Video Review

Giving Birth - Challenges and Choices: Speaking with high school students

During first term of the school year, I experienced immense pleasure in speaking to approximately one hundred potential mothers of the future, and one potential father at high schools in the north coastal metro area of Perth, W. Aust. Having completed a successful round of talks last year I was keen to get back into the schools, however, I wanted to make sure that the content was going to be presented in a totally fresh way.

I phoned a midwifery and natural childbirth resource centre and asked the midwives to recommend a few videos for me to preview. After thoroughly enjoying a birthing video marathon at home, I decided to use the Suzanne Arms video 'Giving Birth - Challenges and Choices' which had come highly recommended by the midwives. I thought the video, and its accompanying guide, would provide me with plenty of ideas to put together a successful talk.

My next challenge was to think of a way of creating a more intimate atmosphere within the classroom setting in order for the students to get a sense that this talk was really something worth giving their attention to. Like most hospital 'delivery' rooms, classrooms are designed on a budget with physical practicalities foremost in mind, well, this is my impression at least. They are far from intimate and loving places to be. In order to counteract this clinical atmosphere, I decided to turn off the lights, play some soft music and create a small altar at the front of the room. To create the altar, I used a white lace edged cotton cloth and on it I placed a candle, an oil burner, four framed birth and family photos and a personal birth symbol. When I was able to do this prior to the students entering the room I noticed that they had a tendency to walk into the classroom and immediately turn their attention to the scent in the air, the music and the altar. I also found that this was a great way to link in with scenes from the video. I try to access the classroom before the start of the class to set up as this gives me an opportunity to claim the space before the students enter the room. Unfortunately, it is not always possible to get into the room early enough, however, it is worth it if you can as I have found that it helps the students settle into the classroom quickly, and with curiosity.

I also decided to introduce myself to the students as the granddaughter of Joan and Ethel, daughter of Heather and mother of Cherish, Destiny and Saoirse. This was another way to link in with a scene from the video and a wonderful opportunity to talk about the history of birth in our own families. I encouraged the teacher to follow up with some assignment work for the students which involved researching birth within their own families. Another idea that has worked well for me this year was to pass the birth symbol around the room and as each student held it in their hands they would introduce themselves, tell the class one thing they knew about their own birth, and ask one question about birth. I encourage the teacher to follow up with any unanswered questions in future sessions. Given that I only have somewhere between 50 and 90 minutes to make an impact with the high school students, I have found the 'Giving Birth -Challenges and Choices' video a very efficient resource to utilise. The video covers most of the ideas thatI want to highlight in such a short period of time and does so in a way that I think works very well with future parents of any age.

Toni Armstrong
Dip Teach., BA(Psych)
Community Childbirth Educator