p class=”MsoNormal” align=”center” style=”text-align:center;line-height:200%”> A SCHOOL WITHOUT A DRAMA IS A SCHOOL WITHOUT A SOUL
Introduction
Drama has long been a popular learning approach in most British schools (2001), and it is still growing to be one ( 2004). A participant in a drama engages in a process of expressing a variety of emotions. It is as though a living spirit is confined within the body of an artist that pushes her or him to exude its living radiance. They give life to real or imagined and dead or alive entities to convey a certain message and perception about existence. This is the essence, in brief, of a drama.
Basic skills like numerical calculation and reading are typically learned in school. As drama is conventionally conceived as an art form, the integration of art in learning basic skills in school seemed out of place. However, various authors have argued that art forms like music, dance and drama should not be considered as mere frills in effective education. (1998) for instance, defended basic skills and arts are two educational elements that are closely related. Furthermore, connecting both of these elements in the students’ education can lead to better educational achievement (1998). These raised points clearly express the support towards a growing belief that drama does adds soul to schools and education.
This written piece is not tasked primarily to unfold merely the essence of a drama. Rather, it is going to argue that schools are ought to have a drama in general. This paper aims to stress the principle that a school without a drama is a school without a soul. Within the discussion, the concept of drama as well as the soul is discussed. Finally, the different factors that enable drama to add soul in schools are cited and explained in detail.
What’s in a Drama?
“He who has never envied the vegetable has missed the human drama.”
According to the (2003), a drama is to be construed as a kind of art, a sensible endeavor and a rational branch of learning (). By a kind of art, it is a means of expression. By a sensible endeavor, it forges a meaningful story. By a rational branch of learning, it offers a frame of reference, in other words, a perspective. All of which are directed towards human life processes and activities. A drama is both a form of interpretation and reinterpretation to generate a meaningful understanding of the things that surround us. Aside from being understood as a breathing art form, drama has also been defined as an intellectual discipline as well as a practical activity that utilize different theatrical elements. Feelings and imagination are the two prime requirements of this art form; through these, actors performing a drama can bring fictional characters to life (2003).
What’s in a Soul?
In the viewpoint of religion and philosophy, it refers to a knowing “ethereal substance” that exists distinctively in a living being ( 2006). This offers a neutral conception of a soul. It simply answers the “what is”. (2006) cites the definitions of soul as “the immaterial part of a person; the actuating cause of an individual life”. These authors have also referred to the soul as the “human being”, and a “deep feeling or emotion”. This one, on the other hand, has a position, and pushes further on what the soul does and/or what the soul does to the individual. In most religious beliefs like Islam and Christianity, the soul is often thought of as the spirit of God breathed into the human body. This is probably where the notion that God lives within us comes from. After death, the soul of the righteous then goes back and stays with the creator (2004).
From these definitions, the operational sense of a soul generally refers to that living force within that drives an individual to act in accordance with righteousness. A person without a soul has always been assigned a negative meaning wherein he is said to be wicked; and so herein, it is being meant in the path of righteousness. It causes the individual to awaken his emotions and set him in motion for a certain purpose. In doing so, he may touch another individual or another soul to embark on the same journey. The concept of the soul in general pertains to something that is right and good. Hence, saying that drama adds soul to school is synonymous to the understanding that drama brings out the best in schools. The succeeding sections identify the different capabilities of drama that make this outcome possible.
A School with a Drama
“Like theatre, drama in schools can unlock the use of imagination, intellect, empathy and courage. Through it, ideas, responses and feelings can be expressed and communicated. It carries the potential to challenge, to question and to bring about change”
A drama resounds the issues, experiences and interactions of humanity, and this constitutes its base. Students engaged in this kind of art obtain are able to decently inquire on these concerns. At the back of the drama is a learning process in which, they get to operate among themselves imaginatively and resolve problems not merely as individuals but as groups (2003). A drama is neither simply a kind of art nor a matter of role-playing. Young pupils or teenage students alike, who are engaged in a drama, are passing through a stage of learning whereby they encounter thorns along their paths. They have to seek among themselves the ways to internalize and externalize at the same time a certain role in order to act it out in the most sensible way possible. Aside from this, there is a need for them to act as a group in order to portray the best situation in that drama.
