The Educational Research and Development Programme (ERDP)/AMQF, has recently held a series of reflective meetings for teachers in the ERDP Drama in Education Summer School. The meetings aimed to reflect upon the educational practices of the participating teachers, as well as their Drama in Education practices with their students in school.
The meetings were developed by the teachers Abeer Madhoun, Maysara Abu Shueib, Shayma Al-Dadda, Mir’ei Bashir and Issam Yousef, assisted by researchers from ERDP.
The final meeting in the series was led by Abeer Madhoun, who presented her experience in using Drama in Education in class. Madhoun shared a paper on the subject and discussed with fellow participants the concept of reflection and its important role in individual and collective professional development.
Furthermore, participants discussed the possibility to use stories as an introductory step to drama, the ways to best choose them, as well as the strategies to use stories in a way that creates imagined spaces and worlds for children to better understand the human condition. The teachers also shared their understanding of drama, challenges facing their work within it and the techniques they use to test children’s values and develop their attitudes towards it.