Many years ago, a colleague and I talked about the possibility of a ‘one-wardrobe life’. A life where work clothes and non-work clothes were the same thing – an outward manifestation of an inward feeling; a merging of work and play, or skill and interest, into something similar to what Sir Ken Robinson calls your element. Having lived with clear separation between the two wardrobes – work and play – for 20+ years of my professional life, I feel that I might possibly be entering a stage where finally the two will merge.
The possibility of a merger began four years ago, when I made the decision, after 21 years working in schools and early childhood centres, to move out of the classroom and enrol in a PhD. Enrolling in a PhD meant selecting a topic for research that is of enough personal interest to sustain me for the duration - three years or more. I had some initial ideas, but wasn’t sure if they were me enough, whether they were my element.
So, I began thinking about me…Who am I? What do I identify with as a person? And how can I connect this with how I identify as an educator? Being outdoors has always been a big part of my life. Cycling, rock climbing, skiing, surfing. Both as a child and an adult, I have always sought adventure – travel, independence, excitement and risk. My personal desire for adventure has driven me professionally to allow children to engage in physical, adventurous play – play that is now commonly known as risky play.
As a teacher, my desire to allow children to engage in risky experiences has often been frowned upon: ‘That’s not safe!’, ‘What if they get hurt?’. The safety stalwarts usually won out. I didn’t have the words to justify my practices, or access to a like-minded community to back me up. I realised that a research contribution in this area might help me develop some useful words, which might in turn help others, and maybe help me find a community of like-minded educators.
I realised that researching risk-taking could be the perfect merger of my personal and professional interests, and possibly provide a path toward my one wardrobe life.
Am I there yet? Not quite. Anyone who has done a PhD will know that the PhD wardrobe is actually quite limited – PJs, tracksuit pants, barefoot and braless. So, I don’t feel completely there yet. But I am hoping that the mandy school might be a big piece of the puzzle. I might, through engaging with education my way, finally find my element and the long awaited one wardrobe life 😊
m x