Dramas need not to be associated only with plays in the strictest sense. According to (1982), expert instructors unconsciously employ drama in formal instruction settings (). By the teacher’s simple act of assuming the other position, to a certain degree, it can be considered as a drama already. The teacher is employing a dramaturgical approach as a learning process among her or his students. Through the integration of dramas in schools and education, students are able to learn several things about themselves and others, resulting to the development of children not only academically, but also social, emotionally and morally.
Personal Development
This effect of integrating drama in schools pertains to how the art form helps students understand their selves better. Dramas are able to draw out this essential development through its ability to generate meaningful experiences. As (2004) has explained:
“The students learn to laugh. They laugh at their mistakes when exhausted after rehearsing a scene five times in a row and still not getting it right. And they laugh at each other when something funny happens. They become less self-conscious and more aware of how they walk and talk and move. Yes, drama allows people to learn lots of things. Then there’s the story line, often involving intelligent arguments, conflict, difference of opinion, and resolution of problems. Some dramatic plays are based on literary classics, teaching us about human suffering and love and generosity and sacrifice. Yes, drama sometimes speaks to the mind, the heart and the soul, and the spirit. It’s a little bit like real life ().”
This author has vividly described the process a drama student is going through in producing a drama. The drama student suffers from pain, failure and melancholy. But in the end, he or she is able to taste the sweetness of happiness and success. What matters the most is the personal growth and development that the drama brings. From the author’s observation, the participation of students in a drama production is similar to experiencing human life. Day to day, individuals go through routines, new challenges and discoveries, learning, negative experiences as well as happy moments.
Despite the hard times, people manage to go on living by giving their all and doing what they can to overcome them. Similarly, dramas involve not only talent and skills but perseverance, discipline and responsibility. Without the combination of these essential elements, the members of the drama production will not be able to overcome the difficulties of performing. From this correlation it can be surmised that drama develops a person by teaching him or her to become a stronger and more capable individual.
In other literatures, the ability of dramas to generate meaningful experience for personal development is explained in a different angle. While (2004) focused the explanation of drama experience to the activities involved in producing a drama, (1991) view is more centered on the role of character portrayal in this art form. In the book written by (1991), its fundamental assumption is that “the creation of experience” is the end-goal of art (). In the eyes of this author, art (referring to the drama) gives an individual the chance to be in the shoes of another. The artist is going through an experience of experiencing another’s experiences. He or she is tasked to interpret that particular sensible undertaking. Through this experience, personal development occurs as students become more open-minded and understanding individuals.
Skill Enhancement
There are a number of skills that can be developed out of putting drama in schools. One of which is the improvement of the students’ ability to communicate effectively. According to (1997), drama activities as well as dance experiences allow the students to generate feelings and express their ideas. As drama is a form of art performed using actions and speech, the language and communication abilities of the students are enhanced as well. Dramas also involve the use of various human senses; through this the students’ sensory recall and awareness are developed. The students’ sensory development in turn supports the development of their communication skills. and (2003) noted that drama is actually a multi-sensory form of art which enables participants to explore language’s many varieties. As the student read through the stories used in the drama, they use their different senses in order accurately portray a dramatic role. Their ability to communicate is then drawn out as drama teaches them how to connect senses with experience.
