The
Royal Tropical Institute (KIT) |
Volume 1 Number 26
Hi Folks,
Kim's Drama Blog
Phew, what a week! I learned yesterday that I didn't get the position at the Catholic school I applied to. It came down to me and another, she got it. As it happens she is a colleague of mine - congratulations!! Never mind - a few more possibilities on the horizon. Its been a solid week regardless. I had my Year 12 students presenting their original solo performances on Monday evening. There were some really well prepared pieces presented and some genuine surprises from a couple of students who obviously put in a huge effort to really shine on the evening. A minor nuisance was that once again the digital camera (or its operator) let us down and once again we have no archival record of the event - the Drama section of this years Year Book is going to be pretty grim!
I'm still preparing for the Youth on Health Festival - our heat is this coming week... with a bit of luck we might be ready in time. We have 3 teams entered (Specialist Drama from Years 8, 9 and 10) who have created original pieces on the theme of "Try Hugs, Not Drugs". The plays are supposed to run between 15 and 20 minutes - currently a couple of teams are finding they are running too long... nothing that couldn't be reined in with some focus and performance energy. I'm really looking forward to the response to my Year 10 class - their play is very clever with hundreds of subtle little gags embedded in it.
Discussion List Issues
I received an email from a respected Canadian colleague this week taking me to task about a comment I made in one of these newsletters earlier this year. I made a comment to the effect that I don't respect the practice of lifting lesson plans from books and other sources and applying them verbatim to classes. I suppose that my comment could be seen as an outright denunciation of using lessons from books. That was never my intention. If you haven't worked out yet that I tend to the hyperbolic and rhetorical... then wake up! Yes, I make allsorts of outrageous statements, I'm well known for putting my foot in my mouth. So, for the sake of clarity I'll share part of my response with the world...
... the opinions expressed are just that - based on my experiences in this part of the world... I have developed my own understandings by re-inventing everything constantly - I don't do the word for word stuff.... I get the broad brush overview and then I investigate and experiment - and think and plan - connect with other knowledge I have about pedagogy, drama, the topic at hand and the particular group of kids I deal with and structure something that I believe will be useful... besides that I [endeavour to] work in a very student-centred model and spend more time asking than telling...
I analyse everything as I encounter it - as an NLP Master Practitioner I suppose I've automated many processes in looking at language structures, questions and the metaphorical approaches ...
One thing to follow instructions - but didn't Dorothy [Heathcote] go in to an environment and simply did what worked... someone modelled her stuff and described the model... it works great for Dorothy and there are many things we can learn from her - if I used identical languaging and scenarios my kids would leave in droves..
I want teachers to be sure that they have really given due consideration to the experiences they offer their kids...
My comments were prompted by too often seeing people slavishly following a lesson plan, that they haven't really thought much about, and applying it to students without regard for suitability.... that sort of behaviour is what I want to change... if I pontificate occasionally, I'm usually aware of the fact and a seeking a rise...
So, there we are - a clarification of my position. I don't in anyway suggest that learning from published texts is a waste of time, nor should you feel guilty for doing so. This is NOT an academic journal, it is meant to be an informal sharing of ideas... don't take it too seriously...
The ideas I offer each week are intended to stimulate thinking - they are seldom the totality of the activity I describe and they are not verbatim transcripts, they are simply pointers to ways of thinking about approaches to Drama. Take what you can use and leave the remainder... you know your students and situation - I don't... some, all or none of the ideas might b useful... hey, they are free... what more do you want?
LESSON/ACTIVITY IDEA
OK - this is issue 26 - that means 6 months I've been publishing this material. All the while I've been asking for input from the readership. Don't you have a favourite idea that you'd like to share with the world? Please drop me a line with something you use and I can post here - with full credit to you!
This is an idea I devised this week. Out of necessity. I had asked my Year 11 class to bring in some small news oddities - those little stories that are used to fill odd corners and gaps in newspapers. Needless to say... one of 20 students had done as I asked. After a suitable dressing down... yes, I vent with the kids and let them see my disappointment... I raced off to the English Dept, ransacked their stash of newspapers and soon had my students organised into groups and scouring the pages for items that met the set criteria.
