Prior, R. W. (2009) Contextual dimensions of drama in education: a case for valuing tacit knowledge and clear pedagogy. In: Theatre and Education at Centre Stage. Athens, Greece: Hellenic Theatre/Drama & Education Network. 9789609846639. pp. 259-267.
| Item Type: | Conference Proceedings |
|---|---|
| Abstract: | Much of the value of drama comes from its experientially derived processes which leaves much understanding in tacit form. Knowledge(s) gained this way will often be considered ‘soft’ knowledge and relegated to the sidelines in preference to ‘hard’ or factual knowledge. Dewey (1968 [1916]) understands that personally significant experience creates meaning for the individual. The educator’s function according to Taylor and Warner (2006) might usefully be seen as ‘structural operators’ whose task it is to ‘experiment with different strategies and find creative ways of locating them in the drama session’ (p.2). Unfortunately many well-meaning drama practitioners sometimes engage students in experiences which are neither pedagogically coherent nor useful in making tacit knowledge more accessible to either the students or others beyond the classroom. Some educators shunned the work of Dorothy Heathcote and Cecily O’Neill when together they sought to make classroom drama encounters more fruitful by using process-orientated approaches and developing theoretical understandings of such processes. Resistant educators believed there was some sort of aesthetic loss to drama and that pseudo actor training approaches were somehow more faithful. However the models and understanding of western actor training have generally not been as useful to the classroom as some practitioners may have first assumed. Perhaps surprisingly, understandings of actor training generally remain largely inert or tacit even to the most distinguished of actor trainers (Prior, 2004). However education has an important cognitive function. This paper argues that the performative act alone is not sufficient to warrant the curriculum inclusion of drama in main-stream schooling. It is in the ability to harness tacit knowledge and use productive pedagogy that drama makes its most valuable case as a learning medium which can be added to more traditional learning approaches. There is knowledge about drama and there is knowledge which is generated through dramatic action. Knowledge becomes personal when the participants experience situations and interrogate thoughts and feelings. In drama, views of knowledge are reinforced or perhaps even influenced by Stanislavsky (1988 [1950]) who suggests ‘in art “to know” means to be able to’ (p.121), which he juxtaposes with the kind of ‘general’ knowledge that he proffers is without feeling. He suggests that this kind of knowledge is ‘of no use whatever to an actor who is also a creative artist’ (p.121). Knowledge is the result of experience and also that knowledge(s) of acting are inextricably entwined with feeling as in affect states (Prior, 2004:287). Similarly, when non-actors work in role they too can generate personally significant meanings which are bound with feelings. This paper proposes four dimensions of drama in education which are represented as: Intellectual; Practical; Personal; and Social. The practices of individual drama teachers are more or less influenced by where their emphases are placed. These dimensions are not oppositional in nature but are simply different ways of rendering meaning. There is also movement between the intellectual and practical; personal and social contextual dimensions. In developing a comprehensive understanding of pedagogy and to apprehend tacit meanings generated experientially, it is argued that teachers need to be aware of these four important contextual dimensions which shape their practice. |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | tacit knowledge, drama in education, drama teaching |
| Subjects: |
P Language and Literature > PN Literature (General) > PN3171 Drama in education P Language and Literature > PN Literature (General) > PN1701 Drama. Study and teaching |
| Creators: | Prior, Ross W |
| Publisher: | Hellenic Theatre/Drama & Education Network |
| Faculties, Divisions and Institutes: | Faculties > Faculty of Arts, Science & Technology > Journalism, Media & Performance |
| Date: | 2009 |
| Date Type: | Publication |
| Page Range: | pp. 259-267 |
| Title of Book: | Theatre and Education at Centre Stage |
| Event Title: | 6th Athens International Theatre/Drama & Education Conference "Theatre & Education at Centre Stage" |
| Event Dates: | 27-30 March 2008 |
| Place of Publication: | Athens, Greece |
| Event Location: | Athens, Greece |
| Event Type: | Workshop |
| Number of Pages: | 437 |
| Language: | English |
| ISBN: | 9789609846639 |
| Status: | Published / Disseminated |
| Refereed: | Yes |
| References: | Bolton, Gavin (1999) Acting in the classroom: A critical analysis. Stoke on Trent: Trentham Books. Broudy, Harry (1977) ‘Types of knowledge and purposes of education’ [pp1-17], In R.C. Anderson, R.J. Spiro, & W.E. Montague [Eds.] Schooling and the acquisition of knowledge. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. Bruner, Jerome (1986) Actual minds, possible worlds. Cambridge Mass: Harvard University Press. Dewey, John (1968 [1916]) Democracy and Education. New York: The Free Press. Elbaz, Freema (1983) Teacher Thinking: A Study of Practical Knowledge. New York: Nicholas Publishing. Heathcote, Dorothy & Bolton, Gavin (1995) Drama for Learning. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann. Lave, Jean & Wenger, Etienne (1991) Situated Learning. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Light, Greg & Cox, Roy (2002) Learning and Teaching in Higher Education: The Reflective Professional. London: Paul Chapman Publishing. O’Toole, John (1992) The Process of Drama: Negotiating art and meaning. London: Routledge. Phenix, Philip H. (1964) Realms of Meaning: A Philosophy of the Curriculum for General Education. New York: McGraw-Hill. Polanyi, Michael (1983 [1966]) The Tacit Dimension. Gloucester, Mass: Peter Smith. [Reprint, originally printed by Doubleday]. Prior, Ross W. (2007) ‘Understanding actor trainers’ articulation of their practice’ In Studies in Theatre and Performance Vol. 27:3, [pp295-305]. Bristol: Intellect. Prior, Ross W. (2005) ‘Drama Teaching: The Teaching of Practice’ NJ Vol. 29:2, [pp73-82] Drama Australia. Prior, Ross W. (2004) Characterising Actor Trainers’ Understanding of their Practice in Australian and English Drama Schools. Unpublished Doctoral Thesis: Griffith University. Stanislavsky, Konstantin (1988 [1950]) [Trans. & Ed. D. Magarshack] Stanislavsky on the Art of the Stage. London: Faber & Faber. Stevenson, John (2003) Developing Vocational Expertise. Crows Nest: Allen & Unwin. Taylor, Philip and Warner, Christine (2006) Structure and Spontaneity. Stoke on Trent: Trentham Books. Van Manen, Max (1990) Researching the Lived Experience. London: University of Western Ontario. Zarrilli, Philip (2001) ‘Negotiating Performance Epistemologies: knowledges ‘about’, ‘in’ and ‘for’’, Studies in Theatre and Performance. Vol. 21, 31-46. Bristol: Intellect. |
| URI: | http://nectar.northampton.ac.uk/id/eprint/3542 |
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