+

Water Reckoning Research RoundtableHeathcote Reconsidered Conference, July 7, 2013, Greenwich University, London

Present at session: Sue Davis, Xenia Simou, Christine Hatton, Mary Mooney, Julian Kennard With contributions also from: Prue Wales, Mei Yee Chang, Angelina Ambrosetti, Glenn Taylor, Jenny Nicholls & Jeffrey Tan

+Rolling Roll – what is it?

The concept of Rolling Role is to involve different groups or classes in building a community that then faces some kind of change. The initiators create a common context and agree to the key features, affairs and concerns of the community. The students/children are then involved in building the community, the lives, events and artefacts of it and add to developments.

Work is often left incomplete so another group can take it forward and continue the drama.

Work produced by classes if publicly open and available to stimulate other work.

Heathcote suggested this work lends it self to sharing through something like a website.

See ‘Contexts for active learning: four models’ By Dorothy Heathcote

+Site – type of school

Grade/Age Number of students/gender

Drama experience

Other relevant details

Queensland – Public secondary school – 1000 students

Year 10 – 14-5 years

25 students22 girls, 3 boys

1-3 years Little drama outside school. Limited process drama

Sydney – Independent school 1200

Year 9, 2 x year 10

21 students, - 11 girls, 9 boys

Elective drama

Quite a lot of out of school experience – NIDA etc

Greece – Public school near sea, approx. 230 students 15-18

15 years old

12 students – 11 girls, 1 boy

No school drama

Different type of drama work for students, hard to get together for co-curricular work.

Singapore - polytechnic

16 year olds

3 x classes Studying applied theatre

Approx 3 x 2 hr sessions

USA- small private secondary school

14-15 & 16-17 years

16 students 11 girls, 5 boys

Studying applied theatre

Applied theatre students leading workshops for year 6

+The dramatic pre-text

# Discovery of a lost culture of frozen people underwater who experienced times of crisis

# Responding to a message in a bottle about the history of ‘Ardus Unda’

# Who were these people and what happened?

# What did their emissaries learn about stories from elsewhere around the world?

# Is it possible to help the frozen people or restore them to life?

(VIDEOS REMOVED FROM THIS POWERPOINT – SEE www.water-reckoning.net for videos and project details )

Jason deCaires Taylor imagery

+Ideas from Heathcote’s work

Drama is about making significant meaning through commitment to an enterprise and fiction

Students will see the real world more clearly when they have experienced the dramatic one

Drama as rehearsal for life

Finding the universal in the particular making, the emotional connection

Participants should have the power to take action and operate, drawing on what they know and can do

+

How it has worked? # Groups create drama work using different conventions. Key content and outcomes and digitally recorded and documented - audio, text, images, videos # Selected material is posted to PlaceStories, videos on YouTube # Each group reviews what has already been posted and considering ways to ‘roll’ the action forward# There are some session where participants interact online together

+Research questions

How can Heathcote’s Rolling Role strategy, drama and digital platforms be used for contemporary education?

What impact do these models have on student learning?

What impact does cultural context and place have on the work and learning that emerges?

How can rolling role be used for sustainability and active citizenship education?

+Research methods

Pre and post-test surveys

Small group focus group questions (beginning and end)

Analysis of student work, artefacts and creative outputs

Field notes and observations

(NB Project has just finished and data analysis is ongoing but some initial data and preliminary findings follows)

+Survey 1

N = 83

Qld = 25

NSW = 19

Greece = 11

Singapore = 15

USA = 16

General demographics

• Technology use – Nearly all participants have a mobile device and multiple digital devices

• Main uses communications and consumption (of music)

• Low level of digital creative content generation

• Not a vrey high level of gamers

• More content generated reported by Greek students

+ Technology devices

0 devices

1 device

2 devices

3 devices

4 devices

6 devices

95% of devices

include a mobile phone

+ Technology use

95% of students spend more than 10 hours per week online or using their mobile devices

100% of students use their devices to communicate with friends (Facebook, messaging)

Youtube, Instagram, Tumblr, downloading music were also popular uses

95% of devices

include a mobile phone

90% of devices

include a computer

75% of devices

include an IPod

Sustainability awareness and intent

The Greek Water Reckoning Project

Polyxeni SimouMSt in Drama in Education

The Water Reckoning project was for them about

Water Drama

learning the importance of water in our life

the water problems the relationship of

man with water the consequences of

our actions

imagination creativity cooperation communication meeting other people’s

cultures building on other people’s

contribution

the strange and innovative ideas the video watching and making the team work and cooperation the rolling role techniquethe new way of using technology the freedom and ownership in creativity

They found the most interesting

Half of the students have reported that drama has helped them change their attitude towards their responsibility about water issues.

