I was taking a jog today and did some self-evaluating time on some personal devotional time with God. I recalled on what Annie said the other day during the Twentieth century theatre on Monday about the fruits of the spirit on the tree, which we were talking about in Beckett's 'Waiting for Godot'. One of the fruits was patience. Patience linked to the games I used to play during my secondary school times, such as Metal Gear Solid. It dawn on me that such games actually train us to become patient in a way but we do not realise it. For example, the sneaky missions in Metal Gear Solid trains us to become patient and to wait for the enemies to pass by before getting caught. I remember how my brother would be so impatient and he would always fail the stage.
However, video games such as these does not really develop us mentally, physically and emotionally as much as drama process. Why? Because other elements of the video game overrides the goodness we see. For example, kids tend to focus more on the violence and bloodshed of the game rather than training endurance or patience. To put it in a simpler way, no kid would say 'I become more patient' after playing the game. Instead, they say ' wow, there is blood' or 'wow, it just whacked my head off'. Video games are not exactly the best to rely on. Even if it is not a gory video game, for eg. a math game, it only trains the mind, not the body.
What better way than to learn our physco-motor skills and gain personal growth by doing rather than receiving it from a media? When we do it, we experience it, we gain something from it. Experience is the best in learning. It trains our senses and emotions, not just our minds. We think, feel and sense all at the same time. It is spontaneous and alive learning.
Lesson (By Ahmad and Joanne)
Game: scissors, paper, stone.
Kids had to walk around in snake or eagle forms and find the same animal to play scissors, paper, stone. The loser had to become an eagle. After losing for three times, they were out of the game.
In the morning, the kids were not really very active but they responded to the game. There was an air of heaviness to this morning but they warmed up slowly to the pacing of the game. They did not act very well in their animal forms probably due to low energy level and tiredness.
Activity 2
Scenario: A crowded lift. Still images of this scene. What happens when incidents start happening.
The kids were very creative in their thinking, gestures and actions. They freeze really well. When Ahmad called out 'Carmen holding a crying baby', they had freezed images so creative. All of them took part as well. They were so involved.
These kids are very good in their physco-motor skills. I also noticed that most of them are kinesthetic learners who can learn through doing. It gets them thinking by doing and experimenting. It comes back to reflective practice. Osterman and Kottkamp (1993) stated that 'learning is most effective, most likely effective when people become personally engaged in the learning process, and engagement is most likely to becomes a stimulus for experimentation.' (Pg 3-4). Many of these drama processes involves alot of kinesthetic movements where they think and do.
Activity 3
Doing Still images on their own scripts. I feel that doing still images or tableaux are good exercises to get to know their scripts better. It also enable team building and team boding skills. According to These activities allow 'very controlled form of expression which creates pictures that can be interpreted by the class – a picture is worth a thousand words' (Pg 5)
Our group (Ahmad, Joanne and Me as facilitators) were spontaneous and willing to learn. Khairul, the chairperson, was so willing to learn that I could even see that sparkle in his eyes when it comes to drama. The girls, even though they are weak in their english, were also willing to take up challenges and to imitate us. They imitate really well! We taught them a few gestures that they could use for their characters and they imitated us so quickly. Still images then gives them a rough idea of what their characters would look like and feel like. They get a sense of idea of their own characters so that when it comes to performance, they can embody their characters.
Reflection
Weaknesses:
Instructions were not very clear. Both facilitators speaking at the same time is fine but they had different way of explanations to the word 'Tableaux', so it was a little confusing. When someone speaks up for another person, there is a disruption of thought. I think it is best that only one talks and explains rather than having two to explain the same thing. It might be different in the way of explanation but the gist of the meaning is there. At least, there is lesser confusion.
Strength:
Even though the kids were of low energy level, I loved the way how Ahmad encourages them to be participative by he himself being participative in the game. The way he clapped his hands to encourage the students and how involved he was in the activities encouraged students to be more enthusiastic and responsive towards the activities.
I also like how at the end of every activity, Ahmad and Joanne would tell the students the purpose of doing the still images and Tableaux. Students will have a better understanding at why they have to do this. They would not be clueless and will be able to see the bigger picture. In the last two sessions, there was no explanation after doing the games and activities, which I find students may miss the main points of doing these. When there is no explanation, there is no understanding, Students would not be committed in doing their projects or scripts. They don't learn anything. Drama processes are not just to have fun without understanding the meaning and significance of doing them. As the objectives of drama as a pedagogical tool in education are to enhance their knowledge and develop their personal development, it is therefore necessary that they do not participate just for the fun but also they participate to learn and gain something from it.
The afternoon sessions were good. We had quality time with out group in working with the scripts. We specifically zone into their speech and language because it is about Speak Good English campaign, so we wanted them to pronounce the words right and increase their word bank. They were even willing to stay back to have drama sessions with us. It was encouraging and heart warming for us, or at least for me. I felt so touched that these kids were so enthusiastic about learning in drama classes.
Bibliography
Osterman, K. & Kottkamp, R. (1993) Reflective Practice for Educators: Improving Schooling Through Professional Development. California: Corwin Press.
Brown, L. Introduction to Drama in the Classroom. Retrieved from http://citz.co.uk/images/fileuploads/Intro_to_Drama_Resource_Pack_v2.pdf
Still Images
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