his piece. Last week a young man in St Ives who finds school work a real
struggle said- "I've never worked so hard but I didn't mind because I enjoyed
it." And, finally, one of my students, a thirteen year old boy frequently
excluded from lessons, completed a project for Cornwall Arts Marketing in a
quarter of the time they'd set aside - his comment "This is the first time I've
ever been proud of anything I've done in school - when can I do more".
Creative
Partnerships have set us on our route now and there can be no turning
back. I hope many more people will have
these opportunities and are willing to take the risk of working in this way so
they can realise the impact it has on young people's self-esteem and learning.
July 2007
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships .
NAME
|
Alice Massey
|
AGE
|
16
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
"Landings"- we
were taught by professional dancers on authentic 1940s dancing. The way the
professional worked with us by talking and asking of our opinions made me
feel involved in the actual choreographing and ultimately gave me a feeling
that I was important to the project.
|
Skills gained
|
Working with others was a skill that
gained during this exercise as well as the new dancing skills I achieved.
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
I feel that this task gave me confidence
and helped me with my dance in GCSE. It was useful working with others on a
real job rather than an exercise for school as it was like being in the real
world and gave me an idea if what it would be like when I leave school.
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
It is different to normal education as I
was extremely involved with it. It was my choice to be part of the project
and I enjoyed giving input into it.
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
I like the way they work with young
people and I enjoyed sharing this experience with them.
|
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships .
NAME
|
Ben Edgerley
|
AGE
|
14
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
Working with Comic Relief to help show
them what younger people would like the charity to do for Red Nose Day. For
this we prepared a talk to a group of Comic Relief organisers in London before
being questioned about our ideas.
|
Favourite Project - give brief details
|
Painting a mural at St Martins where we
are helping the children to design "leaf" ideas and currently I am helping
them paint their wall. This is livening up their playground.
|
Skills gained
|
I have learned to work in a group more
effectively as well as learning to work with children. I also believe my
communication skills have greatly improved.
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
I am more confident in all aspects of
life whilst in groups I participate much better meaning my work as a whole
has been significantly improved.
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
I feel that having much more adult
responsibilities makes you much more committed to working effectively to a better
standard.
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
I would definitely want Creative
Partnerships to expand and continue for so far I have found only positive
results from working with them.
|
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships .
NAME
|
Bethany Alice Lyne
|
AGE
|
16
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
Landings which
led to the Marketing of the YPFF.
Making and
starring in a film to commemorate the WWII D-Day Landings. The project was
immensely enjoyable due to the creative nature of the experience. The
professionals we were working with allowed us to explore our ideas, without
placing restrictions on us. It was good to be treated as adults, as opposed
to children and pupils, an occurrence which is rare in school. By working
with us, as opposed to 'at' us, I feel I learned more as it was my choice to
learn and take responsibility for what I was doing. It gave me a sense of
pride and ownership over the projects.
|
Favourite Project - give brief details
|
Forest of Dean
and London Arts Council Presentations.
Travelling to
the conferences and speaking in front of a large number of people. We also
had to adapt the presentations to the audiences we were talking to. I found
the Arts Council presentation the most rewarding as it was a hugely
influential group of people we were invited to talk to. Just being in London
was fantastic. As I live in Cornwall, large cities are something I do not
come across and just being in a urban environment was exciting, seeing the
sites and a show was the icing on the cake.
|
Skills gained
|
Landings -
Researching a film, learning how to dance the Jitterbug and Lindyhop, finding
out about the costumes and makeup techniques used to make a film authentic,
discovering the importance of continuity in a film. Learning about the
processes used to film and realising the differences between stage acting and
screen acting e.g. each scene has to be done a number of times rather than
just once.
YPFF - Working
with other groups and keeping up the communication between them, learning the
art of subtle negotiation in meetings with the other groups, taking minutes,
writing lottery bids and press releases, talking in radio interviews, having
a successful reviewing process for future collaborative projects.
