WATCH | Cosplay gives learners a new look on their heroic future

Dressed in a red Thor cape‚ a corset‚ boots‚ silver headgear and a giant hammer in hand‚ a Johannesburg cosplayer and teacher has taken over a Fourways classroom to teach children they can be superheroes if they want to be.

“They’ve implemented English into [cosplay]… by having the children write papers on why they've chosen their [cosplay] characters. They've implemented maths into it by having the kids budget how much material they use and how much it will all cost‚ and of course‚ arts and crafts‚” cosplayer Teri Ferreira told TimesLIVE‚ explaining how the fun was matched by helping the students reach their educational goals.

Cosplay‚ abbreviated from costume play‚ is a hobby which sees participants dress up as a character from a film‚ comic book or video game. Ferreira and a group of around 50 primary-school children from the Chartwell House Montessori are creating outfits which will be showcased at this year’s Comic Con Africa festival‚ mid-September.

Amongst the creations are the popular Harry Potter‚ Green Arrow‚ Wonder Woman and even an Avatar character.

An educational psychologist and an education expert‚ when asked for their opinion on the educational benefits‚ told TimesLIVE that while they were personally uninformed on the subject of cosplay‚ they understood how it could assist in getting a child to build interest in more conventional subjects such as mathematics and English or steer them into an interest in graphics and design.

“I think it would help teenagers so much. I have seen it with a lot of cosplayers who are in high school where they've been given a support structure where they feel very alone‚ where they feel no one understands them; they've got people that get them in this community. They don't get to necessarily hide in the characters they cosplay‚ but find comfort in the characters they look up to‚” Ferreira said.

She believes cosplaying can also assist in social development. “If you are someone who suffers from any social or nervous problem‚ I think cosplay does give you that confidence‚” Ferreira said.

She hoped her pupils could draw some life-long lessons from her superhero teachings. “We live in a world of instant gratification and I have been teaching them that you have to be patient and you have to work well and carefully‚” she said‚ focusing on the creation of the costumes.

With a few girls in the class working on Harry Potter costumes‚ this class is breaking all stereotypes. “When [the children] saw me as Captain Jack Sparrow‚ they didn't think twice. They didn't say that's a guy… I don't believe in any rules when it comes to cosplay that say you have to be a certain gender‚ age‚ or certain weight or skin colour.

“Some of the best cosplayers gender-bend the whole time and it’s sometimes better than the original character‚” Ferreira said.

But what about the cost affiliated with this exercise? Heather Kreusch‚ the founder of the Fourways school‚ describes Ferreira as a “thrifty cosplayer”.

Ferreira said: “The big thing I am driving home with these kids is that cosplay does not have to cost you money. Some people pour thousands into one cosplay [outfit] alone and that's great if you have the money for that‚ but I don't. These kids don’t either. The big thing we are driving here is recycling products. We have a bin full of old bottles‚ cardboard‚ empty pill bottles. They can all be used and I think it's more creative to think out of the box when you are stuck with a small budget.”

While these cosplay classes are seemingly a world-first‚ Ferreira is hopeful that more schools could soon be offering it as a subject.

“Comic Con called me and asked me if I don't want to take this thing nationwide. If they can help me do that‚ it would be awesome‚” she said.

TimesLIVE spoke to some of the children who were hard at work perfecting their outfits. One of the pupils‚ Taylor‚ was in the process of creating a female version of Harry Potter. She has renamed him Harriet Potter. “Cosplay is about being whoever you want. You can be Thor if you're a girl. You can be Wonder Woman if you're a boy. It's life‚” she said.

Motheo is creating the super hero Black Panther. Asked what common features he had with Black Panther‚ Motheo answered: "Well‚ we are both African."

Kreusch said the school was following in the steps of Maria Montessori‚ who encouraged a child-centered educational approach which focused on the holistic development of a child.

“Our philosophy is very much about creating a new [hu]man from the child up; a child who will want to make a positive contribution into society‚ who will think: How can I make the world a better place? Cosplay was a good way for the children to emulate the good qualities of the superheroes they admire‚” Kreusch said.

She said she had seen changes in the children since the subject was introduced. “I like the mindfulness and thoughtfulness that has come from it. When I chat with the children about the characters they have chosen‚ they are able to say 'I admire this character because she is an independent woman‚ smart‚ she looks out for the poor‚ hates it when people lie‚ brave…' I like the fact that it’s helped the children think about [who] they want to be."

Kreusch said the subject would not affect the children’s final academic results. “It’s more an add-on to help the children discover who they are‚ discover who they want to be and have an opportunity to really be creative‚” she said.

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