One student wrote: “I couldn’t believe that such a precious

‘possession’ could be connected with such a tremendous catastrophe”

Another reported: “I haven’t changed my attitude, but sometimes I wonder: could we be in the

Ardus Unda people’s place, because of the environmental problems of our civilization?”

Changes in attitudes

All of them found the use of technology in this project

very important

They loved the idea of videos, but

because of their inexperience, sometimes, they were confused and they couldn’t

distinguish what was real and what was not.

Technology use and drama

would like to participate in the same or a similar

project

again

The majority of the students

Water Reckoning: The Singapore Story

Mei Yee Chang Prue Wales

The Singapore Situation

In addition the 3 classes were undertaking a module in Qualitative Research

As the drama was going on in one class another class was observing, notating and studying their peers

Aims & Objectives

Like the other sites we sought• Digital learning through applied drama as a

means to explore contemporary issues around sustainability

• We were also interested in examining ways the students expressed their personal and national identities

Our Key Objectives

• To facilitate students’ learning about process drama

And

• To identify what they were learning about process drama as an art form

What did students learn about

• Planning • Framing• Facilitation/Artistry of

Teacher • Development of ideas ?

The Pre-textInitially, while students found

the pre-text engaging they didn’t buy into fiction

- Many said the video was too “professional”, music was not needed

- Archaeologists would not make such “polished” films

Hegemonic belief/practice of ‘Singaporean pragmatism’, we wonder?

The Fiction

Students subsequently bought into the fiction through a video clip of Dwarka (lost, sunken Indian city), and by re-creating aspects of the city

They found the ‘Rolling’ from other locations engaging and helpful in building narrative

Constant struggle with ‘suspension of disbelief’, that seems partly due the mixture of fact and fiction, real and unreal

Thinking about Process DramaThroughout the drama, students were evaluating how

their teacher was engaging them. At the end of each sessions questions included…

• How can I make this (the pre-text) more relevant for the Singapore context?

• How can I make the drama (more) engaging?• What are the skills I need to facilitate something like

this?• Could I make this work with a group of secondary

school students?

Reflections• Students told us, during

drama, they wondered…• Will I be able to do what

she [the teacher] is doing?• Will I be able to frame a

drama and develop it like that?

• Eg: Co-creation of city prior to disaster. They found activity engaging and felt it something they could do

• They talked about ways that they could refine activity

National & Social Identity

One of our aims has been to explore students’ shifting subjectivities in relation to the dramatic subject matter & how they resonate in & with the real world

& To identify how the

expressions of “being Singaporean” emerged through the drama

Cultural identity• Multicultural groups were created

within the city. This was seen through…

• Creation of religious temples in doomed city. Students conducted religious rituals conveying multiple belief systems rather than a hegemonic religion

• In creation of entertainment sites, students constructed markets that sold food from all over the world

• This supported in online survey – majority of students claimed they feel accepting of different cultures

To Conclude

• Students feel they have learnt much about process drama from the experience

• They recognise the possibilities of using digital technologies for projects such as this

• They see strong possibilities for using ‘rolling role’ as a way of building drama

• They really enjoyed the experience of talking with young people from overseas

Program - 10 lessons• Students-in-role as scientists,

TiR as the curator of an international science convention, students examined artefacts and gave an in role press conference

• Creating the people of Ardus Unda and their stories using the artefacts, mapping time before the disaster (the warnings)

• The circle as a selection ritual and symbol of strength

• Selecting the emissaries – who is best to go? Potential candidates are put forward at a town meeting (taking Seattle’s idea) and a collective decision is reached

• Saying goodbye, giving the emissaries a keepsake for the journey and endowing the object with story – ‘remember who we are, you need to teach them about our ways’

• The emissaries journey –what did they find? What was different? Did they find help?

• A ritual ending – our message to the future

• Playbuilding as synthesis

(e)ngagement framework

Place

Knowledge

Ability

Control

Voice

(Munns et al 2013)

Theme: student engagement

Discourses of power: placeEngaging message: It's great to be a kid from / home is ...