Presentations
- Talking in a formal manner to a large group of people, answering questions
in a direct manner without waffling on, aiming presentations at the correct
group of people, structuring presentations using a PowerPoint.
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
The work I
have done with Step Forward has had a huge impact on me as an individual. My,
like the rest of the group, confidence has grown enormously with the
undertaking of the projects. Through the projects, I have met and worked with
people inside and outside of school, whom otherwise I wouldn't have had
contact with. The work has enabled me
to meet experts and learn skills, like writing a successful lottery bid, from
them. The work has also shown me an alternative career path which I would
like to pursue in the future.
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
As I have
already said, working in this way, enables you to have ownership of the
project you are working on, and feel proud of what you have achieved. By
taking overall responsibility for the project, I think we worked harder and
ultimately learned a lot more than we would have done if we had just been
taught it in school.
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
I think it is
vitally important that Creative Partnerships carry on their work so other
people can experience what I have. Even within my school, there are pupils
who wished that they had become a part of Step Forward at the beginning. As a company, we have achieved so much,
and we would like to further our work, however without Creative Partnerships,
it could not be made possible. I think Creative Partnerships, should extend
its work into small groups, like Step Forward, to encourage young people to become
more involved in creative projects.
|
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships .
NAME
|
Chloe Cheung
|
AGE
|
16
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
Making the leaflets, creating them on
computer in 2005 with Steven Paige.
|
Favourite Project - give brief details
|
Promoting the Film Festival and doing the
presentation at Gloucester for a business conference.
|
Skills gained
|
Being able to use the computer and using
different programmes and team communications.
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
It has given me confidence and made
talking to others I don't know easier. Showing me the work environment that I
shall be going into.
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
You're able to get on with it. You can think differently and you're able
to discuss your ideas which are heard. You're able to do activities which
enable your mind to work better and you shall always remember it because its
fun.
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
I would like Creative Partnerships to
continue because it's a great opportunity for young children to be able to
communicate with others they have not worked with before. Also to see the working environment and if
it could be a career for them.
|
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships .
NAME
|
Chris Gearing
|
AGE
|
16
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
Kneehigh.
Our brief was to help advertise a
production of Kneehigh Theatre Company's "Wagstaffe the Windup Boy". In return for this, they would teach us
skills in acting, speaking, and various other forms of presentational
drama. I enjoy acting, so this was a
big help for me, and I'm now doing Drama for A Level.
|
Favourite Project - give brief details
|
Landings Project.
In this project, we had to make a film
for the Landings project in Cornwall.
I was involved mainly in the technical side of things - filming,
lights and sound. I really enjoyed
doing all of these things, and I have benefited a lot from the experience.
|
Skills gained
|
Acting, Speaking, Confidence, Filming,
Sound and Film editing.
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
It has helped me to further my skills in
working not only with groups of people but also on my own. I also feel more confident in myself and
in speaking to groups of people which I have done quite a lot.
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
I like working this way because I feel it
makes me work considerably harder than in a classroom. Also, I feel I learn more in this
fashion. Finally, I enjoy it a lot,
and that is always a bonus!
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
I feel that I shouldn't be the only
person who is able to benefit from this method of working, and that lots of
people will be able to benefit from this way of working if given the chance.
|
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships .
NAME
|
Charlotte
Wilson
|
AGE
|
16
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
The Landings
project, it was a great experience where, history, business and performing
arts came into a project and gave a wide range of available activities for
the team.
|
Favourite Project - give brief details
|
The
Presentations to the Arts Council. Giving such an in depth presentation about
our work to high powered professionals gave me the opportunity to stretch my
people skills to their full potential and give me more confidence
|
Skills gained
|
My
communication skills have developed and blossomed largely due to doing so
many presentations to respected business people. Being able to speak in such
a formal manner, improved not only my vocabulary but my gesture.
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
My confidence
has grown like most that have done some activities within our group but also
my ability to work as a team and allow myself to work less academically and
into a business environment.
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
Working in
this "hands on" way allows my peers and I to realise that once compulsory
school is over there are more opportunities if going to college is less of an
option. Team building is done without noticing as the pressure is on and
deadlines need to be met.
