Based on today's class session and the clips from Chris Pirlet's class at Aberdeen Central, does it seem to you that theater games would work well as a social science teaching technique? What do you see as positives and negatives about theater games? Do you think you will use theater games yourself when you teach? Why, or why not?
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Classrooms Full of Stars
Based on today's class session and the clips from Chris Pirlet's class at Aberdeen Central, does it seem to you that theater games would work well as a social science teaching technique? What do you see as positives and negatives about theater games? Do you think you will use theater games yourself when you teach? Why, or why not?
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8 comments:
I don't believe theater games would work well as a social science teaching technique. In an age with No Child Left Behind teachers (sadly) have to be focused on outcome-based education. I believe with theater games there is not enough structure. The ability for students to stray from the desired topic is enormous. The standards desired by No Child Left Behind do not allow for theater games to have a practical use in the classroom.
Does this game have a positive? Yes, but the only positive I see in it is the ability to break up the monotony of the regular class structure. However, as a teacher our duty to students is to teach them the skills and content necessary for them to excel in the school establishment. Granted, every presentation we make cannot blow our students minds away, but we have enough opportunities to make our classes fun and interesting without the use of theater games.
Theater games would indeed work well if they are constructed properly by the instructor and it is related to the subject that is being discussed in the classroom. Students in science classes are allowed to conduct experiment. In a way, theater games are like the equivalent to a science experiment in social sciences.
No Child Left Behind has set up standards for learning in the schools that seem to some to cut out the fun. However, a social science teacher can use theater games to reinforce the points made in class, allowing students to retain the knowledge gain in their studies. If we want children to truly learn the material, sometimes the best presentation is not good enough.
I think that the theatre games would add an additional spark to history classes throughout high school and junior high. I would think that the games would be helpful for ancient history because it would liven up the black and white history.
My favorite part of the theatre games was watching Jason try to convince parents that steroids where ok for little league baseball. That will be a skit in twenty years when the steroid era hits the textbooks for high school history.
I also think theater games could be used in a classroom for any kind of social science. At the high school and middle school level it would have to be closely monitored to make sure the students are doing what they are supposed to be doing. As long as the teacher keeps control of the room I believe they could be an asset to any teacher.
I believe theater games would really be used well for covering current events. This would be a chance for the students to relate with what is going on and express or develop an opinion on some of the current issues that they may not pay attention to otherwise.
I feel theater games are a good supplemental instructional tool. They should also not be one of the core ways of teaching your curriculm in my opinion. I could see using it at the end of a Unit as a way of gaining an idea of what your students really retained from the Unit. The things they bring up in their skits are what they have put in their memory bank. As far as the games where students describe an object, I feel that is a great interductory game to be played the within the first few days of class, but really do not see it as a way of assessing the students knowledge about a unit.
A poitive I can see with theater games is it engages the students in activity besides lecture and videos (boys int the classroom + learning that involves movement = a good thing). However, I can see some students becoming so nervous about performing that their performance is ALL they become focused on and not what the other students are presenting.
I feel that it is a high possibilty that I will use these games in my classroom occasionally.
Yes I do believe that theater games would be a good use of class time every once and awhile in a social science classroom. Theater games give the students a good break from the material that is given to them, mostly in lecture form. However, I do think that it would be important to make sure that the students are staying on task and not just goofing off.
Really the only negative that I see in theater games is that in many cases, in high school and middle school, students are often very self conscious and shy and they would not enjoy participating in theater games. In this case, it is the teacher's responsibility to make theater games as low pressure of a situation as possible so that these students will feel comfortable.
I think that if I find the right topic, I would definitely use theater games in my future classroom. It gives the students a chance to have hands on history, rather than reading out of a textbook and doing a worksheet.
Theater games will work well if they are executed in the way that you presented. If the kids feel that they can be comfortable performing in front of the class, then I think that they will get something out of it. One positive aspect about theater games is that it is an opportunity for the kids to do something hands on. A negative aspect is that there is always going to be someone in the group that has a small part and is not as involved.
I forgot to answer the last question. I think that I will definitely try at least to use theater games in my classroom and at least see how the kids like it.
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