What an absolute joy and delight it was to launch Everyone’s a Teacher – with people joining me from my adventures all over the world! At the Perth event (held at Beaufort Street Books in Mt Lawley) it was a wonderful mix of friends, family, clients, colleagues, learners, people I’ve studied with abroad and even two of my high-school teachers! It was a similar mix online, and in Adelaide clients, colleagues and others I’ve lived and worked with in Kiribati, Indonesia and Australia.
If you missed the launch but would like to ‘catch up’, we’ve created a video of the Online Launch for you – which you can find below. It goes for just under 30 minutes, but if you prefer to skim read rather than watch, there’s a transcript provided below the video too.
Sincerest of thanks to everyone who helped make these launches a success – in Perth – Jane @BeaufortStreetBooks, Kym, Dave, Cooper, Meg and Celia, and Lisa in Adelaide – thank you for all the organising, MCing, hosting and help on the days!
Now of course it wouldn’t be a ‘Maria-style’ presentation unless there’s a pre-watching task, so here it is…
Have you heard of Astrid Jorgensen? If not, the following task will hopefully inspire you on a few different levels! If you click on the image below, you’ll be taken to a promo video for an Australian Story – if you start around the 0.46 second mark, you’ll learn about the mark she’s making on the world (it’s only a few minutes long).
Why am I asking you to watch this? I watched this episode just after it was released and had serious tears in my eyes – because there are so many parallels between what Astrid is doing for singing, and what I’d love to do for teaching. Can you work out what the parallels are? If you can, you’ll figure out what MY mission is when it comes to teaching. So every time you hear them talk about singing, voice, vocals or music, swap it out for ‘teaching’ – can you find the parallels? Click on the image below, and you’ll be taken to the promo video. Watch it before watching the launch video – you’ll see why soon!
Astrid convinces strangers they can sing – and really get behind the joy of singing, regardless of their voice or lack of musical knowledge.
I convince strangers (in this case subject matter experts or SMEs), that they too can teach – and really enjoy being in a classroom regardless of their lack of formal teaching qualifications.
When Astrid leads a pub choir, she’s aiming for a transformation – from being the singer, to her choir becoming the singers – and embracing the joy of collective success.
I too aim for transformation when I train SMEs – they first come along on a teaching and learning journey with me as learners, and by the end they’re confident trainers, embracing a collaborative, communicative style of teaching.
Astrid believes anyone can be a singer – and find joy in music.
I believe everyone’s a teacher – and can find joy in a classroom instead of fearing or loathing the job.
Astrid reminds us that everyone’s been told they’ve sung a note ‘off key’ but it happens and it really doesn’t matter!
It’s the same for presentations – everyone’s had one that has flopped or gotten blank stares or a lack-lustre response – it’s not the end of the world – these things happen but there’s ways to improve!
Can you see the parallels? I certainly can!
And – how’s the timing?! Look who I met ten days after the launch – Yes! THE Astrid Jorgensen – at the same bookstore where I had the launch! Astrid did an author in conversation with Danielle Caruana (aka Mama Kin), a Fremantle singer-songwriter I’ve been following for years – what an honour to meet them both in person, and again, just a beautiful night at Beaufort Street Books!
And just in case you’d prefer to quickly skim read instead of watch an entire video, here’s the transcript:
Wondering what other's thought?
Click on the below to read what a couple of attendees shared:
View Anema Design’s full post on Instagram here.
View Lisa Teburea’s full post on LinkedIn here.
Thank you so much for helping me celebrate the launch of Everyone’s a Teacher – and here’s to creating a world wide phenomenon where everyone embraces the teacher within, and the legacy we leave this next generation is one of kindness, compassion and kick arse learning experiences!
If you’re interested in supporting the Giving Back Projects I run each year, you can do this by purchasing copies of the book – please visit this page.
Hallo! If you’re curious about the ideas explored in this article and how I might be able to help, please book in for a quick (complimentary) chat! Every client is different, which is why I have lots of different ways of helping – whether it’s an upcoming event, free resources on my website or one to one coaching, let’s work out the best fit for you and your unique scenario!
Continue the Learning
If you’d like to explore these ideas further, the resources below may be a helpful next step.
Further Reading
If this topic has sparked your thinking, you may find the following articles helpful. Each explores a different aspect of creating learning experiences that are engaging, practical, and meaningful.
Does engagement really matter in a classroom?
If your classroom is lacking engagement, this article explores how RTOs are now assessed against it as a new performance indicator in the AQF standards and how you can transform your classroom engagement.
Everyone’s a Teacher
Maria Doyle’s book Everyone’s a Teacher explores the principles behind engaging, effective learning experiences. It introduces a practical methodology for making learning more interactive, memorable, and meaningful — whether you’re working with students, professionals, or teams.