Coming of age: dialogues about" Dramawise" and the elements of drama (original) (raw)

Drama, education and curriculum: alive, kicking and counting

2015

The battle to maintain the inclusion of drama within the curriculum appears to be never-ending, but targeted strategies and arguments for drama’s inclusion may need to be revisited and recalibrated. The important role of professional learning communities and activist communities of practice are identified as being integral to supporting sustainable educational change. This article provides a particular focus on curriculum developments in Australian as a site for some perceived successes in maintaining a space for drama education.

Framing a National Curriculum in Drama: Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

NJ, 2009

This article provides a survey of Australian drama education documents. The purpose of this selective tracing of the genealogy of Australian drama education is to set the scene for the current context while also acknowledging the strength and foresight of Australian drama education pioneers and predecessors. This article had its genesis in a discussion paper, originally titled Sharing the Blank Page: if there's going to be a National Drama Curriculum, what might it look like? It was prepared for a round table forum on drama curriculum at gener8, the 2008 National Drama Education Conference, Adelaide, May 10, 2008. That round table was well attended and generated considerable discussion, prompting not only this article but this special curriculum edition of NJ. This paper has been reworked significantly since then. I acknowledge all the contributors to the round table forum and the input of critical readers to the reshaping of the article.

Drama in Education reaching beyond Art Form or Teaching Tool Dichotomy

European Journal of Social Science Education and Research, 2018

Abstract In the following article we try to re-evaluate, the place drama occupies in contemporary elementary education. By limiting the role of drama to literature studies and theatre productions, we lose a greater potential Theatre Pedagogy has to offer to a much broader educational spectrum. The participatory practices of Theatre and Drama in Education (TiE, DiE) promote active learning, based on a most organic children’s activity – play. While students co-create the fictional world of drama, teacher's guidance is crucial in setting new challenges, encouraging students to find creative solutions and reflect on often-complex social issues. Because of its art component, drama challenges the participants on a cognitive as well as emotional level, becoming a truly transformational experience. As such, Drama in Education is especially useful when approaching sensitive and controversial topics. This thesis is presented on a case study observing Year 6 students at St’ Michael’s CE Academy in Birmingham, UK, using Drama in Education method as part of History curriculum. Key words:: drama in education, theatre pedagogy, participatory practices, holistic teaching, sensitive topics.

Drama/Theatre in Education and Theatre as an Academic Discipline: A Question of Nomenclature, Techniques and Effects

There has been different ambiguity surrounding the nature and meaning of drama as a concept and as a discipline in institutions of higher learning. Similar ambiguities also surround the nature, meaning and functions of drama as an educational tool. Scholars, literate and non-literate alike can hardly differentiate between drama and theatre; relationship between drama/theatre as a discipline and drama as tool for learning; the relevance of Theatre Arts as an academic discipline in our society and the place of educational drama in nurturing individual potentials among youngsters. It is against the backdrop of these ambiguities that this paper set out to consolidate related terms and concepts into one clear and concise definition. To eliminate ambiguities and inconsistencies that currently exists in the

Drama Makes Meaning Drama Australia – The National Association for Drama Education What is Drama?

Drama is an artform highly accessible to young people. In education, it is a mode of learning that challenges and supports students to make meaning of their world and enables them to express and communicate ideas in the artform. ΅ ΅ Drama is the enactment of real and imagined events through roles and situations. ΅ ΅ Drama enables individuals and groups to explore, shape and symbolically represent ideas and feelings and their consequences. ΅ ΅ Drama has the capacity to move and transform participants and audiences. It can affirm and challenge values, cultures and identities. ΅ ΅ Drama includes a wide range of experiences, such as dramatic play, improvisation, role-play, text interpretation, theatrical performance and multi-modal/hybrid texts. It includes the processes of making, presenting and responding. ΅ ΅ Drama draws on many different contexts, from past and present societies and cultures. Drama is one of the five arts subjects that make up the Australian Curriculum: The Arts. Vi...

Mantle of the Expert 2.0: from drama in education towards education in drama

Drama Research: international journal of drama in education, 2020

There has been little research examining the balance between process and product in children’s arts education. In this study, Mantle of the Expert, the ‘drama in education’ approach of Dr. Dorothy Heathcote, MBE (1926-2011), has been explored as a method to create a non-scripted theatre performance with seven children between the ages of eight and ten years old. They participated in a single case study of twelve workshops, two semi-structured interviews and one public performance. In this way, the researcher investigated whether Mantle of the Expert could be successfully deployed in the creation of an artistic product and in ‘education in drama’. The results indicate that, in addition to various artistic competencies, the participants developed a strong ownership as performers by means of the process-oriented approach, the collective role element and the non-scripted component of this scheme of work. The researcher suggests that Mantle of the Expert could be further developed into a method that strengthens the artistic process and product in children’s education in drama even more, by further implementing the competence of using artistic mastery or craftsmanship in the methodology.