Senior Syllabus
Drama
2007
ISBN: 978-1-920749-30-9
Drama Senior Syllabus
This syllabus is approved for general implementation until 2014, unless otherwise stated.
To be used for the first time with Year 11 students in 2008.
© The State of Queensland (Queensland Studies Authority) 2007
Queensland Studies Authority, PO Box 307, Spring Hill, Queensland 4004, Australia
Phone: (07) 3864 0299
Fax: (07) 3221 2553
Email: office@qsa.qld.edu.au
Website: www.qsa.qld.edu.au
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Contents
1.
Rationale .............................................................................................................. 1
2.
Global aims .......................................................................................................... 3
3.
General objectives .............................................................................................. 4
3.1 Forming ........................................................................................................ 5
3.2 Presenting .................................................................................................... 5
3.3 Responding .................................................................................................. 5
3.4 Affective ....................................................................................................... 6
4.
Course organisation ........................................................................................... 7
Overview ............................................................................................................... 7
4.1 Dramatic languages ..................................................................................... 7
4.1.1
Elements of drama ......................................................................... 7
4.1.2
Skills of performance...................................................................... 8
4.1.3
Styles and their conventions .......................................................... 8
4.1.4
Text ................................................................................................ 9
4.1.5
Context ......................................................................................... 10
4.2 Dramatic perspectives................................................................................ 10
4.2.1 Heritage............................................................................................. 10
4.2.2 Contemporary ................................................................................... 10
4.3 Sample course overviews .......................................................................... 11
4.4 Developing a two-year course of study ...................................................... 11
4.5 Organisational factors ................................................................................ 12
4.5.1
Time allocation ............................................................................. 12
4.5.2
Space ........................................................................................... 12
4.5.3
Resources .................................................................................... 12
4.5.4
Copyright ...................................................................................... 13
Moral rights ................................................................................................ 13
4.6 Composite classes ..................................................................................... 13
4.7 Work program requirements ...................................................................... 14
5.
Learning experiences ....................................................................................... 15
5.1 Planning an aesthetic learning environment for Drama ............................. 15
5.2 Learning experiences in Forming, Presenting and Responding ................ 16
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6.
Assessment ....................................................................................................... 20
6.1 Underlying principles of exit assessment ................................................... 20
6.2 Planning an assessment program.............................................................. 22
6.3 Special consideration ................................................................................. 23
6.4 Authentication of student work ................................................................... 23
6.5 Exit criteria ................................................................................................. 24
6.5.1
Exit criterion: Forming .................................................................. 24
6.5.2
Exit criterion: Presenting .............................................................. 24
6.5.3
Exit criterion: Responding ............................................................ 24
6.6 Developing assessment ............................................................................. 24
6.6.1
Techniques, instruments and tasks.............................................. 24
6.6.2
Assessment of Forming................................................................ 25
6.6.3
Assessment of Presenting............................................................ 26
6.6.4
Assessment of Responding.......................................................... 26
6.6.5
Examples of possible tasks .......................................................... 27
6.6.6
Assessment in more than one criterion ........................................ 28
6.6.7
Task conditions ............................................................................ 28
6.7 Determining exit levels of achievement...................................................... 33
6.7.1
Exit criteria and standards............................................................ 34
6.8 Requirements for verification folio.............................................................. 36
6.8.1
Post-verification assessment........................................................ 36
6.8.2
Documentation of practical tasks ................................................. 36
6.8.3
Sample student profile.................................................................. 37
7.
Language education ......................................................................................... 39
7.1 Oracy.......................................................................................................... 39
7.2 Strategies for developing language skills................................................... 39
8.
Quantitative concepts and skills ..................................................................... 41
9.
Educational equity ............................................................................................ 42
10.
Resources .......................................................................................................... 43
Text and reference books.................................................................................... 43
Student texts ....................................................................................................... 44
World Wide Web ................................................................................................. 45
Electronic media and learning technology........................................................... 48
Appendix 1: Three sample course overviews.......................................................... 50
Appendix 2: Glossary................................................................................................. 68
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1. Rationale
Young people live in an increasingly complex web of interacting cultures and subcultures. They
need a learning environment that promotes imagination, critical thinking, cultural engagement,
communication, creativity and problem-solving. Drama provides this learning environment,
both as an art form and as an aesthetic way of knowing that integrates oral, kinaesthetic, visual
and aural dimensions, and sign systems.