In other literatures, the development of the students’ communication abilities through drama has been related to its underlying values. First, the student, being a young member of the society by which he belongs to, visualizes in his mind a certain character that may or may not be in congruence to his very own being. Second, they enter through an intrapersonal communication process. The third step is they engage in an interpersonal communication process, i.e. with his friend(s), in order to capture their perceptions about what he is going through. The spectators, on the other hand, are likewise experiencing a meaningful undertaking from the actor. They identify, envisage, make remarks and assess his performances. Lastly, and which this paper opts to quote, “the student is able to manipulate an object for the purpose of stimulating his imagination to figure out where he is, who he is, and what he’s doing (1982).”
The citation above describes the beautiful process that a pupil or student is or would be experiencing in a drama, being a parcel of the school curriculum. It facilitates his personal growth. This is more than just teaching them the existing values and beliefs in a plain one-way fashion. They get to realize further those values and beliefs. And, by having this as part of the school curriculum, is the school not inculcating to the students the value of recognition and respect for the individuals outside of them? In this case, the drama proves to be a tractable way of socializing the young individual and citizen to harmonize with the rest of the world.
The (2003) also believes that drama helps in developing the students’ communication skills, mainly through language development. Dramas in general require effective communication, negotiation as well as self-assertion. Through these requirements, the students become more confident when speaking to other people or to an audience. As they play different characters and roles, the vocabulary of the students are also developed and extended.
Aside from communication skills, basic skills such as reading comprehension can also be enhanced through the integration of dramas in school. Programs such as Reading Comprehension through Drama were actually developed in support to the belief that drama has the ability to teach reading among students more effectively ( 2000). The relation of drama and learning basic skills such as reading has been explained in various literatures. For instance, the researches done by (1991a, 1991b) concluded that the inclusion of created images, termed as gestalt, helps in improving ones reading comprehension. The researcher suggested that visualizing scenes in a written material allows the reader to comprehend what he or she is reading more effectively. The conclusion of Bell is actually based on the theories of cognitive and developmental psychology where it has been indicated that imagery is an essential learning tool as well as an important element of memory.
(1991a) attempted to prove the connection of imagery to the improvement of reading comprehension by using a therapeutic instrument called the gestalt imagery language comprehension stimulation. The researcher administered this tool to students (aged 9-57) where a 4-hour therapy as a daily treatment was given. During the process, the researcher instructed the students create images or visuals based from a set of written words. With this technique, (1991a) concluded that the tests scores of the students in reading comprehension had increased significantly.
Other researches have supported this finding. In particular related studies have suggested that forming images to improve reading comprehension helps in enhancing an individual’s memory – an element which is essential in reading skills. As memory for visual details is greater as compared to written information, reading enhancement through images is then more effective. This has been confirmed further through empirical research. The study conducted by (1967) for example, presented pictures in from of selected participants. Out of the total number of images presented, 98.5% had been correctly identified and recalled by the participants. However, when the pictures were changed into sentences, only 88.2% of the statements were identified correctly. From this finding, it is clear that it is indeed easier to remember images than written texts; if this will be applied to reading skill, image generation then enhances the reader’s memory, resulting to better comprehension.
Aside from creating images, other researchers noted that breaking down a story being read into smaller components also helps in improving reading comprehension (1990). and (1979) on the other hand noted that elaboration for better information processing is also a key to better reading skills. If all cited elements will be analyzed, the generation of images, the breakdown of written stories to components and the process of elaboration are all features of a drama. In order to deliver a dramatic role effectively, the actor must visualize the scene, character and setting. In order to make the production more organized, the dramatic story must be broken down into scenes. Finally, events in the drama must be elaborated by the actors in order for them to understand the emotions or feelings required in every scene. From these similarities, it becomes clear how drama can be used in instructing students in their reading classes. The development of the students’ literacy level was in fact verified by a research done by and (2004).
The (2003) noted that one of the important contributions of drama in schools is the development of the students’ thinking abilities. Through drama, students are able to develop their information processing, reasoning and enquiry skills. Dramas also allow them to become more creative through the generation of ideas as well as application of imaginations. Participating in dramas also help students to be effective critics of ones and others’ work. By being drama participants, the talents of the students are developed. In turn, this enables them to know what will be good for a drama and what will not.
