'It's amazing how well children can perform in the right environment' 

Measure This: A Showcase of Artistic Performance in Children

This photography series explores the extraordinary performance potential in young people. When children are happy and safe, they exhibit extreme levels of motivation, dedication, and often creative success, which can it itself look different in all sorts of ways. However, the UK's educational system, increasingly focused on exam results and academic subjects, often overlooks this potential.

Creativity stimulates vital brain processes, including long-term memory, concept formation, and the activation of neural networks crucial for advanced cognition. For many students, especially those who are neurodiverse or have specific learning needs, artistic expression serves as a lifeline. This suggests a profound oversight in our educational system's failure to embrace and nurture children's creative potential.

This series aims to highlight how brilliantly children can perform when their strengths are nurtured and change values relating to educational 'performance metrics". The children featured, were chosen for their skill and love of creative arts. An estimated 15% of the general population is neurodiverse, but this figure doubles within the creative arts community.  Not all of the children represented in this series, are neurodiverse or struggling in mainstream education, but it's true to say in general terms that neurodiverse children are at least twice as likely to be represented in performing arts and creative environments. They are also heavily represented in current rising trends of school absenteeism, despite being some of the brightest,  most talented, or non-linear thinkers. Many are home educated by choice, with families knowing our current system is not best equipped to help their child thrive (*not our wonderful teachers, who in many cases are also being let down by policy).

My personal mission is to fly the flag to promote art and creativity as crucially important. I want to show how brilliant children can be with the right support. When I talk about brilliance, I don't mean 'the best', rather, the brightest version of themselves, doing something that makes them feel brilliant. As a society, I want us to celebrate what children can achieve and to question cases where children seem to be failing to thrive - just like we do with plants, we should be fixing the environment, not the flower. 

This project aims to spotlight different kids of performance in order to advocate for greater recognition and nurture of the diverse talents of all children, regardless of their alignment with traditional educational metrics.  The series was awarded an Honourable Mention in the Paris Photography Awards 2024 (PX3).

Background

"1.8 million children are persistently absent from school. That's too many children" (Jaine Stennard, 2023). With a 60 percent increase in home-educated children since pre-pandemic levels, and alarming headlines about failing public services, it seems clear that we are facing a crisis. However, are we truly seeing the complete picture?

'Current research points to chronic absenteeism as a critical impediment to students’ academic achievement. It increases the likelihood that children will not be proficient readers by third grade, will fail classes in middle school, and will drop out of high school.  Research also points to the power of the arts to improve school culture and climate, increase student engagement, and enhance a host of student capacities, including self-confidence, communication, collaboration, and creativity.' The Metis study showed that more robust arts implementation was positively associated with higher school attendance for NYC students. (https://www.metisassociates.com/case-studies)

Many children face challenges due to rising mental health issues and a faltering Special Educational Needs (SEN) system. Stigma and barriers to inclusion are leading to increased exclusion. Parents often choose home education to protect their child's mental health, with 89 percent citing this concern and 40 percent noting Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) (schoolsweek.co.uk, 2023). Additionally, twice-exceptional (2e) children—those with high learning potential and disabilities—face unique challenges that can exacerbate mental health issues and academic setbacks. Not every child struggles, but every child is unique and so many can achieve more, often incredible things with the opportunity in the right, nurturing environment. 

'In England approximately 93% of the population attend state-funded schools compared with 7% educated in the private sector. Yet recent research from the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre, found that people from more privileged backgrounds are twice as likely to be employed in the cultural sector. In ‘Music, Performing and visual arts’ just 22% are from more working-class backgrounds compared with 60% from more ‘privileged’ backgrounds. Similarly, The Sutton Trust found that 38% of the wealthiest individuals in TV, film and music and 44% of newspaper columnists attended private schools.' (pec.ac.uk)

With special thanks to young people from Gems Circus Arts, Big Little Theatre, First Position School of Dance and Lucid Music