What Is An Edutainer?
by Brad "Bradini" Evans

You've heard of an educator and you've heard of an entertainer, but have you ever heard of an "edutainer"?   Well if you haven't, you need to be aware of the importance of that term as a way to evaluate your future assembly speakers.

Schools have all kinds of speakers for their assembly programs. You could generally describe them in three ways: those focusing on "entertainment only" with no content, those focusing on "content only" with no pizzazz to the presentation, and finally those having "educational content along with an entertaining presentation." The latter describes an edutainer.  

An edutainer is a high-content speaker who knows the importance of adding entertainment to his/her educational message.  The result is an attentive audience who will hold on to every word spoken because it is educational and fun.

While it may depend on the presentation being given, I believe that the most effective presenter will be the edutainer when compared to a speaker who delivers in a "stand still, monotone style". Why? Because the edutainer will keep the audience engaged in the presentation. While the children are having fun, they will be learning about important concepts and relate them to what they are seeing. How many times have you seen a speaker that just doesn't keep the audiences' attention. Unfortunately, far too many.

Schools should be aware of this distinction among speakers and be sure they are getting the presentation that they desire. If the kids aren't alert and attentive to the message being presented, haven't you just wasted your time and money? It doesn't have to be that way.

When evaluating your speakers for upcoming programs, I hope you ask questions from your speakers before you hire them. If you want a program that will have the kids talking about it for weeks to come, I know you will best be served by engaging a professional edutainer.