Sydney site: Students used mobile phones to document their sense of place; they played with notions of place and connection within the drama (eg home, land, future places and change)

Data excerpts: I chose one that was a photo on the way to school by car, and I wanted to incorporate what we did in the Water Reckoning Project, when it was like what the world would be like in the future if we were transported. It was really foggy in the morning so I wanted to have kind of sad looking city rather than a positive one. Well the photos I put in were of Parramatta Road, on my way to school. So that’s my average day. One was the view from the back of the school, so its, you know, centred around school. And then one was of the beach, its kind of what I do with my recreation time. 

I did ... another picture of, like, a big graffiti wall that me and a few of my other friends and cousins and stuff did which is like…who I am.

I took a photo of the Bondi icebergs and the Tamarama beach where I live. It’s very beautiful and some of my favourite places in the world.

I put in two photos. One of the sunset, because where I live on the Bay Run. Because one day there was a really really red sun, so I took a photograph of that. And one of the beach, like my pastime and the Bay Run is where I live. There’s often sunsets like that, like really nice sunsets against the bay.

 

 

I took some ones of the harbour bridge and of the city. I thought that was really. You know.. about Sydney.

Theme: student engagement

Discourses of power: knowledgeEngaging message: We can see the connection

and the meaning

Sydney site: Group playbuilding synthesising significant moments of their role-based drama and the motifs online in the dramatic fiction – rolling role; goodbye circle

Data excerpt: S2.3: When we did that circle thing…that was quite personal. At least that’s when I started to connect with them.I: Which circle one was that?S2.3: The one where we had to, like the item we had to say goodbye…S2.1: That…its almost like in real life as well…you don’t realise how real something is until you lose it. Like its almost like we were experiencing it…like you kind of thought about how someone is going to go away and you will never see them again. And it makes you think, if this was real, those people would have gone through so much. Yeah I agree…that was the bit that I felt….

Theme: student engagement

Discourses of power: abilityEngaging message: I am capable

Sydney site: Students compared their drama work with other sites

Data excerpt:

4.2 I really liked when… I really like seeing other people put on different characters that they had thought of. (Interviewer: In our group?) yes in the whole class and all around the world… like people become the ancestors

2.1 Everyone is more or less at the same level as us. There’s no one that’s really really really good or a group that doesn’t really know what they are doing. Like I am not saying everyone’s bad or anything, but we are all the same level, which is quite good.

Theme: student engagement

Discourses of power: controlEngaging message: We do this

Sydney site: The in-role Town Hall Meeting; Students-in-role as scientists across various fields and teacher-in-role as a curator of an international science convention; Students-in-role as people of Ardus Unda and emissaries; Costume apparel support students commitment to role

Data excerpts - control: About TiR: S2.1: It sort of gives you the standard…he’s like the teacher and he just

jumps into this role that he’s obviously never played before and he’s really setting the standard for everyone. Like everyone else is like, ‘alright so, this is how into it…how a teacher is…so, its not going to be embarrassing if we are the same as him, because we can just, like go and be in character...’ and no one is going to care.

 

About SiR: 4.5 I really liked when we were choosing who would survive and who would die cause it was just interesting and how we did that exercise where we were promoting our cases as to why we should get chosen and it was just kind of interesting to put people up in front of others but for a good cause because of their skills and we did feel a bit bad for the characters that didn’t make it and didn’t have hopes for the future.

 

4.3 When we play their role it kind of makes you understand it more being these people pretending to be them makes you understand it more… what it would be like.

 

4.5 I think I empathised in a way that it did seem like a very real scenario…. Like you couldn’t imagine the community…(Interviewer interjects something about the Tuvalu community not wanting to leave) … cause all of us definitely wanted to leave and we were all very frightened and a lot of people… if it was me..if that happened to us I would want to leave. I wouldn’t want to stay. You would just see it getting worse.

Theme: student engagement

Discourses of power: voiceEngaging message: We share

Sydney site: Teacher-in-role with Students-in-role – making decisions around dramatic action, character relationships and playbuilt performances; Researchers filmed students work and uploaded to PlaceStories – validation of their ideas

Data excerpt: 4.4 I liked watching the videos of other schools and us to see, like, if they were doing the same thing, comparing them.