Drama explores and celebrates the human presence within real, imagined and mediatised
worlds. It connects students to their own creative processes and provides opportunities for them
to imagine themselves as others exploring beliefs, feelings, behaviours and relationships across
diverse situations. Through engagement with drama, students develop knowledge,
understanding and skills of dramatic languages and dramatic perspectives (heritage — before
1980, and contemporary — after 1980). They apply them to a creative investigation of the world
and their place in it.
Drama provides students with a range of skills transferable to a variety of vocational and future
pathways. In a knowledge-based economy, the world requires workers who are innovative
thinkers, adept communicators and excellent team players. The collaborative nature of drama as
an art form provides students with opportunities to learn and to manage the interpersonal and
intrapersonal skills required to work effectively, both individually and in groups.
Understanding (dramatic) language is not simply a case of decoding isolated images, of defining
individual words or rote learning. Rather, acquiring a language is a process which involves both
emotion and cognition; language enables us to think, to describe emotions, to participate in a culture
and to practise drama.
(Helen Nicholson 2000, “Introduction: Dramatic practices and pedagogic principles” in Teaching
Drama 11–18, Continuum, London.)
The study of Drama promotes active participation and engagement with the traditions, rituals
and ceremony of performance, theatre and mediatised drama. Informed by the dramatic
perspectives (heritage and contemporary), students critically apply and analyse the dramatic
languages (elements of drama, skills of performance, styles and their conventions, text and
context), to realise and communicate dramatic action and meaning. In this syllabus, drama is
explored through the general objectives of Forming, Presenting, and Responding. These are
interrelated and complementary.
When Forming, students actively create, shape and manage drama. They explore ideas and
interpretations of the dramatic perspectives (heritage and contemporary) applying their
knowledge and understanding of the dramatic languages to create and shape dramatic meaning
and dramatic action. They learn to hypothesise, experiment and make judgments as they select,
manipulate and structure the dramatic languages to create their own work.
When Presenting drama, students use dramatic languages through dramatic action to express
and communicate their ideas and meanings effectively to an audience. Students demonstrate
their understanding of the purpose and function of drama through the dramatic languages
informed by the dramatic perspectives. They are also required to display a range of planned,
rehearsed and/or polished acting and performance techniques.
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Through Responding, students develop their skills in critical analysis, interpretation, evaluation,
reflection and communication to deepen their knowledge and understanding of dramatic
languages informed by the dramatic perspectives.
The teaching and learning contexts of the subject also provide opportunities for the development
of the seven key competencies * . In a course of study based on this syllabus, students are
involved in communicating ideas and information, and working with others and in teams. These
activities are supported by collecting, analysing and organising information, planning and
organising activities, solving problems and, when necessary to enhance the drama work, using
technology, mathematical ideas and techniques.
*
The seven key competencies referred to in this subject are: KC1: collecting, analysing and organising
information; KC2: communicating ideas and information; KC3: planning and organising activities;
KC4: working with others and in teams; KC5 using mathematical ideas and techniques,
KC6: solving problems; KC7: using technology.
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2. Global aims
Through drama, students should:
• engage in aesthetic learning experiences and understand the diverse role of dramatic arts
workers in cultures past and present
• become adept in using the languages and symbol systems of drama to make and
communicate meaning
• symbolically represent the world they live in and deepen their understanding of symbolic
representations
• appreciate the complex function and purpose of drama
• recognise the diversity of traditional and present-day technologies and techniques to support
their learning
• value the range of social and cultural contexts in which drama is made in Australia and
internationally
• engage with, appreciate and value the contribution of Australian drama, including its
Indigenous and multicultural drama styles
• build self-discipline, confidence and communication skills to achieve their unique potential
and have lifelong involvement in dramatic activities
• develop skills and understandings that are transferable to a variety of community activities,
careers, professions and creative industry contexts
• recognise the importance of occupational health and safety requirements in Drama.