In dramas, the language literacy of the students is not only the ones developed. Through the development of the students’ communication and social skills, they learn how to work with other people and realize the value of teamwork. By working together in small or large groups, the creativity of the students is enhanced as they learn new things from their group mates. Dramas develop an individual’s empathy and flexibility, also known as emotional literacy. This development is not only useful for students while they are in school; once they enter the work sector, being emotionally literate will greatly assist them to overcome professional challenges related to working with other people ( 2003).
Understanding Cultures and the Issue of Racism
There are more accounts that further support the functionality of the drama in formal learning institutions. In particular, various literatures have noted that drama plays a significant role in increasing cultural awareness as well as understanding the issue of racism among students. (1999) perceives the drama to be a crucial learning methodology in the light of multiculturalism. Drama pedagogy refers to a multiperspectival as well as holistic learning methodology that aim to awaken and pull out at the same time the intellectual, social, emotional, physical, moral, creative, communicative, and aesthetic capacities of students (1999). Harley prescribes among the readers that drama pedagogy is the ship that will enable the world to sail in a sea of multiculturalism.
The research done by and (2003) also proposed that drama, specifically interactive drama, should be integrated in schools so as to enable students to learn and appreciate the concept of multiculturalism. Interactive drama is an effective tool for learning culture and related issues as this allows actors and the audience to be in situations based on real life. Sexism, racism, ageism and heterosexism are some of the topics that can be tackled in drama presentations freely. The ability of interactive drama to teach cultural issues has been tested by the researchers by using counseling students. Through this experimentation, various positive impacts brought about by interactive drama were identified.
For instance, interactive drama allowed the student to view and portray character roles that are different from their own personality. Through this art form, students were able to realize their own biases and became more aware of individual differences. As counseling students would interact with different patients or clients in the future as a professional, this development through drama was then beneficial; in particular, the experimentation made them more competent when multiculturalism is concerned (2003). and (1998) also noted that multicultural competence in people can be developed by exposing them to situations or characters different from their own. This on the other hand, can be acquired readily through drama.
By participating in interactive drama, student can be asked to perform the role of a racist or a sexist character. By means of playing a culturally insensitive character, student doing the role can get to experience how it feels to be oppressive. Through dramatic experience they become more aware of their own stereotypes and understand how this affects others. Students who play characters that are part of minority groups on the other hand, will understand more how it feels to be oppressed and belittled. All in all, discussing cultural issues in a drama increases the cross-cultural awareness not only of the actors but the audience as well. Using drama to increase cultural awareness is actually more effective compared to other means as the actors and audience are able to feel what the dramatic characters are feeling (Martin 1999). Doston and Tromski (2003) then noted that if interactive drama will be integrated in schools, cultural barriers would perhaps be reduced; moreover, as students become more aware of cultural differences, better interpersonal relations may perhaps be observed.
A School without a Drama is a School without a Soul
“Education is the leading of human souls to what is best, and making what is best out of them.”
Having laid down the pertinent literatures above, this section has much reason to lay the basis behind the claim that a school without a drama is a school without a soul.
Drama makes the students to imagine by running through their emotions within their own selves. is most likely saying that the drama has the capability to break free the soul of the person. As reviewed above, the soul awakes the emotions within in order to make a person act. If the school repudiates drama among its students, then the school repudiates the chance to awaken its students’ souls. This is just on the basic level, the level of the individual.
It has been learned from the citation of (1982) that the first step in staging a drama is to imagine a particular role in acting it out (), which is undeniably true. It always starts with the person confronted with the question – how am I going to portray this character? Because the drama is a matter of assuming particular roles, a school that recognizes a variety of roles or circumstances is a school with a soul. It is a school with a soul because it triggers the act of touching another soul.
and (2003) have identified the following as the advantages behind an interactive drama in counseling: recognition and comprehension of others, others’ perspectives, and their objective view of others. Although the authors’ findings have a specific reference to counseling, what matters is the means that have lead to these aforestated ends. Imagine now the case wherein the school hinders its students from these advantages. A school that prevents its students from assuming the roles of others through drama is preventing its students to harmonize with others. The world will likely be filled with soul-less humans.