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
Creative Partnerships, since I have had
experience of them, have always given opportunities. Opportunities for young
people of the 21st Century are a dream come true after all the bad
press young people of today get. If Creative Partnerships are able to extend
their work it will allow the young people who are given enjoyment and hope
from these projects more chances to not only take part in these projects but
also teach younger people the skills that they have learnt. Allowing a
successful snow ball effect to take place due to Creative Partnerships input.
|
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships .
NAME
|
Nell Hewett
|
AGE
|
14
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
St.Martin Mural project - painting a
blank wall in their playground that we are doing with help from the pupils
and 2 professional artists.
|
Favourite Project - give brief details
|
Film Festival Cornwall - we are
organising the events, workshops and after event party.
|
Skills gained
|
Communication
Art/painting skills on an alternate
material
Working in a team
Fund raising
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
It has boosted my confidence and
enjoyment of school. It all in all has made me feel more positive about many
aspects of my life.
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
Basically it's fun. A different way of
working that's not always with people my own age. A variation of subjects and
environments that we work in. It doesn't feel like we're in a lesson, but
we're still learning.
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
They have provided me personally with
great opportunities that have prepared me for many situations I would not
have known how to cope with otherwise. So I hope they could provide these
opportunities for others.
|
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships .
NAME
|
Sean Barber
|
AGE
|
14
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
Arts Award - Making a video and doing
research on my arts award hero and talking in front of the class also working
on the computers.
|
Skills gained
|
Researching information about my arts
award hero and I also learnt how to speak out loud in front of the class also
I learnt how to make a video with windows movie maker and put sound onto a
movie and how to upload pictures onto the movie.
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
It's benefited for me because it has
helped me learn about all the different things like making a movie, helping
others and it was good for my confidence because I could do things which
other people couldn't do. Also I am
pleased that I am going to get an award from this project. Also it has helped
me organize folders a lot better than my organization was before e.g. Title
page etc...
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
I like working this way because I am
interested in researching subjects that I know quite a lot about. Also I like
working with computers because I know a lot more about them than a pen and a
sheet of paper.
Also I liked the fact that I knew a lot
more about the computers than other people did and it made me feel a lot
smarter and good about myself than I already did. Also I can type a lot
faster than I can write on a piece of paper so then I can get a lot more work
done.
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
I think there should be more working this
way because I think a lot more pupils would enjoy it because they like
working with computers and not with a pen and paper and most of the pupils
would probably get work done instead of messing about in lessons and a lot
more computer equipment in school should be brought because then schools
could actually make proper films for the Arts Awards.
|
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships .
NAME
|
Stevie Newman
|
AGE
|
13
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
Working with
Cornwall Arts Marketing to promote Cornwall's Bid to be Europe's First Region
of Culture. I made posters, leaflets, helped design a logo for stickers and
T-shirts. I went to other schools to talk about it to other kids.
|
Favourite Project - give brief details
|
Film Festival
Cornwall. I am starting to get involved with this because of my other
project. I have been to meetings and am getting involved with planning the
events, speakers and party for this year's festival.
|
Skills gained
|
Designing stuff,
talking to people, working with other people I don't know. Working to
deadlines on real jobs that I know other people will see.
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
This is the first time I've ever been
proud of anything I've done in school. It helped me
because I sometimes get into trouble in school and it was good to show people
what I can do and what I'm capable of. I felt really proud of all of it and
took copies of everything so I could show my mum so she'd be proud of me too
and she was really happy about what I was doing. It's made me more confident
and better at organizing myself. For our school activity's week I have
organised a one day trip to go skateboarding at Mount Hawke (25 miles away)
for 10 people. I would never have done something like this before.
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
Because it's
better than sitting in the classroom all the time doing writing and stuff
that I find difficult and I'm not good at. It was good to have other people
wanting to know what I was doing. It was good to work with adults who liked
my ideas. It made me feel a lot more happier because I felt like I was doing
something that I usually wouldn't do. I like the idea trying to do real jobs
like designing T shirts rather than the usual school stuff.