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3. General objectives
The general objectives are Forming, Presenting and Responding and, together with the affective
objectives, they constitute a process framework for teaching and learning in Drama. The
affective objectives are to be embedded in learning experiences but are not summatively
assessed.
Forming, Presenting and Responding are seen as equally important and interrelated, with each
influencing and building on the others as indicated in Figure 1. Any of the three objectives can
be a starting point for any dramatic activity. For the purposes of planning, organising and
assessing, each of these objectives is considered separately.
A knowledge and understanding of the dramatic languages (elements of drama, skills of
performance, styles and their conventions, text and context) informed by the dramatic
perspectives (heritage and contemporary) enlighten the general objectives. Dramatic meaning
and action are created when all elements combine.
Figure 1: A framework for Drama
Forming, Presenting and
Responding require that students
communicate ideas and
information that involve planning
and organising activities, as well as
collecting, analysing and
organising information.
The Forming and Presenting
objectives require that students
create, shape, present, and reflect
on drama in groups, thus they work
individually, together and in teams.
Solving problems underpins each
objective, while the use of
technology and use of
mathematical skills and techniques
supports student achievement of
the objectives.
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3.1
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Forming
Forming involves the management and structuring of a range of dramatic experiences such as
improvisation, roleplay, process drama, playbuilding, directing, dramaturgy, playwriting,
designing, physical composition, shaping and layering multidisciplinary performance, and
sampling and manipulating sound, image and movement. Students’ understanding of Forming
can be expressed in dramatic action, including visual, digital, physical and written forms.
This objective is always characterised by the student working as artist in the making of
creative work.
Forming entails students hypothesising, experimenting and making judgments as they select and
structure, create and shape dramatic action and meaning. By the end of the course, students
should be able to:
• demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the dramatic languages informed by the
dramatic perspectives
• explore and interpret ideas to create and shape dramatic action
• manage and apply the dramatic languages, experimenting and making judgments about
dramatic action and meaning.
3.2
Presenting
Presenting requires the development and demonstration of acting and performance techniques
associated with the preparation of an actor for a performance. In the contemporary perspective,
the performance may include some improvisation and live response to audience, technology and
environment. Presenting also requires the use of a range of dramatic languages to express and
communicate ideas and meanings effectively to an audience, through an understanding of the
purpose, function and application of drama.
Presenting includes formal and informal sharing and demonstrating within the class group,
presenting to friends and colleagues, and public performances for school, community and other
groups. This objective is always characterised by planned, rehearsed and/or polished
performances to an audience.
Presenting entails the demonstration and communication of dramatic action and dramatic
meaning. By the end of the course, students should be able to:
• select and use dramatic languages informed by the dramatic perspectives to demonstrate a
knowledge and understanding of the purpose and function of drama
• communicate action and intended meaning to an audience
• demonstrate planned and rehearsed skills of performance.
3.3
Responding
Responding involves students demonstrating and communicating knowledge and understanding
about drama, and reflecting on dramatic action and meaning through critical analysis,
interpretation, synthesis and evaluation of productions, performances and texts. This objective
can be realised in written, oral, symbolic or visual modes and can be demonstrated from a
variety of response modes. This objective is always characterised by the student reflecting,
interpreting and analysing from a position outside or after the drama.
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Responding involves students using the dramatic languages as an analytical framework to
communicate their knowledge and understanding about drama and its meaning, informed by the
dramatic perspectives (heritage and contemporary). By the end of the course, students should be
able to:
• demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the dramatic languages and dramatic
perspectives to communicate a position about dramatic meaning and action
• analyse, synthesise, evaluate and reflect on dramatic action to interpret dramatic meaning.
3.4
Affective
By the end of the course, students should be able to:
• acknowledge and engage with drama as aesthetic learning
• appreciate the benefits of group work for collaborative learning and task management
• appreciate the benefits of working independently for autonomous learning and selfmanagement
• have a commitment to and respect for diversity
• respect their own and others’ personal aesthetics
• view, enjoy and appreciate live performance as an enriching experience
• acknowledge and be confident in their own creative and critical abilities
• value the diversity of drama in different cultures, times and contexts.
