Modern Constructivism TIPR - Theatre Arts
Is it just me, or does every learning theory fit into theatre in some way? Well, all of the good ones anyway. This seems to be true for Modern Constructivism as well. It is a big beautiful burrito of all of the intrinsically motivated, identity development centered, learning theories out there.
There is one case where this is usually done in theatre unintentionally! When a person is in a play for the first time they have to understand stage directions. Stage directions refers to the areas of the stage that an actor is directed to be or move to during a scene. In the Secondary Theatre class for 7-8 graders I have been observing the teacher asked the class if they had ever been taught stage direction. The majority of the class said no. She then asked if the class understood the terms of stage directed such as "up center", most said yes. The reason for this is that frequently a new actor will be told where to go on the stage using stage direction terms and if they don't understand where to go, they either collaborate with fellow actors, search for clues around them, or go to the wrong place only to be corrected by the director. Once they understand what the director means by "up stage" they can then deduce what "up left" means, and so forth. If they go to the wrong place enough times the director or other actors usually give advice on remembering stage direction such as "left and right stage are the actor's left and right side when on stage and facing the audience". The process of learning stage direction is usually constructed by the actor through an active process, while collaborating with fellow actors and director, causing the actor to reflect on what they have learned of the terminology, is inquiry based, and can be evolving as they experience acting on different stages such as theatre in the round.
Another area of theatre that is constructivist based learning is auditioning. Most actors who audition for a play for the first time have never been taught how to audition well. The first time actor usually goes into an audition and just does what they are told hoping for the best. This is a very trial and error way of learning. The theatre teacher in this class made the audition experience more of a constructivist learning experience by teaching a mini audition unit before the actual auditions for the school play. The unit was only two classes and in the first the teacher gave tips and basic advice on auditioning. In the second class she gave the students a chance to practice cold reading, an audition process where the actor is given a few minutes to read through and practice lines they have not seen before, and then perform them for the casting team. They practiced doing cold readings for small groups and then the groups giving feedback as well as the teacher rotating through the groups. The teacher did a good job of helping the students construct an understanding of a good audition and then let them be active in practicing and experimenting on her tips. Letting the students cold read for each others was an effective way to let the students collaborate, reflect on what they would do, and learn from each other.
I feel that Modern Constructivism is rooted in metacognition. I like that this concept is very growth mind oriented. The focus is on the process, not the outcome. It is focused on discovery of what works for the student, not just what the teacher wants to hear. This not only promotes long term memory but also self discovery and identity development.
There is one case where this is usually done in theatre unintentionally! When a person is in a play for the first time they have to understand stage directions. Stage directions refers to the areas of the stage that an actor is directed to be or move to during a scene. In the Secondary Theatre class for 7-8 graders I have been observing the teacher asked the class if they had ever been taught stage direction. The majority of the class said no. She then asked if the class understood the terms of stage directed such as "up center", most said yes. The reason for this is that frequently a new actor will be told where to go on the stage using stage direction terms and if they don't understand where to go, they either collaborate with fellow actors, search for clues around them, or go to the wrong place only to be corrected by the director. Once they understand what the director means by "up stage" they can then deduce what "up left" means, and so forth. If they go to the wrong place enough times the director or other actors usually give advice on remembering stage direction such as "left and right stage are the actor's left and right side when on stage and facing the audience". The process of learning stage direction is usually constructed by the actor through an active process, while collaborating with fellow actors and director, causing the actor to reflect on what they have learned of the terminology, is inquiry based, and can be evolving as they experience acting on different stages such as theatre in the round.
Another area of theatre that is constructivist based learning is auditioning. Most actors who audition for a play for the first time have never been taught how to audition well. The first time actor usually goes into an audition and just does what they are told hoping for the best. This is a very trial and error way of learning. The theatre teacher in this class made the audition experience more of a constructivist learning experience by teaching a mini audition unit before the actual auditions for the school play. The unit was only two classes and in the first the teacher gave tips and basic advice on auditioning. In the second class she gave the students a chance to practice cold reading, an audition process where the actor is given a few minutes to read through and practice lines they have not seen before, and then perform them for the casting team. They practiced doing cold readings for small groups and then the groups giving feedback as well as the teacher rotating through the groups. The teacher did a good job of helping the students construct an understanding of a good audition and then let them be active in practicing and experimenting on her tips. Letting the students cold read for each others was an effective way to let the students collaborate, reflect on what they would do, and learn from each other.
I feel that Modern Constructivism is rooted in metacognition. I like that this concept is very growth mind oriented. The focus is on the process, not the outcome. It is focused on discovery of what works for the student, not just what the teacher wants to hear. This not only promotes long term memory but also self discovery and identity development.
Comments
Post a Comment