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
Because it was fun and interesting and I
enjoyed it a lot. You don't see many people doing real things like this -
there should be more because it's new experiences, it challenges people to
show who they really are .
|
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships .
NAME
|
Jenna Norton
|
AGE
|
16
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
Making leaflets, programmes for Young
People's Film Festival 2005 with Steven Paige. Helping to organise an d carry
out the marketing for the Festival
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
Gloucester Conference on how to Organise
an Event. We spoke to an audience of adults including police, firemen,
council officials and others on how to do the marketing for a festival.
|
Skills gained
|
Working with others. Communications and confidence.
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
It has enabled me to work as part of a
team. It has given me confidence to talk in front of people and experience of
a real working environment.
It has also given me some idea of what I
want to do as a career - I'm now going to do Media, Photography and Design at
college.
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
As when you work with a group you are
able to give and discuss different ideas and get other people's opinions. You
are able to work and think differently and the practicality of it is much
more beneficial.
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
Because it is an excellent opportunity
with so many skills to be gained, at an age where they usually would not be.
It adds to people's confidence and helps them communicate with others.
|
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships .
NAME
|
Joey Mitchell
|
AGE
|
15
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
Kneehigh.
I loved working with Kneehigh. It is my favourite because it was so different from the work I would normally do. I did lots of varied things. I made a shadow puppet out of my friends and I tried making normal shadow puppets out of tissue paper, withies and card. I even made a Cornish pasty, the flavours weren't traditional (green bean)but I enjoyed it more because I made it with the rest of my group. It is my personal favourite because it was the beginning of Step Forward and of all the things that I have done.
|
Favourite Project - give brief details
|
Film Festival
Another one of my favourite projects was the first film festival that we marketed. It was great as I had never been to a film festival before so marketing it was a challenge. I feel that I, as part of the Step Forward team rose to it. I designed and made the website for the festival. It was difficult and posed many problems but I did it in the end. The film festival was a great success with every ticket taken. As well as this, I enjoyed the film festival as someone who is not normally very outgoing.
|
Skills gained
|
I have gained knowledge in public speaking, website designing, working with others and working to deadlines and budgets.
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
It has made me come out of my shell so to speak. I have gone from someone who would not take part in anything unless it involves football to a person who will give anything a go. It has increased my confidence, my commitment and my self-esteem to know that, if I try, I can do things as well and in some cases better than other people. In have also became far more social. It has helped my schoolwork immensely as well. I have taken things learnt from these projects and used them in other subjects such as maths when my coursework needed to be handed in, I did it well and on time or when I had to produce a website for my ICT coursework, I did it with very little help.
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
I like to work this way as it gives me a chance to express myself in a constructive way. It is also very different from the daily rigor of school life so it helps me to concentrate and it increases my enthusiasm because it is something new. It gives a release and it makes you proud that you achieved something. And, as opposed to getting a high score in a test you make a festival a sell out. They both make you feel proudbut the latter is a better and different sort of pride. It is very hard to describe. |
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
I would like Creative Partnership to continue and extend their work because I want more people to become confident in what they do, just like I have. Creative Partnerships changes the way in which I view myself and would like other people to feel this as well. |
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships.
NAME
|
Louise Dandy
|
AGE
|
16
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
Film Festival 2005
As part of Step Forward, I worked on
funding from the Big Boost, involving writing a project description, budget.
As my personal task, I organised the group of 20 or so, creating a deadline
timetable and organising regular meetings, informally and formally. The team
had to produce marketing materials to promote the Film Festival that included
local Cornish school films etc. We made posters, leaflets, designed a screen
iDent as well as being involved in the making of our school's film Far from
Home.
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
Landings We made a film from scratch
about the Second World war. I danced in the "Village Hall Dance Scene".
|
Skills gained
|
A brief insight into the industry and the
Silver Arts Award. Working in teams, raising funds, dealing with the press,
talking in public to people I don't know. Learning to prioritise my work and
commitments. Making difficult decisions. Learning to say "no" when sometimes
I'd like to say "yes".