S2.4: I liked the meeting the best, when everyone was sitting around and talking, there was a high level of energy and everyone had a very fixed view on something but you had an opportunity to change their mind on something. There was a lot of, kind of, there was some anger that was either acting or real, I’m not quite sure, if they wanted to be chosen or not, they tried to force people to like them, and that was really interesting and cool to be able to do.

Christine Hatton, University of Newcastle, SydneyMary Mooney, University of Western Sydney

Jennifer Nicholls, Macquarie University SydneyJulian Kennard, participating teacher

+

Queensland site Some initial reflections on Sustainability and technology aspects

(Susan Davis, Angelina Ambrosetti, Glenn Taylor)

+ What do you think are the current water issues that the world is facing?

Natural disastersFloodDroughtTsunami

Water contamination1st world vs. 3rd

world Water wastageRestrictionsPollution

Global Warming Rising sea levels

Destruction of lifeOverfishing Loss of marine lifeLoss of mammals

People care more about themselves than the

environment.

+Technology will …..

create more issues within our environment,

but it could also help to solve some issues within our environment in that we would develop specific technology to address those issues.

+Key experiences in shifting understandings – realising these are real ‘human’ issues – the sensory and the ‘now’

Importance of the ‘Tuvalu’ video for highlighting the urgency of these issues http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlFVJBZfsBY

+ Changed perceptions – from the head to the heart……

At the beginning of the project, students reported

that….‘sustainability plays such a big part in our lives’,

They knew and could recite the rhetoric about sustainability – don’t waste water, don’t pollute, recycle

etc.

The drama activities provided the

opportunity to ‘feel’ the impacts and

become emotionally involved

The realization that water issues

surround us and that we need to work

together to create solutions

+Changed perceptions – from the head to the heart……

Students indicated that they felt sympathy towards those who

were facing sustainability issues

“Realizing the affects and issues to do with water

and how it affects large groups of

people.”

“Watching the video about

Tuvalu – seeing that it is really sinking. It is

real.”

“The world is changing and

water is becoming more valuable.”

Will this lead to active citizenship? Of what kind?

+Changed perceptions – from the head to the heart……but…Many of the project’s

young people distrust authority,

particularly the government and those seen with

‘power’

The direction in which the drama progressed brought out these distrust issues

and the students emphasized these in role.

The rolling role provided the students with the opportunity

to communicate what they distrust about

people in power.

People in power:• Make choices to suit

themselves• Are only in power to get

rich• Don’t think about the

greater good

+Digitally creative generation? Considering that the majority of students owned a mobile

phone, most did not engage in the project in a digitally creative way.

Students were keen to use their phones for personal social media purposes (outside the drama), the phones were actually a distraction for the resistant students and disengaged them from the context and content

Real value of digital media – experience framed and meaning shaped by technology

Digital creative modes were mediated by the teacher and researcher – students enjoyed watching the outputs and were happy to star in the digital modes, but did not want to create any themselves.

The use of online platforms for enabling collaborative learning experiences across sites viewed very positively – enabling international collaboration – real potential for ‘global citizenship’

Narrative anticipation

Teacher as mediator and curator of aesthetic encounters

Utilising Mediation tools of imagination & experience

Negotiating & becoming the otherCreating identities linked to own experience – exploring identity within safety of dramatic

context

Engagement of the senses (feeling and feelings)Sensory engagement increasing the sense of presence in the real world and the fiction (touch,

taste, feel)

Use of recording technology creates a context where an elevated sense of presence and audience

Framing experience with technology

Interpreter of meaning

Community formation and commitment

+Common elements & interesting points

+ There were difficulties with students embracing the pre-text and

focus as both a fictional context that was also dealing with real-life issues. 

Great opportunity for teachers/researchers to share planning & experience (de-privatise the classroom)

Explicit teaching of drama conventions and artform & sustainability issues essential in current educational climates

Importance of utilising aesthetically charged 'tools’

Increased awareness by students of local and global water issues – For many the data shows that understanding moved from 'the head to the heart' from cognitive knowing to feeling and knowing. 

Those who experienced hangouts all commented on how although the technology issues in schools are still significant, that these experiences were very engaging for students and worth pursuing – enabling real global awareness and citizenship

Great potential for exploring human aspects of sustainability at local and global levels