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4. Course organisation
Overview
This syllabus is designed to provide a diverse range of drama experiences through the general
objectives of Forming, Presenting and Responding. A course of study comprises units of work
with subject matter that integrates dramatic languages and the dramatic perspectives (heritage
and contemporary). These units of work should provide a balance across the general objectives
Forming, Presenting and Responding.
While there are many ways of sequencing teaching and learning in Drama, teachers should
ensure that a balance is maintained between general objectives across the course, although not
necessarily in each unit.
Teachers should ensure that there is increasing complexity in the development and extension of
drama across the two-year course. Learning experiences and assessment should build towards
student independence and reduced teacher direction and scaffolding. Advice on composite
classes can be found in section 4.6.
4.1
Dramatic languages
The dramatic languages consist of elements of drama, skills of performance, styles and their
conventions, text and context.
These languages are the foundations and working materials of drama. Students will learn to
manipulate these dramatic languages in terms of the dramatic perspectives (heritage and
contemporary). When dramatic languages are used in combination with diverse and socially
critical reflections, dramatic meaning and action is created. This mode of learning and
expression integrates oral, kinaesthetic, visual and aural dimensions, and sign systems.
Students explore, analyse, understand and use aspects of dramatic languages within the general
objectives of Forming, Presenting and Responding.
Students are expected to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of elements of drama,
skills of performance, styles and their conventions, text, and context.
4.1.1
Elements of drama
The elements of drama are discrete but should not be studied in isolation as they are interrelated.
Dramatic meaning and action is created when they are integrated and contrasted within dramatic
perspectives. The elements include:
•
•
•
•
role
relationship
situation
tension
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
language
focus
time
place
7
space
symbol
mood
movement
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4.1.2
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Skills of performance
The skills of performance are also interrelated and underpin the knowledge and processes
needed to create dramatic action and meaning. They include but are not restricted to:
•
•
•
•
acting
designing
directing
dramaturgy
4.1.3
• (working as an) ensemble
• performance technologies
(sound, image and lighting)
• movement
•
•
•
•
playbuilding
scriptwriting
reviewing
voice
Styles and their conventions
Dramatic styles have related dramatic conventions that should be used and applied to produce
relevant action and meaning.
Form and style are interrelated and at times overlap. Form provides structure to organise and
represent dramatic action and dramatic meaning.
Style
For the purposes of this syllabus, “style” is understood and defined in relation to heritage
dramatic styles and contemporary dramatic styles.
Heritage styles
Heritage styles arise from historical and cultural characteristics such as language, class, social
conventions, setting, and values of a period’s background. These characteristics are made
explicit through the dramatic conventions appropriately associated with the style. Understanding
of various styles generally emerges through interactions with playtexts written by
playwrights/practitioners of a particular historical era. Styles are an outcome of a combination
of conventions.
Examples of heritage western dramatic styles may include, but are not restricted to:
• absurdism
• Ancient Greek tragedy
and comedy
• comedy of manners
• Commedia dell’Arte
•
•
•
•
•
epic theatre
expressionism
Jacobean theatre
melodrama
musical theatre
• realism
• Restoration comedy
• Elizabethan theatre
Examples of heritage non-western dramatic styles may include, but are not restricted to:
• Butoh (Japan)
• Chinese opera
• Classical Kkathak or
Kkathakali (India)
• Hat Bo and Keo (Vietnam)
• Indigenous Australian
(see Australian Indigenous
dramatic styles in the
Glossary)
• Kabuki (Japan)
• Kunju/Kunshanqiang
(China)
8
• Noh (Japan)
• Wayang Golek (Indonesia)
• Wayang Kulit (Indonesia)
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Contemporary styles
Contemporary styles arise from an engagement with changing conditions in the world, in
particular new class structures, economies, cultural relationships and the collapse of the
monocultures of the past. The term refers to texts that are written and created after 1980 by a
playwright and/or arts practitioner. Cross-arts forms explore and combine many styles and are
often the result of a collaborative process.
These contemporary styles are created through using particular conventions associated with
each style. Many heritage styles can be appropriated and re-developed through a contemporary
context to form an innovative, interpretative approach to style.
