Process drama
Encyclopedia
Process drama is a method of teaching and learning drama
where both the students and teacher are working in and out of role
.
As a teaching methodology
, process drama developed primarily from the work of Brian Way
, Dorothy Heathcote
and Gavin Bolton and through the work of other leading drama
practitioners. Cecily O'Neill
describes process drama being used to explore a problem, situation, theme or series of related ideas or themes through the use of the artistic medium of unscripted drama. Process drama is a dynamic way of working that requires teachers to reflect-in-action, constantly dealing with unique situations that require novel approaches. It has its roots in dramatic play, where normally-developing children in every culture
in the world will create their own imagined worlds, often with the co-participation of an empathetic
adult (usually the parent) in role.
Process drama in school settings usually involves the whole class working with the teacher in role in a made up scenario
. When they are working in process drama, the students and teachers work together to create an imaginary dramatic world within which issues are considered and problems can be solved. In this world they work together to explore problems and issues such as, "How do communities deal with change?", "How do we accept other people into our community?" or themes such as environmental sustainability
, betrayal, truth and other ethical and moral issues. Sometimes the work may begin as light-hearted, but the teacher always layers more dramatic tension and complexity into the work as the teacher is aiming for a pedagogical outcome. Students learn to think beyond their own points of view and consider multiple perspectives on a topic through playing different roles. For instance, if the issue being discussed is logging a forest, they may play the logger
s, people who live in the forest community and environmentalist
s. Playing a range of positions encourages them to be able to recast themselves as the "other" and to consider life from that viewpoint, thereby creating complexity and enabling us to explore multiple dimensions of the topic. Process drama does what the character Atticus Finch
advocates: the ability to work for social justice
comes from the ability to understand another perspective—to be able to try on someone else's shoes and walk around in them for a while. Process drama allows us to "try on" other people's shoes, to walk the paths they tread and to see how the world looks from their point of view.
Process drama is also suggested as a tool to promote literacy development through opportunities for dramatic play in early childhood settings within which children speak for a range of purposes in role.
In school settings drama is used often as an approach to understanding and exploring written texts and picture books and as a way of providing meaningful and engaging contexts for writing.
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
where both the students and teacher are working in and out of role
Role
A role or a social role is a set of connected behaviours, rights and obligations as conceptualised by actors in a social situation. It is an expected or free or continuously changing behaviour and may have a given individual social status or social position...
.
As a teaching methodology
Philosophy of education
Philosophy of education can refer to either the academic field of applied philosophy or to one of any educational philosophies that promote a specific type or vision of education, and/or which examine the definition, goals and meaning of education....
, process drama developed primarily from the work of Brian Way
Brian Way
Brian Way , established the Theatre Centre in London, England in 1953. The company originated the modern concept of theatre for children in an educational context....
, Dorothy Heathcote
Dorothy Heathcote
Dorothy Heathcote MBE was a drama teacher and academic who used teacher in role as an approach to teaching across the curriculum in schools and later in other settings...
and Gavin Bolton and through the work of other leading drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
practitioners. Cecily O'Neill
Cecily O'Neill
Cecily O’Neill is an international authority on process drama and the arts in education. She works with students, teachers, directors, and actors throughout the world, leading drama workshops, speaking at conferences, and carrying out research...
describes process drama being used to explore a problem, situation, theme or series of related ideas or themes through the use of the artistic medium of unscripted drama. Process drama is a dynamic way of working that requires teachers to reflect-in-action, constantly dealing with unique situations that require novel approaches. It has its roots in dramatic play, where normally-developing children in every culture
Culture
Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...
in the world will create their own imagined worlds, often with the co-participation of an empathetic
Empathy
Empathy is the capacity to recognize and, to some extent, share feelings that are being experienced by another sapient or semi-sapient being. Someone may need to have a certain amount of empathy before they are able to feel compassion. The English word was coined in 1909 by E.B...
adult (usually the parent) in role.
Process drama in school settings usually involves the whole class working with the teacher in role in a made up scenario
Scenario
A scenario is a synoptical collage of an event or series of actions and events. In the Commedia dell'arte it was an outline of entrances, exits, and action describing the plot of a play that was literally pinned to the back of the scenery...
. When they are working in process drama, the students and teachers work together to create an imaginary dramatic world within which issues are considered and problems can be solved. In this world they work together to explore problems and issues such as, "How do communities deal with change?", "How do we accept other people into our community?" or themes such as environmental sustainability
Sustainability
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
, betrayal, truth and other ethical and moral issues. Sometimes the work may begin as light-hearted, but the teacher always layers more dramatic tension and complexity into the work as the teacher is aiming for a pedagogical outcome. Students learn to think beyond their own points of view and consider multiple perspectives on a topic through playing different roles. For instance, if the issue being discussed is logging a forest, they may play the logger
Logger
Logger may refer to:* Lumberjack, a woodcutter, a person who harvests lumber* Data logging, recording sequential data to a log file* Keystroke logging, recording the keys struck on a keyboard...
s, people who live in the forest community and environmentalist
Environmentalist
An environmentalist broadly supports the goals of the environmental movement, "a political and ethical movement that seeks to improve and protect the quality of the natural environment through changes to environmentally harmful human activities"...
s. Playing a range of positions encourages them to be able to recast themselves as the "other" and to consider life from that viewpoint, thereby creating complexity and enabling us to explore multiple dimensions of the topic. Process drama does what the character Atticus Finch
Atticus Finch
Atticus Finch is a fictional character in Harper Lee's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird. Atticus is a lawyer and resident of the fictional Maycomb County, Alabama, and the father of Jeremy Atticus "Jem" Finch and Jean Louise "Scout" Finch. Atticus is a central character in the novel...
advocates: the ability to work for social justice
Social justice
Social justice generally refers to the idea of creating a society or institution that is based on the principles of equality and solidarity, that understands and values human rights, and that recognizes the dignity of every human being. The term and modern concept of "social justice" was coined by...
comes from the ability to understand another perspective—to be able to try on someone else's shoes and walk around in them for a while. Process drama allows us to "try on" other people's shoes, to walk the paths they tread and to see how the world looks from their point of view.
Process drama is also suggested as a tool to promote literacy development through opportunities for dramatic play in early childhood settings within which children speak for a range of purposes in role.
In school settings drama is used often as an approach to understanding and exploring written texts and picture books and as a way of providing meaningful and engaging contexts for writing.