It took a little while, but soon enough we had about a half-dozen news snippets in each group (3 groups of 7 students). I then asked that all group members become familiar with the articles. Then students had to choose one story that they could all agree would provide their "throughline", and another two that would become "sub-plots". Students were asked to create 5 group tableaux to illustrate the main story and one tableau for each of the sub-plots.
The students were given a little time to complete these tasks - the "sub-plot" elements could be inserted as they saw fit and did not have to have a logical narrative to them. Once the groups had devised all 7 tableaux I then added the notion of "transitional" movement. They had to find a way to create a seamless, streamlined movement to transition between each frozen pose.
The sequences they created were presented to the class (without explanation) - and the audience were asked to relate the narrative they witnessed. This required them to make meaning, to fill the gaps and construct a closed narrative. The diversity of responses prompted a range of discussions that continue as the students move towards a group devised Drama. The process of using tableau and a disrupted narrative structure encourages the students to seek greater clarity in their choices, or to be comfortable with resistant readings, or to discover new ways of seeing the material... if nothing else, some of the audience explanations provide wonderful storylines that the students can develop further. The other aspect is that this becomes a movement/physical theatre activity. Forcing students to abandon the "verbal and telling", to start "moving and showing"...
I've added the extra dimension (to meet curriculum requirements) that they must somehow connect with the Theatre History we have covered this year, they can draw on style, theory, issues, forms, conventions, etc but must be able to explain in their folios/journals what the connections are.
RECOMMENDED WEBSITES
"The Royal Tropical Institute (KIT) is an independent centre of knowledge and expertise in the areas of international and intercultural cooperation. The aims of KIT are to contribute to sustainable development, poverty alleviation, and cultural preservation and exchange. Within the Netherlands, it seeks to promote interest in and support for these issues.
- KIT conducts research, organizes training activities, and provides consultancy and information services. Central to KIT's approach is the elaboration of practical expertise in policy development and implementation. KIT stewards cultural heritage, organizes exhibitions and other cultural events, and provides a venue for meetings and debate.
- A key objective underlying KIT's work is to enhance and exchange knowledge of and understanding for different cultures.
- KIT is a not-for-profit organization that works for both the public and the private sector in collaboration with partners in the Netherlands and abroad."
The section on Theatre and Development is really very interesting. A window into the way Drama and Theatre is used around the world for social education and development.
PROFESSIONAL NEWS
IF YOU HAVE AN EVENT YOU'D LIKE INCLUDED PLEASE CONTACT ME.
The next world congress will take place 2-8 July, 2004 in Ottawa, Canada. Hosted by Theatre Canada, this congress will follow a theme of
"The Universal Mosaic of Drama: walking diverse pathways together; finding new directions".
For further information about this event, please contact
the organizing committee at the following address.
Wayne Fairhead wfairhead@oise.utoronto.ca
This week there was a new IDEA2004 Newsletter published with more details and information about the planning of the event.
RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
This is a new initiative. The site taps into the Amazon catalogue. The search engines are tweaked to find the best of the available resources. The real bonus of the site is that it allows you to explore without the undue clutter and distractions of the Amazon.com site. If you like a clean and stylish shopping environment that focuses on the task at hand then dramabooks is the site for you. Try these links for test.
I've
recently found the Broadway Theatre Archive. It is a great
source of video performances of many great plays. One of the
regular difficulties in a Drama class is to bridge the gap between
students experiences and the scope of theatrical
performance. Its fine if you live in a major cultural centre
and can afford to attend a wide range of performances - Broadway,
London's West End, etc... all offer a wide range of styles. What
happens though if you don't have access to this? Well, the
BTA can help. The link here goes directly to their catalogue and
you'll soon see they have a wide choice. Recently they have
started adding DVD format to the catalogue. I was pleasantly
surprised at the affordability of the product - I've often been expected
to pay over $100 for video of a theatrical performance. Do
yourself a favour and check them out.
ALSO AVAILABLE
eBOOKS - Can be downloaded immediately - A full listing of available eBooks.
Kim Flintoff
Copyright © September, 2004
