Using drama in a basic skills class

November 2004

Drama and basic skills are words you might not expect to find in the same sentence, but this month, we met with three tutors and visited their classes to see how they are using drama as a vehicle to teach basic skills.

City Lit, London, has recently developed courses for ESOL learners which combine language and drama as a pilot for developing a full programme of embedded basic skills courses. Drama seemed an ideal starting point to support the development of students self-confidence and persona skills.

Teaching the same group of students, drama instructor Tim Taylor and ESOL teacher Mary Chinthala, work in partnership, sometimes overlapping and at other times delivering separate sessions. The course they teach offers students the chance to develop language skills in an ESOL session which are then vivified through role play, discussion, warm-up exercises etc in a drama-based session.

Most students in Tim and Mary’s class have just done the level 1 exam and are moving on to level 2. At the end of the course, the students will sit the level 2 exam and give a presentation on a subject of their choice, for example, a ceremony.

Mary teaches the grammar component of the class and Tim presents practical exercises through drama. Mary and Tim coordinate their lessons each week so that the grammar Mary covers supports the drama exercise Tim has planned and vice versa.

Mary feels that the drama component is an important part of preparing for the presentation. In the class we attended, students worked in pairs to come up with a story of a past event (eg. a holiday), which incorporated a range of learning points including the present perfect continuous tense and linking words. They then presented each other's stories to the group. In the drama exercise, their stories are used to inspire a theme for the activity.

Tim agrees that Mary's lesson "prepares the ground" for students to think about what life experiences they have had and how they might want to express them. It also gives students time to think about the idea before the exercise takes place.

Tim's exercise: Ilustrating a subject with your body: adapted from one of Augusto Boal's 'Image Theatre' techniques

In this exercise, Tim explains that the goal is to think about how we create verbal imagery using physical imagery. Secondly, Tim wants to be able to provide an opportunity for discussion, using opinion, viewpoint and interruption.

Tim asks half of the students in the class to leave the room and think about a physical pose, or static image to convey a theme - in this case happiness - inspired by the storytelling exercise with Mary. In the first instance, we see the images separately, emphasizing individual interpretations.

Each student returns to the class and, in turn, strikes their pose as the other students write a sentence with their interpretation of what the person is trying to express.

The next stage offers an opportunity for exploring a social development, in which individual images are then seen collectively, i.e. at the same time. Image makers and observers alike can reflect upon individual and shared perceptions of happiness as experienced through the manifestation and interpretation of physical expression in a group.

When participants re-depict their images collectively, some changes can occur and images or language relating to the theme may alter. Ideas around happiness and subjectivity / objectivity etc. can then form the basis for discussion as thoughts and feelings develop.

Aim of Tim's exercise:

• The individual representations of happiness offer opportunities for those observing as well as those making the images to develop language, e.g. through the writing of captions to accompany the physical images observed, which can then be shared verbally and discussed.
• Body language, or in this case physical 'image', be it one's own or someone else's, when used in a structured way as a basis for reflection a upon different aspects of human experience, provides a rich learning opportunity around personal and shared expression, perception of meaning, and the interpretation of ideas.


• To become more confident using English.

In his classes, Tim focuses on the action component of drama because it's about trying and being physical.

"Drama has scary associations about being on show, being looked at or being judged," Tim explains, "I know who I can get to participate and if there are quiet people who prefer to sit out, they will still support those who are doing, so it's a balancing act." Indeed, all of the students we met all participated, even the quieter ones and there was a lot of laughter and visible enjoyment evident in the class.

How to get started
The time in the term at which you introduce the drama element is important, Tim explains. His class is in week seven of the term. "The class is at a point where they feel comfortable responding to the challenges that have been taken, one step at a time."

In terms of feeling ready and confident, Tim advises tutors who are using drama in their class for the first time to think about what their intentions are and how the action will serve the goal.

"Get together with a few colleagues and workshop ides so you can work out any teething problems," Tim suggests, "that way you know what is likely to happen, or what the outcome is likely to be."

The one-person show

While it's helpful to have someone to work out ideas with, you don't need to work in partnership to use drama in a basic skills class. Michele Mills is a basic skills lecturer at Tamworth and Lichfield College in Staffordshire. Michele belongs to a drama group herself, which is how she ended up teaching 'Speaking and Listening skills through Drama'.

"To begin with, I was unsure about the capabilities of myself and my students – I have since been pleasantly surprised by both!"
"Not only were my students able to show different emotions on cue through body language and facial features, but they are excellent at hot-seating."

Michele uses a variety of exercises in her class each week as well as working on bigger class projects. Last year, Michele used a narrator (so that the students only had a few lines to learn) and borrowed costumes and a makeshift stage to present a play.

"Students were hesitant at first," Michele says, "but they stayed focussed and even helped to make props and design the programme handout."

Ideas for using drama in basic skills

Hot seating is a way that students can try out a character they might be considering as a role in a play. A chair is placed in the middle of the room. When student sits in the chair, they become the character they want to play.

Using improvisation is a good way of getting students to act things out. For example, standing in a circle and giving students an object. As the object is passed around, each student acts with the prop to demonstrate what they interpret it to be to the rest of the class.

A play… start with an idea

When her students asked Michele if they could do a play, Michele searched the internet for material using key words such as 'drama' and 'lesson plan' and 'free scripts'. Michele considered the interests of the students in her class when it came to deciding on a play. When one of her students was very keen about the film, the Titantic, Michele decided to look at it as an idea for a play.

"When we started working on the script, sometimes the lines didn't work, so I encouraged the students to re-write them. We did this as an in-class lesson in writing."

What drama can bring to a basic skills class

Michele believes that by using drama in her class, students can improve their speaking and listening skills. "It helps students to speak clearly and listen to other people as well as improve discussion skills."

Tim believes drama increases his students confidence and that, in turn, facilitates learning. In the first term, the emphasis was being able to get up in front of the class. Tim believes tutors shouldn't be afraid to explore and experiment with drama as long as you remember, "It isn't about achieving some fixed goal."

Further resources:

Creative Drama in Groupwork published by Winslow Press. this handbook provides 150 ideas for drama activites, including warm-ups,games, role play and visual dynamics

Augusto Boal (1995) The rainbow of desire, Translated by Adrian Jackson, London Routledge

Augusto Boal (1992) Games for actors and non actors, Translated by Adrian Jackson, London, Routledge