Congratulations IGCSE Drama Class of 2010-2011 / 2011-2012

Start of the new academic year. The current Head of Drama Department saw me coming into the school, he came up to me and said, 'Congratulation! Do you know the results?'

Of course, I am always the last to know. Even worst, now that I had been transferred to be doing solely Primary School Drama, I am quite cut off from Senior School world.

I knew, a few of the kids from that batch would do great while there were a few who needed to stop being lazy and really work.

Hmmm... the suspense getting to you?...

Out of 32 students who had sat for the 2011-2012 IGCSE Drama exam... 23 students scored A*s and As while the other 9 scored a B! 

OMG! I was ecstatic. I quickly informed Mr. Lawrence Espinosa and Ms. Ritu Battacharya (who are unfortunately not working in the school anymore).

Two weeks back, it was announced, out of that, 2 students, a boy and a girl had topped India for IGCSE Drama. 

"For the first time in the history of the school", the batch passed out without any Cs; and having 2 students who topped the subject (we had a single topper before); and for the first time, the school did not use its favourite phrase. It was sad that the school did not recognise the efforts by those students. 

In retrospect, I wondered what did we do right?

I had joined the school sometime in May of 2010 and experienced a bit of what the Grade 9 and Grade 10 students go through in their IGCSE Drama. The Grade 10 students were doing the Pre-released text of 'The Windsor Boy' and preparing for their written examination. 

The new academic term started and all of a sudden, I was made into the Head of Department for Drama. The last HOD had left the school to work elsewhere. Mr. L was a more experienced with the IG and IB syllabus and Ms. R had joined slightly earlier then me. It was strange that the management would ask me to be the HOD. Though, I had declined, the position was thrust onto my shoulders.

During the professional week, we pored over the Schedule of Work and decided that we would give the students a feel of IGCSE and also start off their Monologue work and complete their recording, all in Grade 9.

The students were given short scripts to work on and got the opportunity to work on devised plays. What was incredible about this group was that it did not matter whom they worked with. Yes, some were very hard working and some were rather lazy - yet there was no major problem for them to work together and they managed to iron things out. We also analysed extract of a script and looked at it in the point of view of a director, actor, set designer, costume designer, sound & lighting designer.

Their mid-term and last term exam was based on the work done through-out Grade 9. This seem to help them to understand the written aspect of the examination.

By the time the students got into Grade 10; my former HOD had returned and therefore he was heading the department again. This time the students got set for their 15 minute group work of scripted plays (oh, by the way - we had passed their script & role just before the holidays had started) and devised pieces. The students seem to have put our efforts to good use as they had worked on their scripts over the holidays.

So the recordings came and went by and the script, The Physicists by Friedrich Dürrenmatt
given by IGCSE was analysed. And you know the rest off it...

Hence back to my analysis - my conclusion is that
a) the foundation received by the students in Grade 9 helped them to be more confident of their work.
b) the attitude of the students i.e.
i) co-operation
ii) respect
iii) wanting to work harder and better to get good score; and mostly,
iv) trusting the teachers and their fellow actors.

It is the above that had helped each and everyone of the students do better in their IGCSE Drama exams. Anyone out there wanting to pursue IG Drama - do ask yourself if you have the right attitude to do well in your performance as well as your exam.

Cheers!
September, 2012

        

The Essentials ... in a Drama Class (the number, the space, the props, the equipments)

Some children who had come to watch 'Outdoor Movie' were treated to some drama games at KLPac

There is no such thing as an ideal situation. Often we work with limited resources. This applies to all types of schools, whether it is some small school run in a remote place or an international school. Once in the ‘creative’ business, it is funny how ‘creative’ a Drama teacher needs to be.

A small semi-government run 'Tamil' school near KLPac.
This was one of our working space if the school library was not available.

I have held drama classes out in the open, shaded by the shadow of the school building; under an awning with about 50 children packed together on a rainy day; the school field, canteen; in a goods container converted into a library; including a huge school hall that was shared with other children playing indoor games. Such is the predicament of a drama teacher. I am sure that many of you would have experienced similar if not worst situations; but have prevailed.

Though the 'Sekolah Seni' project catered for 20 students -
it was difficult to turn down all these eager children who were interested to participate.
(Sekolah Seni - Art School. This project was sponsored by YTL. This company is developing Sentul area in Malaysia)

But we can dream, can’t we? Though I know the realities, I cannot help but dream up of a wish list of the number of students and the type of drama room that I would die for…

The Number- Just how many is too many?

A tricky question if you have too many tricky children to deal with! Nevertheless I have found the following number and the duration of each session to work perfectly for me, if you are able to dictate the terms.

Note that the maximum contact time would include time for students to explore various aspects of theatre and apply them as they aim towards putting up their presentations.

	Suitable for Extra Curricular Activities		Suitable for regular classes
Age group	Number of participants	Duration (with a short break in between)	Number of participants	Duration (without a break in between)	Maximum Contact time
3 – 5 years	10 - 12	1 hour	10	40 mins	30 hours
7 – 9 years	10 - 14	1.5 hour	10 - 12	40 mins	30 hours
10 – 12 years	12 - 16	2 hours	12 - 14	40 mins x 2	40 hours
13 – 18 years	14 - 20	3 hours	12 - 14	40 mins x 2	40 hours

The Drama Room for Primary & Middle Years..