Examples of contemporary western and non-western styles may include, but are not restricted to:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Australian gothic
collage drama
cross-arts drama
cross-cultural drama
intercultural drama
contemporary circus
and mime
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
documentary drama
forum theatre
mask and new puppetry
physical theatre
playback theatre
post-dramatic theatre
process drama
•
•
•
•
•
•
readers’ theatre
street theatre
theatre for development
verbatim theatre
visual theatre
applied theatre.
Conventions
Conventions are techniques and strategies used in dramatic action that are linked to particular
styles of theatre. They can be defined as indicators of the way in which time, space and presence
can interact and be imaginatively shaped to create different kinds of meaning in theatre.
Conventions can be used as tools for experiencing and communicating dramatic actions and
meanings. The combination and manipulation of conventions transform ideas into drama.
Examples of conventions include, but are not restricted to:
•
•
•
•
•
•
direct address
appropriation
gestus
chorus
fourth wall
intertextuality
4.1.4
•
•
•
•
•
•
multi-media
multiple roles
non-linear narrative
ritualised movement
song and music
technology
• through-line
• transformation of heritage
style into contemporary
style
• viewpoints.
Text
A range of material can be considered a text. The material or content could include a playtext by
a playwright, or other written, spoken or digital genres such as speech, film script, poem, lyrics,
and magazines. The text may be as described below, but not restricted to them: anything that
can be “read” by an audience as performance can be considered a dramatic text:
• script
• polished improvisations
• process dramas
• spontaneous
improvisations
9
• student-devised dramas,
such as collage dramas and
documentary dramas
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SENIOR SYLLABUS
Texts should be selected from a range of:
Western: America, Canada, Europe, UK
Non-western: Africa, Asia, Middle East, Pacific, South America
Australian: including Indigenous and multicultural Australian drama texts.
4.1.5
Context
Context is a lens or frame through which dramatic action and meaning is viewed.
Dramatic context — in roleplay, improvisation and playtext, the dramatic context is created by
the participants agreeing to explore, and to work in and/or around, fictional roles, relationships,
situations, plot, tension, time and place.
Real context — refers to the live situation for which the drama is created and/or presented. This
includes participants’ skills, attitudes and backgrounds, the performance space, the purpose(s)
and the intended audience, for example, community theatre, street theatre, theatre for young
people (TYP).
General contexts — may include real or imagined factors, beliefs and values that influence
dramatic meaning and action. These contexts may include:
• historical
• cultural
• sociological
4.2
• political
• environmental
• technological
• philosophical
• personal
• geographical.
Dramatic perspectives
The study of Drama takes place within two dramatic perspectives: heritage (before 1980) and
contemporary (after 1980). The dramatic perspectives are ways in which the dramatic languages
are applied and analysed to realise dramatic action and meaning.
4.2.1 Heritage
The heritage perspective is defined by the dramatic languages emerging before 1980, including:
• selected elements of drama and skills of performance
• dramatic cultural inheritance from western, non-western and Australian styles and their
conventions
• significant dramatic texts, playtexts and playwrights/practitioners
• contexts reflective of traditional and cultural understandings and issues.
4.2.2 Contemporary
The contemporary perspective is defined by the dramatic languages emerging after 1980,
including:
• selected elements of drama and skills of performance
• current styles and their conventions
• significant dramatic text, playtexts and emerging practitioners who use current and/or
experimental styles
• contexts reflective of current concepts, issues and understandings.
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4.3
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Sample course overviews
Three sample course overviews (one for a composite class) are provided as guides in Appendix 1.
They illustrate how courses of study could be developed for separate Year 11 and Year 12 classes
and for composite classes.
4.4
Developing a two-year course of study
Teachers should consider the following when developing a course of study:
School population and resources
• What are your students’ interests, and social and cultural backgrounds, and how will these
factors influence the choice of material for the two-year course of study?
• What physical, human and financial resources do you have? Does this affect the selection of
learning experiences and assessment tasks?
• What access do you have to technology, particularly the internet?
• What access do you have to live performances and/or artists-in-schools?
Global aims and general objectives
• Does the organisation of the course reflect the intent of the syllabus?
• Will your course provide sufficient opportunities for students to demonstrate the global aims and
general objectives? How will you develop an aesthetic learning environment for your students?
