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Applied Theatre Blog 6

What does Freire mean by the Banking Model of Education ?

I believe that when Freire refers to ‘Banking Model of Education’ they are referring to the traditional form of education which we are all accustomed too, this form of education is unbalanced and relies on a hierarchy based system of the teachers being the leaders and the students being the followers. This form of teaching is out of date and uses a one size fits all attitude when it comes to teaching and learning, ‘banking’ as Freire calls it is the act of the information being regurgitated from the teacher to student and then that information is recited back. This form of teaching allows no room for error and if the student makes an error they are disciplined for it instead of being celebrated for taking the risk and being strong in their answer.

Have you had experience with this type of teaching, how do you feel about it ? if not, how do you think you might feel about it?

I like many others know the ‘Banking Model of Education’ all too well and personally I detest the thought of it being used in the education system because I believe it is the number one cause of self-esteem issues in children.  As someone who suffers with learning difficulties I have found this form of education to be unsupportive and cruel to people that suffer like myself because we are singled out and made to feel stupid for not being smart enough as we are unable to fit the mould.

For this we are then separated from our peers and placed into separate groups outside of the classrooms to learn, this creates a feeling of not being good enough and later results in the feeling of our goals and aspirations being impossible to reach due to us not getting a certain grade on a test. This system of education punished students for things out of their control along with crushing any creative output by telling the student it will get them nowhere in life and it’s better to do it as a hobby because you’ll never be able to make a carrier out of anything creative.

I feel that this form of education needs vast improvement and if it looked and took inspiration from applied theatre it would greatly benefit the mental health of students.

How do Freire’s ideas relate to Preston’s ideas of critical facilitation?

Although their ideas are similar they don’t exactly relate to one another because Critical Facilitation is influnced by things such as history, politics and our social culture and once we look at these things we are able to draw our own conclusion and understand how these effect how and why we teach. But ‘Banking’ does not allow any room for moveability it is a set structure that has a pre-set conclusion.

The only area where they follow a similar path is the idea of being free, the idea of liberation is the only time as where a teacher and facilitator both have the power to encourage liberation of the mind.

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Applied Theatre Blog 5

In your Own Words discuss what Johnson means by six polarities?

What I have discovered from reading this week’s material is that drama is made up of six polarities, these six break down drama and make it easier to understand, this has been done to benefit facilitators because it makes them more adaptable as they approach and teach various different groups.

There are six polarities :

The fixed and the free,

the surface and depth

the centre and the edge

the individual and the collective

the performer and the audience

the simple and the complex.

These six groups apply to almost every scenario a facilitator will encounter and discuss with a group.

Choosing one of the polarities name a situation where a facilitator might encounter one ?

In a drama workshop there is always a performer and audience based activity, with this kind of activity it is important for the facilitator to focus the group and encourage an accepting environment where all feedback is constructive and not destructive. This is important because the purpose of the performance and the audience is to create a space where we can positively affect one another’s performances safe in the knowledge that it is simply suggesting room for improvement. A good facilitator will initiate the discussion after the performance and create a structure that is beneficial for everyone involved and makes sure that no one is left out of the discussion.

However with this kind of activity it is important for the facilitator to have already established a safe space with a united group as the group needs to feel comfortable with one another otherwise when it comes to performing and giving feedback to one another the group may feel hesitant and reserved. This can cause the activity to affect the group in a negative way.

Choosing one of the polarities name a situation where a facilitator might encounter one ?

I encountered a version of the fixed and the free when I auditioned for Gloucester University, as part of an introduction exercise to get the group acquainted with being silly Infront of one another, we all became an animal of our choice and we were told the location we were in was a zoo. As a group we then had to interact with one another as that animal, we were given creative freedom over how this animal moved and behaved but the fixed rule was that we couldn’t use English to comuinicate. This activity helped break any barriers anyone within the group had and allowed the group to bond and mesh this proved to be important when it came to the audition process.

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Applied Theatre Blog Post 4

Is a game ever just a game in Applied Theatre?

