“No hay excusas para no trabajar el teatro en clase”

 La ponente y las asistentes, al inicio de la sesión del martes 27.

El curso “Aprender inglés a través del teatro y de la danza”, organizado por el CEP, continúa desarrollándose tras su inicio el pasado 22 de septiembre. La ponente del curso, Lavina Sadarangani, asegura que “No hay excusas para no trabajar el teatro en clase de inglés”, aunque frecuentemente se escuche al profesorado decir cosas como: "Plays look like too much fun, where's my textbook?!  Learning English should be laborious and hard work." "The children will make too much noise and I won't be able to control their every word and move." "I don't have time for that, I've got 26 units to get through this term!" "I can't use plays to teach English because I can't act for toffee!”.

En el siguiente texto, incluido en la documentación presentada por la ponente a los asistentes, se amplía el razonamiento sobre esta propuesta: “

It is unlikely that anyone would disagree that the most effective way to teach ESL children is to provide them with opportunities to learn English in the context of everyday situations with the emphasis on communicational skills.
And what else does an ESL play do but that? Young children use drama naturally.  They are always in the land of make-believe: "this is our house, and this is the baby, she is just born and she has to sleep now".  They assign roles and direct the action: "I'll be the mommy and I'm going shopping. You're the daddy; you have to go to work!" And they slip in and out of multiple roles: "now it's my turn to be the teacher".

Older children love being part of something.  Preparing an ESL play together is a bonding experience for the group.  All children are involved, from the shyest to the most outspoken and all contribute to the final outcome. Children want to belong and being part of a play allows that to happen.You don't have time NOT to use ESL plays.  Drama is not an addition to your 26 units, but a method of teaching them more effectively.  It does not matter if you can't act - the children will be doing the acting and they are the experts! ESL plays provide practical experience in communicating, they give children the opportunity to learn to work together and to be part of something, to belong in a group and to develop tolerance and empathy as they begin to see the world from different perspectives.  They promote active learning, enriching and reinforcing their more traditional school experiences”.