Milli mála - 01.01.2010, Blaðsíða 160
Independently from each other, but for the same reasons, we decid -
ed to include a performance at the end of the working process that
would be staged outside of the classroom. We think that a per-
formance, as a final stage of the process, has a big impact on the
motivation of the participants to be involved and to work collabo-
ratively towards a common goal. a performance beyond the
classroom with all the excitement and challenges that perform -
ances might involve is in many ways a special learning experience,
and most of the participating students have not done anything like
this before. We will discuss in the following sections the different
methods we use for trying to create a space that is suitable for ex -
ploring and critically engaging with experience in a foreign lan -
guage, and also how teachers and students explore how “to create
meaning through an artistic form”14. The experience that differ -
ences in pitch, facial expression or gesture can change meaning in
drama – based on responses in the rehearsals from other partici -
pants or in the performance from the audience – could also be rel -
evant for exploring the use of the same features (pitch, gestures,
etc.) and their meaning in another culture.
We regard the integration of the arts into foreign language
teaching as very useful and inspiring; we also think that it is im -
portant to provide the students with space for creativity which will
enable them to explore and develop their interests and understand-
ing of a topic. at a time when an entrepreneurial discourse15 – a
discourse that seeks to introduce market characteristics such as
competition, customer focus, and performance targets – has been
adopted by many universities, it is important to analyse critically
the evaluative categories that are used to assess learning outcomes.
‘Creativity’ as such might not easily translate into such evaluative
categories. Drama and other arts can have a profound impact on the
learning environment by allowing students to explore and experi-
ment, and to gain a different and deeper understanding of an issue
CrEaTIng SPaCE
160
drama studio that could be used for rehearsals, performances, readings, and voice and
speech training, etc. Hopefully the university of Iceland will be aware of this need and will
provide an appropriate rehearsal and performance space in the future.
14 Fleming, The Art of Drama Teaching, p. 6.
15 andrea Mayr, Language and Power. An Introduction to Institutional Discourse, London:
Continuum, 2008, p. 26.
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