• How will you introduce and audit inclusive practices and perspectives into the classroom?
Conceptual framework
A conceptual framework is based on ideas related to:
• the ways the conceptual ideas underpin your course
• how they are articulated in your overview
• whether your course is sequential, balanced and culminative over the two years of study
• adherence to the principles of productive pedagogy: intellectual quality, supportive
classroom environment, recognition and valuing of difference, connectedness.
Sequencing of units
• Programs of study should display increasing complexity and content balance within the
course across these two perspectives. Teachers should ensure that the choice of texts at Year
12 level provides sufficient challenge to allow students to meet the exit criteria.
• How will the units be sequenced to consider the developmental nature of students’
conceptual understanding and skills building? For example, are your students capable of a
directing task in first semester Year 11?
• Is the time allocated for each unit sufficient to allow for teaching, learning and assessment?
Balance
Is there a balance of learning experiences across the general objectives, the dramatic languages
and dramatic perspectives?
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Preparation and practice
Are students having sufficient preparation in formative learning experiences in Year 11 to
prepare them for the summative expectations of Year 12?
Organisational factors
Have the organisational factors of time, space, resources and workplace health and safety issues
been taken into account?
4.5
Organisational factors
4.5.1
Time allocation
The minimum number of hours of timetabled school time, including assessment, that this
syllabus has been designed to cater for is 55 hours per semester.
Because of the need for flexible delivery of practical lessons and to facilitate group work and
allow for warm-ups, double periods or extended practical workshops are strongly recommended
when timetabling this subject. One field excursion per semester in school time, is also strongly
recommended. This will enrich students’ dramatic and theatrical experience and enable them to
participate in arts industry-related activities.
4.5.2
Space
Student space
Given the nature of this subject, the recommended minimum requirement is the provision of a
cleared space, uncluttered by tables, desks and chairs — at least six square metres per student is
recommended, or 150 m2 for a senior class of 25 students. The space should be indoors and
enclosed, with provision for blackout curtains or window coverings to ensure privacy for
student work. It should be well ventilated, with sufficient height clearance from overhead fans,
and should have a flat, carpeted floor suitable for movement, relaxation exercises and working
in bare feet.
An impact-absorbing floor is strongly recommended, as a concrete or carpeted surface on
cement is hazardous to the physical development of students engaged in physical drama and
acrobatics (particularly in safe landings from heights).
Storage space
Given the time involved in setting up and dismantling equipment for classroom activity, a large
secure storage space for sets and costumes plus a lockable storage space for texts and smaller
resources should be located within or close to the classroom.
4.5.3
Resources
The recommended minimum equipment needed to support a class of 25 is:
• class sets of playtexts, textbooks and drama-related resources
• one four-pack dimmer rack and four 500-watt theatrical lamps with accessories such as
T-bars, gels, barn doors and gobos
• rostra (portable staging equipment)
• one DVD/VCR recorder and player
• one CD player and recorder
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•
•
•
•
•
SENIOR SYLLABUS
one camera (digital)
one sound recorder/player per four students
one data projector and laptop computer
video editing
adequate library resources for drama.
Elaborate costume and make-up are not essential for classroom activities.
4.5.4
Copyright
Teachers of Drama should be aware of legislation that protects the original author(s), directors
and drama practitioners from copyright infringement for forms such as playtexts, screen
productions, music/sound, and digital compositions.
It is the responsibility of Drama teachers to inform students about the legislation that protects
the original author and their work from being arbitrarily copied and used without their
permission. Information about copyright for schools may be found at the Australian Copyright
Council: www.copyright.org.au and also at Education Queensland’s website:
www.education.qld.gov.au/information/service/libraries/resource/guidelines/copyright.html
Moral rights
Australian legislation protects individual creators of literary, dramatic, musical and artistic
works, and makers of films. These include painters and other visual artists, architects,
illustrators, photographers, writers, screenwriters, set designers, film makers (e.g. scriptwriters,
producers and directors) and map makers. Moral rights are not attached to sound recordings.
Moral rights offers a right of attribution (essentially a requirement that the creator be identified
when a work is published, broadcast or exhibited) and a right of integrity, defined according to
categories of art form such as sculpture, literature and film.
