describe the use of drama to stimulate english language learning.
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What is Drama in ELT?
Most ELT teachers nowadays advocate some elements of a ‘Communicative Approach’ and therefore recognise and appreciate the value of Drama in ELT. Drama can be defined as activity involving people in a social context and there is no doubt that effective communication in social situations involves other forms of communication that go beyond language competence and includes the use of gesture, body posture, intonation and other prosodic features. However the inclusion of drama based activities is not so evident in current ELT course books, resource books, supplementary materials and teacher training courses. Teachers clearly need practical step by step guidance on how to incorporate drama more comprehensively and cohesively into their teaching.
Why Use Drama?
Drama is an active approach to learning where participants identify with roles and situations to be able to engage with, explore and understand the world they live in. This goes beyond language, as social interaction involves communication on multiple levels that cross cultural and language boundaries. By being part of a drama ensemble and participating in a fictitious context, the class is experiencing a shared moment of intensity that involves emotions, facial expressions, gesture, movement and a heightened awareness of others, that would not necessarily be experienced outside the drama environment. Students are thus freed from the constraints of precision of language, that may be required in the conventional language classroom, and are equipped with many other tools with which to communicate meaning.
Humans are physical, mental and psychological beings. When encouraging our students to learn another language we need to recognise and satisfy their ‘whole person’ needs and abilities. In other words we need to address physical, mental and psychological as well as purely linguistic needs. Typically language learning is confined to the mental world of problem-solving, rule application and artificial contexts. Drama is a way of unlocking the ‘whole-person’ and developing physical, creative, imaginative and emotional responses to learning contexts.
Essentially drama liberates the student from the confines of the conventional classroom environment and structure and gives the student the opportunity to draw on their own experiences and imagination, in creating the material on which part of the language class is based. These activities draw on the natural ability of every person to imitate, mimic and express him or herself physically. They are dramatic because they arouse interest by drawing on the unpredictable emotional power generated when emotional memory is triggered by a stimulus and when a person is brought together with others.
As an ensemble the class can learn and discover together, all the while feeling part of something larger than themselves and experiencing the support of the group. By being part of this safe environment students are able to take risks, build on the strengths of others and grow in confidence, making decisions and taking actions on behalf of the group. The Drama context also allows participants to be distanced or liberated from themselves to speak and behave in role, allowing their character to voice truths and opinions that the individual may not express in daily life.
Drama takes as its starting point ‘life’ not language and by so reversing the learning process, that is, by beginning with meaning and then moving to language later we are able to draw on the full range of a learners’ multiple intelligences and exploit learning as a ‘whole-person’ approach. The Drama environment builds on the personalities, energy and ideas of the participants, so is alive and always changing and evolving. Because of this no two Drama lessons are the same, and the level of the work is determined by the nature of the group. One Drama idea or plan is therefore very versatile and can be used and adapted for multiple levels and ages.
The advantages of using drama.
One of the main aims of using drama in a language course is to provide an active, stimulating, fun and creative environment in which to develop the student’s language learning potential. Students are encouraged to explore English through their imagination and creativity and to express this through language, and other forms of communication, that may include: movement, action, dance, and role-play.
These activities aim to develop:
· Confidence, motivation, trust and participation
· Oral and written communication skills
· Awareness of interpersonal and sociocultural communication skills
· Accuracy and fluency of expression
· Rhythm and pronunciation
· Linguistic intelligence
· Social interactive skills
Most ELT teachers nowadays advocate some elements of a ‘Communicative Approach’ and therefore recognise and appreciate the value of Drama in ELT. Drama can be defined as activity involving people in a social context and there is no doubt that effective communication in social situations involves other forms of communication that go beyond language competence and includes the use of gesture, body posture, intonation and other prosodic features. However the inclusion of drama based activities is not so evident in current ELT course books, resource books, supplementary materials and teacher training courses. Teachers clearly need practical step by step guidance on how to incorporate drama more comprehensively and cohesively into their teaching.
Why Use Drama?
Drama is an active approach to learning where participants identify with roles and situations to be able to engage with, explore and understand the world they live in. This goes beyond language, as social interaction involves communication on multiple levels that cross cultural and language boundaries. By being part of a drama ensemble and participating in a fictitious context, the class is experiencing a shared moment of intensity that involves emotions, facial expressions, gesture, movement and a heightened awareness of others, that would not necessarily be experienced outside the drama environment. Students are thus freed from the constraints of precision of language, that may be required in the conventional language classroom, and are equipped with many other tools with which to communicate meaning.
Humans are physical, mental and psychological beings. When encouraging our students to learn another language we need to recognise and satisfy their ‘whole person’ needs and abilities. In other words we need to address physical, mental and psychological as well as purely linguistic needs. Typically language learning is confined to the mental world of problem-solving, rule application and artificial contexts. Drama is a way of unlocking the ‘whole-person’ and developing physical, creative, imaginative and emotional responses to learning contexts.
Essentially drama liberates the student from the confines of the conventional classroom environment and structure and gives the student the opportunity to draw on their own experiences and imagination, in creating the material on which part of the language class is based. These activities draw on the natural ability of every person to imitate, mimic and express him or herself physically. They are dramatic because they arouse interest by drawing on the unpredictable emotional power generated when emotional memory is triggered by a stimulus and when a person is brought together with others.
As an ensemble the class can learn and discover together, all the while feeling part of something larger than themselves and experiencing the support of the group. By being part of this safe environment students are able to take risks, build on the strengths of others and grow in confidence, making decisions and taking actions on behalf of the group. The Drama context also allows participants to be distanced or liberated from themselves to speak and behave in role, allowing their character to voice truths and opinions that the individual may not express in daily life.
Drama takes as its starting point ‘life’ not language and by so reversing the learning process, that is, by beginning with meaning and then moving to language later we are able to draw on the full range of a learners’ multiple intelligences and exploit learning as a ‘whole-person’ approach. The Drama environment builds on the personalities, energy and ideas of the participants, so is alive and always changing and evolving. Because of this no two Drama lessons are the same, and the level of the work is determined by the nature of the group. One Drama idea or plan is therefore very versatile and can be used and adapted for multiple levels and ages.
The advantages of using drama.
One of the main aims of using drama in a language course is to provide an active, stimulating, fun and creative environment in which to develop the student’s language learning potential. Students are encouraged to explore English through their imagination and creativity and to express this through language, and other forms of communication, that may include: movement, action, dance, and role-play.
These activities aim to develop:
· Confidence, motivation, trust and participation
· Oral and written communication skills
· Awareness of interpersonal and sociocultural communication skills
· Accuracy and fluency of expression
· Rhythm and pronunciation
· Linguistic intelligence
· Social interactive skills
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