14. Drama and radical hope with Dr. Kathleen Gallagher

What advice does an award winning researcher have for turning your classroom into an educational inquiry? Join one of Canada’s leading education scholars, Dr Kathleen Gallagher, as we discuss drama, research, and radical hope.

 

I met Dr. Gallagher when I was completing my Master’s of Teaching at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. I worked as a grad student on her “Putting Inner City Students First” project and then later Kathleen asked me to house sit for her. She was leaving on a European trip to attend a conference with her wife and then two year old child. I jumped at the chance to get out of my musty basement apartment and hang out with her adorable golden retriever.

 

Well, flash forward and I also have a wife and two year old and golden retriever, and this is largely inspired by that time I spent in Dr. Gallagher’s beautiful home. While I know I was helping out Dr. Gallagher, I really felt taken care of by her and, of course, her dog during this trip. As I find out in my conversation today, care taking and how we take care of other people has some pretty remarkable implications for the classroom. You definitely need to keep listening for this because I think it’s going to surprise you!

 

I also just want to say that this is the first time that I am releasing two episodes in one week! I wanted to get this episode out to you now because Kathleen Gallagher’s research on drama and radical hope has been transformed into a play by the immensely talented playwright Andrew Kushnir. It is playing right now at Crows Theatre in Toronto and is an incredible glimpse into the drama classroom and how young people experience this unique form of learning around the world. The ensemble is powerful, the storytelling is breathtaking, and obviously the research is brilliant.

 

If you can get yourself to see this show, by all means GO! It’s playing now until March 16th.

 

Here is my talk with Dr. Kathleen Gallagher.

 

 

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