Information about moral rights may be found at www.caslon.com.au/ipguide17.htm
4.6
Composite classes
In some schools, it may be necessary to combine students into a composite Year 11 and 12
class. This syllabus provides teachers with an opportunity to develop a course of study that
caters for a variety of circumstances, such as combined Year 11 and 12 classes, combined
campuses, or modes of delivery involving periods of student-directed study.
The multilevel nature of such classes can prove advantageous to the teaching and learning
process because:
• it provides opportunities for peer teaching
• it allows teachers to maximise the flexibility of the syllabus
• it provides opportunities for a mix of multilevel group work, and for independent work on
appropriate occasions
• learning experiences and assessment can be structured to allow Year 11 and Year 12 students
to consider the key concepts and ideas at the level appropriate to the needs of students within
each year level.
The following guidelines may prove helpful in designing a course of study for a composite class:
• The course of study could be written in a Year A – Year B format, if the school intends to
teach the same topic to both cohorts.
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• Place a topic at the beginning of each year that will allow new Year 11 students easy entry
into the course.
• Learning experiences and assessment instruments need to cater for both year levels
throughout the course. Even though tasks may be similar for both year levels, more extended
and/or complex tasks should be used with Year 12 students.
• A sample work program overview can be found in Appendix 1.
4.7
Work program requirements
A work program is the school’s plan of how the course will be delivered and assessed based on
the school’s interpretation of the syllabus. It allows for the special characteristics of the
individual school and its students.
The school’s work program must meet all syllabus requirements and must demonstrate that
there will be sufficient scope and depth of student learning to meet the general objectives and
the exit standards.
The requirements for work program approval can be accessed from our website,
www.qsa.qld.edu.au . This information should be consulted before writing a work program.
Updates of the requirements for work program approval may occur periodically.
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5. Learning experiences
5.1
Planning an aesthetic learning environment for Drama
The term aesthetic learning describes the mode of learning that students mainly engage with in
a drama classroom. It can be defined as a means of inquiry that operates cognitively and
affectively through the senses to offer a particular way for students to understand the world
(Abbs, 1989). Drama is an experiential mode of learning and demands students’ active
participation. Like any mode of learning it can be planned for within and beyond the classroom.
The following are suggestions that teachers could employ for creating an educational setting
that facilitates aesthetic learning.
Create a physical classroom environment that is stimulating and inviting
• Display posters, student performance photographs and so on to create a visually interesting
environment.
• Find ways to change the physical set-up of the classroom to introduce new units; for
example, you could introduce sensory and visual stimuli for a first lesson on Greek theatre.
• Use appropriate surfaces for safe high-impact work such as acrobatics and physical theatre.
Establish a climate of trust and cooperation
• Use drama games, personal storytelling and sharing of experiences to promote a positive
group dynamic.
• Ensure students’ emotional and physical security and readiness by building protective
strategies into lessons such as warm-up exercises and reflection time.
• Critique and interact with students’ drama work in a way that respects, supports and
validates their contribution.
Choose evocative, aesthetically charged materials for classroom use
• Select materials for their ability to excite and engage students in the drama, such as pretexts
that have the potential to powerfully launch a process drama.
• Select a range of materials, such as some well-known traditional texts and some which
directly connect with the students’ interests and youth culture.
• Make some selections for their socially critical evocativeness.
Structure units of work and lessons for aesthetic engagement
• Provide a rich variety of sensory and cognitive learning experiences to incorporate symbol
and metaphor.
• Plan to allow for engagement, in an interrelated way, in Forming, Presenting and
Responding.
• Wherever possible, plan activities that require students to engage experientially with the
materials and forms of drama. Examples include improvisation and process drama.
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• Build into units and lessons opportunities for students to present their work to each other.
• Plan opportunities for students to respond in a critically reflective way to their own and
others’ drama work.
Emphasise drama as an art form
• Teach students the dramatic languages informed by the dramatic perspectives and
consistently reinforce their use in all aspects of students’ engagement with drama.
• Build into your work program opportunities to expose students to professional theatre at least
once each semester (or as often as school policy allows).
• Encourage independent theatregoing.
• Provide opportunities for students to interact with professional artists through in-school
performances, workshops, community partnerships, artist-in-residence programs and guest
speakers.
