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Drama: Secondary| Key resources 4 - Managing space, time and contracted learning
Management principles for drama
There are certain management principles that can assist trainees in making effective use of the time and space and physical behaviours of students in drama lessons.
| Element |
Principles |
| space
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- Make sure that the space for drama is clean, well prepared and cleared of everything but the essential furniture or equipment required for the lesson. Pupils will pick up on the signs the space gives them. If it is messy, dirty and neglected students will respond accordingly!
- Anticipate the problems the space might create. Begin lessons with a formal use of the space; have the students enter and sit in a formal circle of chairs (or on the floor) or have groups of chairs pre-arranged if the lesson begins with group work.
Establish clear boundaries for student work; place groups yourself so that they are not too crowded or too distant; make corners, levels and dangerous space off-limits; insist on students working within the space that has been allocated so that they don't interfere with other groups.
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| time/tasks |
- Give groups clear objectives and an expectation of the outcome of group work. Set and keep to time limits for each group task.
- Anticipate potential problems of noise, aggressive behaviour and uncontrolled use of space and furniture by including constraints in the briefing for group work. I want you to…I don't want you to…This isn't an opportunity to have a fight and roll all over the floor…I don't want to see anyone crossing over into another groups' space…
- Consider carefully how a scheme of work will be broken up into lesson-units. Where do the natural breaks occur? How can the endings, beginnings and homework be used to strengthen links between lessons which may be a week apart? Begin lessons by having students re-cap from last lesson, end by anticipating how the work will develop in the next lesson. Give students questions to consider or homework related to the drama (e.g. writing in role, making a map or mask) between lessons.
- Vary the experience of time so that there is an enjoyable and satisfying balance between the quiet reflective and slow analysis of the relationship between time, space and presence and busy, energetic episodes when the drama may move forward more rapidly.
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| behaviour |
- Carefully consider the size and composition of groups in terms of gender, ability, friendship groups, power dynamics.
- Develop an explicit contract that is a negotiated and agreed set of rules or ‘manners' to control, protect and respect the students.
- Use a variety of groupings within the lesson; whole class, small elective groups, small selected groups, pairs.
- Make sure that you know everyone's name! It is difficult to control individual behaviour without being able to name the individual. Identify leaders or key players in the group and work with them to gain respect and interest.
- Isolate disruptive or negative students either by careful consideration of groupings – dispersed or contained in one group. Don't allow one or two students to prevent the rest from working. Avoid confrontation in front of the whole class by organising group work whilst you deal with disruptive students privately; keep them out of the group work until they have accepted your terms.
- In group work allow students the possibility of contributing to the making without having to perform themselves. Students are more likely to perform if they don't have to!
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