Educational Drama and Theater Pedagogy as an Integral Part of Training EFL Teachers

• In Event: 47.097 - Sheraton Roundtable Session Eight - Grand Centre
  In Roundtable Session: 47.097-6 - Art Studies in Education: Theater, Science, and EFL

Abstract

This mixed- methods research documents the integration of educational drama and theatre into a teacher preparation program for Austrian teachers-in-training who plan to teach English-as-a-foreign-language to Austrian school children. Observations were conducted of the plays developed and performed by two cohorts of Austrian teachers-in-training who participated in the teacher-preparation program. Observations were also conducted of the second cohort’s process developing a script based on a young adult novel, as well as their process of producing and performing the play for middle-school and adult audiences. In addition, a survey of participants’ perceptions of the program was conducted. This study investigates how the teachers-in-training responded to the process of creating and performing a play, and their perceptions of its benefits and challenges.

Author

• Wendy K. Mages, Mercy College