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
I have grown in confidence particularly
talking to large crowds of professionals.
With guidance from Mrs Matthews my speech writing skills have improved
dramatically and my ability to converse spontaneously with relative strangers
has also improved. I believe the
knowledge I have gained with Step Forward; in the future, may be the stepping
stone to a career in marketing.
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
Being given trust to figure out problems
on your own, but with the knowledge that you are never totally alone, creates
great pride and sense of achievement when the project is over. With the knowledge of the certain
professionals I worked with, never once did I feel intimidated or left out,
everyone was included and all suggestions were considered. I found the methods of working very
productive and informative.
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
To give other people the opportunity I
have experienced. Step Forward was
only possible down to dedicated adults and enthusiastic attitudes - which to
me, CP has in bucket loads.
|
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships.
NAME
|
Louise Matthews
|
AGE
|
17
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
Through Creative Partnerships I had the opportunity to
spend a week working with the Kneehigh Theatre Company. I gained a lot from spending the week with
such inspiring people and feel it helped developed personal skills such as
confidence and working with a variety of people. My favourite activities from the week included the imagination
diary and making the short film.
Though best of all was making our own shadow puppets and writing and
performing a short piece which we were then asked to perform before the
Kneehigh's evening performances
for the general public.
|
Favourite Project - give brief details
|
Another
project I enjoyed was working with Amanda Pickering and learning to play the
African drums. Not only did we learn to play the drums but also a lot about
African culture. I incorporated what I learnt from Amanda when we went to Garras
Primary School to teach the infants how to play simple songs on the drums and
talk to them about how the drums are used in African culture.
|
Favourite Project - give brief details
|
Speaking to the National Council of the Arts Council of
England. A group of us spoke at their residential about the work we'd done with CP. It was particularly exciting
to be asked by such important people what we thought could be done in
education. They made me feel my views
count especially when afterwards they wrote and thanked us and said
"your team had a profound impact on the National Council
of the Arts Council of England. The entire Council agreed that the session on
Creative Partnerships was the highlight of their whole two day retreat."
|
Skills gained
|
The main skill I have gained is confidence in myself. I
now feel perfectly comfortable performing or presenting to a room full of
people be they a class of 8 year olds or the National Council of the Arts
Council of Great Britain.
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
I feel I have learnt a lot about how to work with many
different types of people and feel comfortable doing so. I also think that through the numerous
projects I have done with Creative Partnerships, I have gained a sense of
responsibility. It has also given me
the confidence to "have a go", to take chances and to network. I wrote to
Kevin Spacey and got our school a free day at the Old Vic, I'm on the Youth Opportunities Fund Committee
for my area responsible for a budget of over £81,000, I was invited to sit in
on a meeting of Kerrier Council when they were considering their budget
proposals for this year, I've been
elected to the council of Truro College and finally I'm off to the Amazon this summer with the Royal
Geographical Society researching the effects of climate change.
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
Through working this way one improves inter personal
skills since you are working with people you previously didn't know.
The age range in the groups also educates you as to how work is done
in the adult world therefore equipping you for later life.
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
I think the
work Creative Partnerships do is vital in providing personal development for
young people. I am very lucky for all
the opportunities I have had and believe that the projects Creative
Partnerships provide for young people significantly broaden their horizons.
|
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships .
NAME
|
Rebecca Carey
|
AGE
|
14
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
Landings Project - we made a short film
about an evacuee who meets an Americans soldier who is about to fight in the
D-day landings
|
Skills gained
|
Script writing, working with others
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
Made me more open minded (particularly to
other careers in the film industry) improved how I can work with others
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
It really feels like is our project, as
opposed to it just being something the teachers have told us to do. It was
nice to have more independence
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
It's provided us with a whole range of
opportunities that I know we could not have gotten otherwise. I think it's
important to do this type of work, because even people who don't do too well
in school can gain confidence and have new paths opened up to them
|
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships .
