Collaborative Dramaturgy for Student Activism: Engaging and Challenging Advanced 9th Grade Language Arts Students in the Age of Common Core

Graduate Thesis Or Dissertation

Citations

Citeable URL: https://scholar.colorado.edu/concern/graduate_thesis_or_dissertations/2801ph939

Abstract

Collaborative Dramaturgy for Student Activism is a pedagogical method with a special focus on secondary student populations. This strategy combines traditional dramaturgical practices with various applied theatre techniques such as Augusto Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed (TO) and educational concepts grounded in Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed. This dissertation details the use of this pedagogical method with advanced and Talented and Gifted students in advanced 9th grade classrooms in which Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing was used as the dramaturgical focus. The use of this method began with the script analysis conducted by the student dramaturgy teams and culminated with student performances and student-led educational outreach workshops which utilized Theatre of the Oppressed strategies. Research conclusions found that Collaborative Dramaturgy for Student Activism challenges advanced and Talented and Gifted (TAG) 9^th grade language arts students in mastering Common Core State Standards (CCSS) while engaging in relevant social issues in their community.

Creator