As you can see I’ve undergone some major changes from the questions posted on the previous post a DSO journal. This has come about through some work shopping of a proposal using those questions which helped me to realise what the real focus of the research was, not so much being cyber bullying but group devising. Anyway here it is:
Student researcher: Nick Mawson
Principle researchers: Jo Raphael and Yoni Prior
Discipline Area: Drama and Theatre
Provisional working title:
Group devised theatre as a pedagogical tool
Project summary:
This project involves the creation and documentation of an original theatre in education performance on the theme of cyber-bullying aimed at secondary school aged students. The work will be created through collaborative group devised processes with the aim of investigating its uses as a pedagogical tool. The research will involve determining ways that educationalists have used group devised processes effectively as an educative tool. Part of this research will include interviewing contemporary theatre in education practitioners in order to inform understanding about their practices. The discoveries made in this area will be used to inform for this research project. In this way the research will inform the practice and the practice will inform the research. The theme of cyber-bullying will be explored using these researched and developed group devised processes to create the original theatre in education performance. The processes undertaken will be documented and examined to investigate how collaborative group devising theatre can be used as a learning tool and a means of better understanding the phenomenon of cyber-bullying.
Project main aim:
To investigate how collaborative group devised theatre can be used as a educative tool.
Project subsidiary aims:
To determine in what ways educationalists have used this approach to learning.
To establish in what ways this can be applied in exploring the theme of cyber-bullying.
Significance statement:
This project will increase the understanding of the educational uses of group devising theatre and specifically theatre in education. Furthermore it will develop an increased or deeper understanding of the concept of cyber-bullying that couldn’t otherwise be gained than through this projects collaborative group devising processes.
Expected outcomes:
Increased understanding of the educational uses of group devised theatre practices.
A collaborative group devising model for theatre in education practices.
A theatre in education performance developed on the theme of cyber-bullying.
Deeper understanding of cyber-bullying gained through and only through the processes of collaborative group devised theatre.
Key references:
Heddon, D. and J. Milling (2005), Devising performance: a critical history, New York,
Jackson, T. (1980), Learning through theatre: essays and casebooks on Theatre in Education, Manchester, Manchester University Press.
Palgrave Macmillan.
O’Toole, J. (1976), Theatre in education: new objectives for theatre – new techniques in education, London; Sydney; Auckland; Toronto, Hodder and Stroughton.
Oddey, A. (1996), Devising theatre: a practical and theoretical handbook, London; New York, Routledge.
Savran, D. and D. Savran (1988), Breaking the rules: the Wooster Group, New York, Theatre Communications Group.
This is just a working proposal and after speaking with one of my supervisors I have already got changes to make but am waiting on feedback from my peers and mentors for the subject I’m undertaking before updating it.
I have a journal on DSO which other people in the honours cohort can read and post about but I just thought why am I not posting those here as well. So I’ve written two posts for it; here they are:
Date: 12 March 2008 3:41 PM
So first post and all that and time to do some explaining. So was struggling with the whole research thing but have been told many times now that the questions are an organic work in progress so I guess the point here is don’t stress about them. So that being said Yoni also said that the question needs to fit the research which was previously not the case but since a couple of consultations/emails I’ve got somewhere near it. Anyway with out further delay here it is.
Title of project – ??
Main question:
What is the role of the director in the development of group devised theatre in education relevant for secondary school students?
Subsidiary questions:
- What constitutes relevant theatre in education for secondary school students?
- What strategies do directors employ to ensure devised theatre in education is relevant for secondary school students?
- How do directors refine their skills from one project to the next to ensure ongoing relevance and success for their projects?
So anyone a project synopsis may be required. I will be undertaking the role as director in the development of two theatre in education pieces one during first semester and the second during second semester. The first is a for an eastern tertiary information service that Yoni offered me to undertake at the end of 0 week. Since then I have agreed to take it on and will be working with four third year drama students . The project has a brief which must be followed. The second project is also theatre in education in which I will be organizing to show to one/some schools and which will be developed around the issue of ‘cyber-bullying’. The aim again is to be working in the development of the piece with 3rd year drama students. Anyway thats it in a nutshell.