NAME
|
Rhiannon Rowe
|
AGE
|
15
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
Name: Film Festival (Screen Actions 06)
marketing. As a group (Step Forward) we organised the marketing for the
Cornish annual festival. This task involved a number of tasks that many of
our group where inexperienced in. these included writing press releases,
giving interviews, producing logos, designing posters and other promotional
items.
|
Skills gained
|
· Writing in a different technical style (persuasive and informative
letters).
· How to talk and behave in interviews.
· Developing exciting art skills.
· Also organisational skills due to the deadlines.
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
Mainly the confidence that you achieve
though working with others (pupils from Mullion and other schools) and
professionals. This has resulted in encouragement to undertake other
projects, that develop other skills and experiences that contain new things
and exciting interests (such as art for me.)
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
Working in this way is good because you
have a sense of freedom but also a definite activity. When working you meet
new people, not only from other schools but also from your own year or
school. If you friends are also involved in your group as I do then this
makes it so much fun. The ideas are all your own or group, which gives you a
great sense of pride and achievement. Also the professionals that you work
with are very supportive and friendly.
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
Mainly to continue experiencing new
things and to develop new useful skills that I couldn't get from everyday
school or normal day-to-day life. Meeting new people is always fun! Also
personal reasons maybe to pursue career opportunities.
|
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships .
NAME
|
Sophie Enever
|
AGE
|
16
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
1) Week long residency with Kneehigh
Theatre. Generally great fun. Doing all sorts of workshops, from
puppet-making, to storyboarding, to games in which you must pretend to be an
animal.
|
Favourite Project - give brief details
|
2) Film "Far From Home" for Landings
project. Researching WWII costume, lifestyle and dance. Doing the dance
routines in film, and for presenting the film at Trebah Gardens.
|
Skills gained
|
In project 1) Puppet making, filming,
script writing, props, poetry, mind-mapping, recording thoughts and ideas,
pasty making (!) and acting.
In project 2) Dancing, working with
others.
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
Truly showed the excitement of artistic
projects, particular performing. Learnt how to have fun while still focussing
on the task at hand. Particularly with the Kneehigh it was easy to get
carried away, but as the task itself was fun then distraction stopped being a
problem.
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
Interacting with other people not only
makes art and drama more enjoyable, but also sharing creative ideas and
processes with others highly benefits one's own.
Another important thing about the
projects I was involved with was the amount of input I, and other young
people, had. They were our projects, which we were responsible for ourselves.
The responsibility helped us to take it more seriously.
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
They create an opportunity for people to
try new and exciting things which they may not have before had the confidence
to do. They could discover a new passion, such as dancing for directing
films, but they would also gain new social skills.
These projects not only benefit people in
their artistic skills, but also help their thought processes to mature and
grow.
|
Personal Statement about working with
Creative Partnerships .
NAME
|
Tom Gaby
|
AGE
|
14
|
Favourite project - give brief details
|
Arts Award - I made a short film with Mrs Matthews and I am now waiting
for someone to come and look at it so I can get my Bronze Arts Award.
|
Favourite Project - give brief details
|
Being apart of the Film Festival and
getting to know so many people it is great and I learn so much from doing this as well
|
Skills gained
|
Lots of new skills I have learnt from
doing all of this work. Talking to people. Taking notes at meetings. Thinking
about what needs to be done to make an event successful. Listening to other people's
ideas. Sitting in meetings even when they're boring.
|
How has this work benefited you as a
person
|
It has befitted me in many ways I have
gained so much from doing this work and I love it
I've been working with people I don't
know lots from other schools and adults as well. This has given me more
confidence in myself. I'm happier now
talking about my ideas as I think people listen to me more.
|
Why do you like working this way?
|
I don't know - it's real, I just to do it, is something that keeps
my mind on the task
|
Why would you like Creative Partnerships
to continue and extend their work?
|
Because I want to learn so much more and
I love doing this and meeting the people I have met. It would be nice for
others to get to do this as well.
|
|