Scenario: A Journal for Performative Teaching, Learning, Research. Vol. II Issue 01
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Item Workshop in German drama(Department of German, University College Cork, 2008) Sosulski, Michael J.; Schewe, Manfred; Even, SusanneThis article presents a model for teaching a true four-skills second language course in German using student drama performance as the primary vehicle of instruction. Students in this workshop-style course learn to closely read literary German drama while enacting key scenes using authentic period acting techniques. Both the study of literary drama and the historical acting techniques with which they were performed offer students special access to important elements of German culture during notable eras while sharpening their mastery of advanced vocabulary and linguistic structure in German. The value of teaching drama through active learning, as well as the use of reflection in assessment are among the topics explored in this article. This article presents a model for teaching a true four-skills second language course in German using student drama performance as the primary vehicle of instruction. Students in this workshop-style course learn to closely read literary German drama while enacting key scenes using authentic period acting techniques. Both the study of literary drama and the historical acting techniques with which they were performed offer students special access to important elements of German culture during notable eras while sharpening their mastery of advanced vocabulary and linguistic structure in German. The value of teaching drama through active learning, as well as the use of reflection in assessment are among the topics explored in this article.Item Foreword(Department of German, University College Cork, 2008) Schewe, Manfred; Even, Susanne; Schewe, Manfred; Even, SusanneItem The performing arts in second language acquisition(Department of German, University College Cork, 2008) Lauer, Mark; Schewe, Manfred; Even, SusanneThis paper is a report on the experience of dramatizing Hans Peter Richter’s novel Damals war es Friedrich (1961). Subsequent to the discussion of the novel in an upper division German class, students and I worked on a dramatized version of the text. The play was performed in the Black Box Theater at Georgetown University, Washington D.C., on April 11, 2006. The first part of the report will illustrate how the work on the play was embedded within the context of a literacy approach towards teaching German as a foreign language. In addition to outlining the benefits of including a theater performance in language education, as experienced during the rehearsals and the performance of the play, the second part of the report will discuss how the project was carried out. This paper is a report on the experience of dramatizing Hans Peter Richter’s novel Damals war es Friedrich (1961). Subsequent to the discussion of the novel in an upper division German class, students and I worked on a dramatized version of the text. The play was performed in the Black Box Theater at Georgetown University, Washington D.C., on April 11, 2006. The first part of the report will illustrate how the work on the play was embedded within the context of a literacy approach towards teaching German as a foreign language. In addition to outlining the benefits of including a theater performance in language education, as experienced during the rehearsals and the performance of the play, the second part of the report will discuss how the project was carried out.Item Fitness for the muscles and the mind(Department of German, University College Cork, 2008) Retzlaff, Steffi; Schewe, Manfred; Even, SusanneThis paper describes the incorporation of a mind-body (fitness) technique called Nia into a drama-pedagogical teaching unit of Thomas Brussig’s novel Am kürzeren Ende der Sonnenallee. The participants were third year university students of German at McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada. The focus is on the description of the preparation and execution of a seven-hour weekend workshop on Brussig’s Sonnenallee. The ‘prerequisites’ for that workshop included research on life and resistance in the former German Democratic Republic (GDR) as well as a summary of the book and the production of character profiles for the main characters. The description of the workshop includes the portrayal of various activities such as the building of Standbilder (frozen frames), perception exercises und improvisations and, of course, the one-hour Nia session. According to the opinions of the students and my own experience and perception, drama-pedagogical elements and the inclusion of Nia have a great impact on the students’ understanding of various texts and themes and make for a truly holistic experience. This paper describes the incorporation of a mind-body (fitness) technique called Nia into a drama-pedagogical teaching unit of Thomas Brussig’s novel Am kürzeren Ende der Sonnenallee. The participants were third year university students of German at McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada. The focus is on the description of the preparation and execution of a seven-hour weekend workshop on Brussig’s Sonnenallee. The ‘prerequisites’ for that workshop included research on life and resistance in the former German Democratic Republic (GDR) as well as a summary of the book and the production of character profiles for the main characters. The description of the workshop includes the portrayal of various activities such as the building of Standbilder (frozen frames), perception exercises und improvisations and, of course, the one-hour Nia session. According to the opinions of the students and my own experience and perception, drama-pedagogical elements and the inclusion of Nia have a great impact on the students’ understanding of various texts and themes and make for a truly holistic experience.Item Defeat and After(Department of German, University College Cork, 2008) Jankowsky, Peter; Schewe, Manfred; Even, SusanneThe German actor and author Peter Jankowsky, living in Ireland, tells (in one of his contributions for Irish radio) of an experience from his school-days which influenced his whole life. He and another member of their theatre-group were competing for the right to recite a particular poem. He lost – a failure which had surprisingly positive consequences.