To begin applied theatre is never just a game because the purpose of these ‘games’ is to encourage the participants in the workshop to work together and learn from one-another. These ‘games’ must always have a purpose and a reason for them being used otherwise you as a facilitator are not doing your job to the best of your ability, whilst the participants are under the impression it is a series of ‘games’ you as the facilitator are using these ‘games to create a safe space where the participants are able to learn and share information in a beneficial and supportive way. ” they will naturally discover them for themselves” (Kelly and National Association For Youth Drama (Ireland, 2014) the participants will soon realise the purpose of these ‘games and recognise them as many of these ‘games’ we would have played as children. As humans we learn through as senses this is understood when we are children but it is never carried through into adulthood but it is an important tool for us to be able to express our emotions and resolve our issues. We learn through touch, smell and what we see for example, this is what these games like to focus on, helping us connect with our minds to our bodies.

To clarify a game is never just a game in applied theatre it is a tool for learning and self-development.

How would you describe the role of a facilitator?

The qualities a facilitator must have are;

·      Adaptability

·      Confidence

·      Patience

These qualities are important to being a good facilitator because as a facilitator your job is to create a safe learning environment that your participants are able to be vulnerable within.

A facilitator has to be adaptable and willing to alter the workshop to fit the needs of the participants otherwise it becomes a stagnant and a non-inclusive learning environment along with this adaptability is great for any unexpected events or discovery’s that happen within the workshop because you as the facilitator are not caught off guard and are still able to guide and redirect the focus to keep the group on track.

Confidence is needed in order to assure the participants that you know what you are doing and it provides them with a sense of stability. Stability is important for a workshop environment because if you as a facilitator are not confident in your role, this will lead to the group becoming unstable and unsure of their purpose within the session. Then the workshop will not benefit anyone and can cause emotional distress and lack of trust in the facilitator.

Patience is always required as a facilitator because the most important role of being a facilitator is to cater to the needs of the group, these needs require a level of patience and understanding as every participant is different and will require various levels of understanding.

To conclude the main role of a facilitator is to educate, inform and look after the participants. The facilitator always wants the participants to leave a session feeling successful and confident with the knowledge and life skills they will have acquired of the course of the workshop.

What is the purpose of feedback in an Applied theatre session?

Feedback is one of, if not the most important part of any Applied theatre session because this is where the participants and the facilitator are able to take a step back and reflect on what they have learned throughout the session and ask themselves how do they feel? Feedback allows everyone in the room time to think of goals they want to achieve and what would they do differently in the next activity or what would they change in their everyday lives.

Bibliography

Kelly, D. and National Association For Youth Drama (Ireland (2014). Laying the foundations : a guide to youth drama facilitation. Dublin, Ireland: National Association For Youth Drama

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Applied Theatre Blog 3

In your own words Geese Theatres’ key theories?

Geese theatre is a mix off three different concepts that all work together to create a unique and one of a kind learning experience, those three concepts being;

Social leaning Theory

Role Theory

Cognitive-behavioural theory

These three have been chosen by Geese theatre in order to create a safe space and give offenders time to self-reflect and analyse their own behaviour. Geese always explores the role of behaviour with the offenders as it is important for them to see how their actions affect others. In order to show the serviety of their actions Geese theatre shows them stories of crime being committed that the offender may relate to or recognise, then the clips explore the thought process behind the crime from both points of view the person committing the crime and the person being a victim of said crime. The hope of this activity is that the offender will reflect and realise that their behaviour needs to change and Geese provides them with the techniques and skills to control and change their behaviour.

What specifically stood out for you in the Geese theatre reading?

The role reversal is what stood out the most to me from the reading because the offenders suddenly became the victims of the crime, they were now able to understand how their actions affected those they had wronged. The activity had the group to place their wallets a prized possession to them on the floor. The offenders then had to step away leaving their wallets exposed and in the open, they were then asked a series of questions such as “how would they feel if?”, this type of question allowed them to draw a conclusion and answer the question themselves. The vulnerability and sense of urgency this activity would have created would have been a smart tool in making the offenders self-reflect.

The use of material possessions of the offenders own personal items to reverse the role and place them in the situation of the victim is a perfect way to show how as a facilitator you must adapt and mould yourself and activities to the group you are working with. It is important because you are directing the message that they’ll be leaving with.

How does the work of Geese theatre company join up with the wider world of applied theatre and the idea of dominant narratives?

