Intercultural Drama Ethnic Minority Children and the Arts Drama And
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The Journal of National Drama Volume 8 No 2 Summer 2001 DONE FORUMrama MANY VOICES Intercultural drama Ethnic minority children and the arts Drama and digital technology Desenterrando o futuro Spirit Youth Theatre Festival £7.50 Cover design: Neil Baird, from an original photograph by Mark Mortimer Drama Magazine is the journal of National Drama The Journal of National Drama Volume 8 No 2 Summer 2001 DONE FORUMrama MANY VOICES Drama one forum many voices Intercultural drama Ethnic minority children and the arts Drama enables Drama educators and practi- Drama and digital technology tioners nationally and internationally to share theory Desenterrando o futuro Spirit Youth Theatre Festival and practice, debate key issues, publish research, engage in critical analysis and express personal opin- ions Drama is committed to the promotion, support and development of new writers Drama is an equal opportunities publication in line with National Drama policy £7.50 Editor Chris Lawrence Design and production Dokumenta Drama Editorial Board ONLINE Judith Ackroyd, Win Bayliss, Chris Lawrence, Marie-Jeanne McNaughton, Ned Milne, John Rainer. Ex officio: Pam Bowell and Jan Macdonald. The Drama magazine website Editorial Our World Wide Website Chris Lawrence, ND publications, Drama, at Central School of Speech and Drama, contains news items, Eton Avenue, London NW3 3HY, United Kingdom. publications, reviews and Telephone: 020 7722 4730. EMail: [email protected] much more. Advertising You can access the pages for contact Gabriela Lerner Drama Magazine advertising free, download information, Dokumenta, The Coppice, Higher Coombe, Shaftesbury SP7 9LR Telephone: 01747 858801, Fax: 01747 858803 make comments, and link to EMail: [email protected] other related internet sites. The views expressed in Drama are those of the writers and do rama not necessarily represent ND policy. www.dramamagazine.co.uk © all material in Drama may be photocopied for personal, education and training purposes. Please credit Drama. The National Drama website is at Published in Spring and Autumn each year. www.nationaldrama.co.uk See inside back cover for detailed information about copy dates, writing for Drama and advertising. ISSN 0967-4454 D Summer 2001 Editorial CONTENTS You may have noticed that the last two issues of Drama have been blessed with twins – pairs of articles, independently written, on a similar theme. Not identical twins, however: the differences are as striking as the 2 similarities. In Drama 7.2 we enjoyed the fascinating stories of two very The Drama Profile different, but equally epic, journeys by Secondary School Drama groups Dale Rooks talks to to the Edinburgh Festival: one article by Gill McNeil and one by David Teresa Matkowski Morris. And in the last issue, Sight Unseen by Teresa Izzard twinned with Aine Murphy’s article Making Movies to explore the theme of visual 4 impairment in two very different ways. Texts, images In this issue we are ‘twice blessed’ – two pairs of twins! In his article, and digital Not Now, Technology? David Simpson explores the interaction of drama manipulation with digital technology and a Primary focused text, in the belief that, Miles Tandy uses his ‘by its very nature, drama can shape technology’; while Miles Tandy, digital experience in Texts, Images and Digital Manipulation, also with a Primary classroom to great effect in mind, but with Hamlet as his text, suggests ways of using Microsoft PowerPoint, PhotoEditor and other such programmes in a creative and 7 dramatic way. The Kicking Out Our other pair of twins is a welcome and timely contribution to the Project debate on the social inclusion of ethnic minorities in our schools. In Zeena Rasheed encouraging TIME 2001 Sita Brahmachari and Kristine Landon-Smith describe their ethnic minority children to ongoing project to develop ‘research-based plays in intercultural contexts participate in the arts using Balti Kings as a model’. Their practical work has had a very relevant – and topical – significance: 13 ‘Following the tragic killing of Damilola Taylor in November 2000, Time 2001 interviews with the Nigerian community and the family brought up Placing teachers voices at many of the issues touched on in student work between Mrs Bonsoo, her the centre of the son and the headmaster.’ intercultural debate Tamasha’s stated aim, borne out by the teachers’ voices in their article, is ‘to place teachers’ voices for the first time at the centre of the 22 intercultural debate.’ Spirit The other twin to this theme is just such a teacher, Zeena Rasheed, Polly Toynbee describes The who is herself a member of the Asian community. In her article, The International Youth Kicking Out Project – Encouraging ethnic minority children to tread the boards, Theatre Festival 2000 Zeena asks, ‘Why were so few of our black and Asian students opting for Drama?’ Her exploration of this question leads us into some very delicate 24 and disturbing areas of discussion, because some of the obstacles to the Not Now, Technology desired interculturalism which she encounters appear to be embedded in the Islamic religious tradition itself: David Simpson ‘Islam has certain limits... these include... the prohibition of free discusses digital mixing of the sexes...’ and ‘...these aspects of art which involve human technology in drama images... are specifically prohibited.’ 29 In her thoughtful and authentic journey of research Zeena evaluates Desenterrando such influences from her own experience of her students in her school o futuro and discovers many contradictions. with Dan Baron Cohen and These two fascinating articles are very important contributions: we Marcia Pompeo Nogueira must agree with Tamasha that it is indeed vitally important that teachers’ voices should be at the centre of the intercultural debate – work like 39 Zeena’s is not just important: it is urgent. Book Reviews Chris Lawrence Summer 2001 Drama Magazine 1 Interview Dale Rooks talks to Teresa Matkowski The Drama Profile Head of Drama, Teresa Matkowski, edge base we would expect to Your delivery of drama is notably leaves home each day at 6.30 am find in our KS4 pupils, and found successful. How do you measure this with a 35 minute drive to Noadswood that they were often lacking knowl- success in terms of your own teach- School, Dibden Purlieu, Southampton, edge of non-naturalistic forms. They ing and pupils’ achievement? and rarely returns until 7 in the often did not have the skills to evening. In between, lies her life in the put together a piece of theatre that I consider it a great compliment that school: marking registers, briefings, one moved beyond ‘soap’, so we decided the TES recently visited my school to one pupil profile interviews, adminis- to rethink our approach to the cur- and reported that, ‘in a drama ses- tration, supervision duties, assemblies, riculum. We were also aware of the sion pupils were transfixed, moved meetings with the NQT, after school research which had shown the dif- and moving in their responses.... rehearsals for school productions - and ferent learning and teaching styles they discussed, collaborated, negoti- teaching drama to 330 pupils in the available to us as teachers and to the ated and in the end came up with week! Her evening at home is then pupils. More often than not the boys some arresting vignettes in the short devoted to planning work, marking or were underachieving in many sub- time allotted to them, ably convey- maybe going to the theatre, with only jects, so we decided to employ differ- ing threat, despair and indomitable one night off in the week for total relaxa- ent teaching styles in our schemes human spirit, with nothing more tion! However, Teresa is still happy to of work to see if we could engage than their own bodies. There was no run freelance workshops in half terms all pupils equally. We devised new smirking, shirking or messing about; and holidays because she enjoys it so titles for working units; for example, and the boys were in there 100 per much! That’s what I call dedication – or in Year 7 we included Storytelling, cent, alongside the girls.’ (TES, Cur- madness! Mime and Physical Theatre, Greek riculum Special, Spring 2001) I was Theatre; in Year 8, amongst others, initially wary of introducing level Conventions of Theatre, Non-Natu- descriptors as I felt that it would In school, her most recent exciting ralistic and Medieval Theatre. We be difficult to put dramatic progress direction focuses upon non-natural- worked on non-naturalism with Year into words or for it to be measured, istic expression as a way of engaging 8 pupils as we were constantly get- but I have witnessed the progress year 7 & 8 pupils and, more specifi- ting dramas played out in the class- our pupils have made since they cally, as a way of raising the profile room about ‘the stolen diary’ or have been using levels in other sub- of boys’ low achievements. ‘mum, I’m pregnant’. We wanted jects. They came to my lesson want- to move away from this, so that ing to know what level they were at Why Non-Naturalism? pupils could find other ways of work- and to be able to go away and dis- ing with new stimuli and alternative cuss that level with another pupil At the end of last year, the depart- ways of presenting their ideas. So in the class, and for that level to ment and I felt that it was time to far it has proven successful with mean something. Now pupils ask me rejuvenate the content of the lessons. the result that boys and girls now what they need to do in order to We focused on the skills and knowl- achieve equally. achieve a particular level and how 2 Drama Magazine Summer 2001 Interview News they can improve on that.