In the review of literatures, it has been found out that most author-experts in the drama raise the point that the drama is a matter of problem solving. As (2004) has uttered, the drama is “a little bit like real life” (). The drama sets the individuals in motion. This leads to the idea that the drama activates their souls. Shifting to the schools, one of the reasons why schools exist is that it provides the students the necessary knowledge or pieces of information that is going to guide them in real life. But this is not enough. They may have the knowledge but not the driving force to make use of that knowledge. It is thus of utmost importance for schools to include the drama in the curriculum. Otherwise, a school without a drama is a school without a soul.
The drama has the capacity to make its participants recognize the stances by which the others stand. In a world of multiculturalism, judging from the term alone, it is a condition wherein there is recognition of cultural diversity. It is “a world of difference”, as how multiculturalists put it. This paper has cited Hanley as well as the work of Doston and Tromski who have advocated the drama as the vehicle of multiculturalism. Tying this with the concept of the school, one way to look at the nature and/or objective of the school is for its students to generate an understanding of the world they are living in. The school exists to be able to understand the present differences carried by the souls of this world. As stated by the (2003), a drama is to be construed as a kind of art, a sensible endeavor and a rational branch of learning. The drama has the capacity to initiate the act of understanding the shoes that the others are wearing. Therefore, it goes to show that a school without a drama is a school without a soul.
The previous paragraphs have shown how the school without a drama robs its students of awakening their soul. And, from the individual level, the discussion has moved up to the level of the community or locality. Actually, the discussion on multiculturalism can go even further to the level of the international. The subsequent section is about to fortify the argument of this paper on the national level.
Most advocates stand in the view that the significance of drama in the formal institution of learning lies in its ability to alter the students in such a way that it is able to hone their dexterity in the particular social environment by which they belong. This is an instance of a drama with a purpose – “drama for capability” or “drama for empowerment” – that molds the children being young members of their society and as its active citizens (1992). There is truly indeed more to learn from the drama. The attitude or personality, emotional intelligence and social skills are being developed. Apart from that, they become aware of the situations they are in. They tend to carry out their attitude within the drama outside, in the real drama of life.
The aforementioned paragraph has tackled the politics behind the drama. The drama has the capacity to trigger the burning passion within the actors and actresses alike. It awakens their souls. Eventually, they become active members of their own cultural group or nation. Is it not this task falls mostly in the hands of the school? In the case wherein the school departs from the (principles of) drama, what occurs is that it is not producing learned citizens who are capable of and passionate in transforming the nation for the better. Dramas then give soul into schools as it brings out the best in people, particularly the students. Without drama, students will not be able to learn about themselves and the value of others; they will neither be able to enhance the skills that are inherently within them nor will they appreciate cultural differences. A school without drama will then just be a school of people who do not understand their selves and do not care for others.
Conclusion
The drama is a kind of expression that sensibly interprets and reinterprets events. The soul has been operationally defined as the living force within that drives an individual to act towards righteousness. Drama on the other hand has the capacity to unleash or awaken the soul of the individual. As discussed in this paper, a drama has several features that enable it to be the school environments’ soul. For instance, it has been noted that dramas allow students to develop as a person. By experiencing the difficulties of being in a drama, students learn to appreciate the finer things in life as well as overcome life’s difficult challenges. Dramas also result to the enhancement of the students’ different skills. This art form also allows the learning and appreciation of various cultural concepts. All in all, dramas help students by shaping them into better individuals. It has been said that a school without a drama is a school without a soul. As dramas have the ability to direct students towards righteousness, this form of art is indeed the schools’ soul-provider.
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