With regards to dominant narratives the easiest one to find is mentioned in the article Geese theatre is able to reduce the stigma around offenders because they treat the offenders as people first and secondly people that want to change and improve their lives for the better. Geese theatre ignores the popular misconception that offenders will offend again and replaces that narrative by showing that offenders if properly educated in morals and consequence of their actions will not re-offend as they are given the techniques of how to control and mange themselves.

Geese theatre is a classic example of an applied theatre group because the overall goal of applied theatre as a collective is to educate and help the community surrounding it. The company also has an ability to bring people together uniting them on an issue and then using one another to help fix that issue whilst also improving and developing themselves through the activities along with self-reflection.

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Applied Theatre Blog 2

What is meant by the term critical pedagogy?

To be able to breakdown, simplify and define the term critical pedagogy, I must first explain what pedagogy means. Pedagogy is another word for to teach or facilitate. Critical pedagogy is reassessing the way we teach by looking at influences around us such as politics or different cultural influences and how they affect the ways we facilitate. Those are things to take into account when it comes to teaching and facilitating.

What does Preston mean when she refers to the ‘cultural context’ of a group?

By cultural context I believe that Preston is referring to how in a room full of strangers we are still able to find something in common, this is due to cultural context. Cultural context could be something as simple as where we are from or any struggles and personal issues we all have in common but to clarify Preston does mention that the group doesn’t need to have much in common for this to work, it could only be one thing and this goes back to the rule of facilitating that ‘different needs need to be accommodated’ (Preston in Preston, 2016: 20). Preston also takes time to mention that whilst facilitating you must evaluate and take into consideration the cultural context of the situation/space you are facilitating within and as a facilitator you must be able to adapt and change you teaching methods to suit the group you are facilitating whilst being able to teach them in a suitable and beneficial manor.

Why is critical awareness important for a facilitator?

As a facilitator critical awareness is important because in order to be prepared and informed you must be able to analyse and evaluate the historical, social and cultural influences that attribute to the way you teach and how you teach.

References

Preston, S., 2016. Facilitation: pedagogies, practices, resistance. [ebook] London: Bloomsbury Methuen Drama. Available at: <https://www.vlebooks.com/Vleweb/Product/Index/892216?page=0&gt; [

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Applied Theatre Blog

How would you describe applied theatre to someone who has not read this introduction or experienced applied theatre in other ways?

If I were to describe applied theatre to a person who has not yet experienced it, I would start by mentioning that applied theatre is an umbrella term because this type of theatre is vast and covers a wide range of topics/genres such as social theatre, community theatre, educational theatre, Etc. The main goal/message applied theatre tires to portray is a message of wanting to educate and create a change, that change can be a social or personal change. Applied theatre has the ability to make you take a look within and causes you to question what would you do in certain situations or social environments, throwing you into those types scenarios can reveal a newfound appreciation/concern about that issue or topic. This style of theatre allows the facilitator or participant time to reflect and ask themselves what would they do different or what would they change going forward, this style of theatre has the power to make you question your morals and beliefs.

Re-read the thumbnail descriptions of applied theatre practices at the beginning of the chapter. Which of these types of applied theatre most draws your interest?  What is it that attracts you to this particular form? Write a reflection that begins with, “I could see myself working in this particular area of applied theatre because…”

The genre of Applied theatre that appeals to me the most has to be theatre in education, I could see myself working in this particular area of applied theatre because as humans we are never too old to learn or receive an education making this genre of applied theatre available to people of all ages and backgrounds. If I were to work within theatre and education I would focus my work within schools and the issue would focus on LGBTQ+ issues reflecting on my own education in school’s I received little to no information on this topic leading to a traumatic identity crisis, I was unable to accept myself for who I was as I couldn’t understand why I was attracted to the same gender and this was due to schools failure to keep up with the times and be inclusive. However, the one place I was able to be educated and learn to accept myself was through drama and more importantly applied theatre workshops that focused on the idea of looking at sexuality as something fluid, this inspires me to peruse theatre in education as I would be able to start a conversation and help start a journey of understanding, discovery and acceptance.

Material Used - Applied Theatre: International case studies and challenges for practice by Saxton, Juliana; Prendergast, Monica, released 2009. (accessed 23rd February 2021)