My dream theatre space this would have every single item as per the checklist below.

Can you imagine children going into a drama room that looks vast, empty and neat? The empty space will stimulate creativity; just like an empty canvas the work you do in that space will fill it up with colours, form and structure by the children and their imagination.

After the exploring sessions, your drama class can take on, the rehearsal mode i.e. working towards a presentation where the children would be able to present to batch mates, teachers and also parents at the drama room.

No	Details	P	Remarks
1.	An empty classroom that does not echo and has good ventilation.	P	Black Curtains at windows to block out light when necessary.
2.	Teacher’s corner: a)      An ergonomically designed table & chair. b)     1 set of cupboards with locks & shelves. c)      A computer system with internet connection. d)     Camera for still photos & video recording.	P	This place is out of bounds to children unless they are invited by the teacher. Cupboards & shelves purely for teacher’s use. Computer system to be equipped with softwares that enables playing, recording, editing of music and also video.
3.	Multi-media stand: a)      Power points b)     Internet points c)      Wiring connected to speakers around the room. d)     Wiring connected to Overhead Projector.	P
4.	Props & Costume Corner: a)      1 – 2 clothes rack & hangers b)     Prop box 1 – masks c)      Prop box 2 – hats d)     Props box 3 – balls e)      Prop box 4 – sticks f)       Prop box 5 – Craft & stationery sets g)      Box of puppets/soft toys	P	Costumes could be donated old clothes. Masks ranging from neutral to various types. Various types of hats. 1 medium sized soft surfaced ball and small balls – plastic & tennis balls. Sticks a collection of long sticks to short ones. Children will have to return props taken into the right place. A range of puppets/soft toys that is only accessible to the teacher.
5.	Furniture & Equipment: a)      A sofa set i.e. a two seater, 1 seater and a coffee table. b)     Square blocks c)      1 moveable whyte-board d)     1 moveable notice board e)      1 moveable frame covered with white cloth f)       1 lighting stand with 1 par can & coloured gels. g)      Hot & cold water dispenser.	P
6.	Outside the drama room: a)      Notice board b)     Shoe racks	P

The Drama Room for Exam based Classes (Grades  9 – 12)

You might ask, ‘What is the difference? A drama room is a drama room!’

Firstly you would certainly need a bigger drama room if you are catering for students who will be sitting for drama exams. They would need a ‘working space’ as well as an ‘academic space’ within the drama room. I find that this format gives the students an impression that they are doing a serious subject. I find that, some schools’ academic team as well as parents, tend to think that the students are doing ‘only’ drama and treat it as a co-curricular activity rather than an examination subject.

My ideal room for examination classes would be modeled as below; complete with sprung flooring to lighting and a black box look and proper discussion area with teacher’s corner. On the teacher’s table there would be a whole jar of M&M’s/Snicker bars. And if the students have been really good, they do get a treat of flavoured tea and the candies. Well, we can dream, right?

My dream checklist would be as follow:

No	Details	P	Remarks
1.	An empty classroom that does not echo and has good ventilation.	P	Black curtain between working space and academic area to give the working space a ‘black box’ feel.
a)	Working Space:	P
	i) Sprung timber flooring	P
	ii) Mirrored wall that can be covered with black curtain
	iii) Furniture: ·         A sofa set i.e. a two seater, 1 seater and a coffee table. ·         Square Blocks ·         1 moveable frame covered with white cloth	P
	iv) Theatre equipment storage:  ·         4 lighting stand with 8-10 par can & coloured gels.	P
	v) Foam mats or thick rubber mat	P
	vi) Multi-media stand:  ·         Power points ·         Wiring connected to speakers around the room ·         Wiring connection to Overhead Projector ·         Lighting control system	P	Any lap-top can be hooked up in the ‘multi-media stand’. OHP moveable from academic space.
b)	Academic Space:	P
	i) Teacher’s corner: ·         An ergonomically designed table & chair ·         1 set of cupboards with locks & shelves. ·         A computer system with internet connection ·         Camera for still photos & video recording.	P	This place is out of bounds to children unless they are invited by the teacher. Cupboards & shelves purely for teacher’s use. Computer system to be equipped with softwares that enables playing, recording, editing of music and also video.
	ii) Overhead Projector	P
	iii) Grouped desks and chairs for students	P
	iv) Props & Costume Corner: ·         2 – 4 clothes rack & hangers ·         Prop box 1 – masks ·         Prop box 2 – hats ·         Props box 3 – balls ·         Prop box 4 – sticks ·         Prop box 5 – Craft & stationery sets	P	Costumes could be donated old clothes. Masks ranging from neutral to various types. Various types of hats. 1 medium sized soft surfaced ball and small balls – plastic & tennis balls. Sticks a collection of long sticks to short ones. Students will have to return props taken into the right place.
	v) Hot & cold water dispenser	P
	vi)   Whyte-board	P
	vii)  Notice board	P
2	Outside the drama room: a)      Notice board b)      Shoe racks	P

PS: Drama Teachers/Instructors - You may share this link to your school/organisation management. Do remind them that what you want is just the 'essential'; not a full-fledged theatre space.

Cheers!