I do have a blog which has been started and details the project all though since changing some aspects of the project; therefore it may not be 100% accurate as I haven’t had the chance to update it. Anyway check ti out if you want at: nicko01.edublogs.org
Date: 13 March 2008 2:22 PM
Hi all,
Well after receiving Frances great feedback and then speaking with Yoni I have been directed to better focus my questions and project. Firstly I should probably clarify about this two projects. The first the eastern TIS (Tertiary Information Services) is a paid gig offered to me through the deakin marketing department which has run a similar thing for a number of years. I’m now using this project as a laboratory (at Frances advice) for testing methods of creating group devised performance because my actually project involves creating a group devised performance on ‘cyber-bullying’. While I may draw on aspects of this for my exegeses it will not be a focus as such just a testing ground for the actually TiE piece on ‘cyber-bullying’. The brief for the performance has asked it to be 5 to 15 minutes long. I know Frances has been stressing out about me taking on too much so I just wanted you to know that it isn’t a massive project.
Ok great that’s that for the moment.
After meeting with Yoni earlier today and reading John O Toole’s fabulous book ‘Doing Drama Research: Stepping into inquiry in drama, theatre and education’ I’ve come to the realization in Yoni’s words that I don’t have to cure Cancer. That being said its clear now that my project will be new research because I’m undertaking the creation of an original piece of work. This work and reflection on the process of development allow me to answer the question I’m wanting answered. which will be used to reflect on the process and discover the question I have set out to look at. The distinction is that people may have group devised theatre in ed. before they may have even group devised theatre in ed. on cyber-bullying but they won’t have done it the way that I will be doing it. I have therefore changed my main and subsidiary questions to better reflect the project and not the other way around.
Main question:
How is the issue of ‘cyber-bullying’ explored through the creation of a group devised theatre in education performance?
Subsidiary questions:
- What is theatre in education?
- What is cyber-bullying?
- What and how will the story be told and what will it look like?
- What is the process of group devising ensemble performance?
- What methods of group devising do theatre in education practitioners use?
So where am I at the moment?
I did some research on bullying and cyber-bullying and have located some good resources for those, not sure if enough but feels adequate for the moment. Since then I
have been researching artifacts in the form of video, newspaper articles, online stories, online posts and other material to use as artifacts that will be used in the process of creating the piece. This has brought up the question of how many I will use/need. This means needing to research what previous group devised performances have done. So now I venture into investigating the subsidiary question – What is the process of group devising ensemble performance?
I think I have typed enough for today so I’ll leave it at that. Enough said.
Looking above the title bar as I’m typing I have three blog drafts that I haven’t published mainly because of a real lot of confusion regarding my project. The clouds are starting to ascend and I’m beginning to get a better understanding of some key concepts about research and especially about devising research questions. Grasped the understanding that the questions must fit the research and not visa versa. So this meant that I’m developing a TiE piece on the issue of cyber-bullying, the questions need to address this and not something that builds from that. The question is not set in stone as the process is a work in progress and organic in a way but I believe the following question seems to suit.
How is the issue of ‘cyber-bullying’ explored through the creation of a group devised theatre in education performance?
It has also become apparent that I don’t have to cure cancer metaphorically speaking and that this is new research because it hasn’t been undertaken yet in so far as the way that I will be undertaking it. So since figuring out the basis for my research I have been researching group devising techniques. The plan is to use another gig I have secured through the Deakin marketing department as a laboratory for exploring and testing these techniques. So this gig which is for the eastern TIS (Tertiary information Services) is on the transition between secondary and tertiary education. At the moment I’m struggling waiting for some prospective group members to reply as to if they want to be a part of the gig or not. Second to that I’m researching and gathering artifacts that relate to both performances; cyber-bullying and the transition from secondary to tertiary study. So other things that I’m in the process of doing include:
Organizing meeting and viewing of TiE performances
Re-drafting my time line for the project
sorting up some ethics stuff, including getting the ethics application form and writing a plain language statement
Anyway that’s it for this post, I’ll write another shortly about how I’m proposing to undertake the TIS performance, once I get some actors.