• Insist on appropriate audience behaviour at theatre performances.
Function as a co-artist with students
• Recognise each student as a developing or emerging artist in drama and yourself as artistic
facilitator or teacher-artist.
• Intervene in students’ work if necessary to deepen and enrich the work artistically and
dramatically.
• Encourage a climate of reflection and critique that challenges students to raise personal and
group standards in drama work.
• Use the teacher-in-role convention when appropriate.
• Extend your own artistic practice and theoretical understanding by professional reading,
participating in professional development activities, directing, playwriting, designing,
performing, producing and/or attending theatre.
5.2
Learning experiences in Forming, Presenting and Responding
This section provides tables of activities and learning experiences organised according to the
three general objectives. The tables represent a range of possibilities and are not intended to be
definitive. The general objectives should be explored through a variety of perspectives such as
the actor, audience, designer, deviser, director, dramaturge and practitioner.
Teachers have an ethical responsibility to avoid uninformed and insensitive treatment of subject
matter. Students should be encouraged to value and appreciate diverse drama practices and not
treat them as quaint or exotic, nor should they uncritically accept stereotyping.
These learning experiences also provide opportunities for students to develop the seven key
competencies noted earlier. For example, in Table 1, students explore different ways of
communicating ideas and information such as roleplay, improvisation, monologues, and
storyboarding. In Table 2, students develop group communication skills and processes such as
effective listening, negotiation, time management and small-group dynamics in order to work
together and in teams to present drama. Also in Table 2, learning experiences involving the use
of technology such as lighting, sound and video/audio recording are suggested. Three key
competencies — planning and organising activities; collecting, analysing and organising
information; and solving problems — underpin the learning experiences in each of the tables.
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Table 1: Forming: possible learning activities and experiences
Forming activities may include:
• dramatic play
• scripting
• improvisation
• directing
• roleplay
• designing
• process drama
• physical composition
• devising
• cyberdrama
• dramaturgy: shaping of text for performance
• sampling
• playbuilding
• storyboarding
• playwriting
• artistic and creative production roles.
Forming learning experiences may include:
• use process drama as a starting point for
playwriting and playbuilding
• teacher modelling of dramatic conventions,
e.g. mantle of the expert, directorial
approaches
• research issues and themes as dramaturge or
playwright
• workshops to explore a range of elements of
drama and dramatic conventions, e.g. hot
seat, teacher-in-role, role circle, freeze
frame, stream of consciousness, effigy,
touch and talk, teacher narration,
dreamscapes
• devise pre- or post-performance workshops
• sampling, pod-casting, site specification,
cinematic theatre, new media
• use software to support playbuilding, cyberdrama,
cinematic theatre and new media activities
• practise the skills of improvisation
e.g. accepting and making offers; being in
the moment; structuring the action; creating
time and place through language, movement
and props
• create visual images to support performance
activities such as shadow theatre
• experiment with webstreaming to construct linear
and non-linear narratives for performance
• use roleplay and improvise and/or write in
response to a variety of pretexts, e.g. digital,
artifact, storytelling, poems, objects, music,
fragments of playtexts, photographs,
headlines, video and sound bites
• create written dialogue and scenarios from
improvisations
• apply conventions of various dramatic styles to
playwriting
• workshops to build skills in dramatic styles
such as forum theatre, one-person show,
physical and visual theatre
• interview and gather primary source materials for
devising, playbuilding or playwriting
• transform stimulus material from other art
forms into verbatim theatre, experimenting
with other arts forms to create a new
dramatic style
• experiment with scripting techniques, e.g. writing
dialogue, synopses, stage directions, subtext,
site-specific, new style, media, visual imagery
• use excerpts from playtexts for further
dramatic exploration
• implement strategies to identify audience needs
and interests in selecting relevant content and
form for playbuilding
• use stimulus from a play as a basis for an
improvisation or process drama
• workshop exercises to develop skills in directing
• provide directorial feedback to other students in
rehearsal.
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Table 2: Presenting: possible learning activities and experiences
Presenting activities may include performing:
• dialogue
• visual theatre
• dramatic monologues
• a complete short scene
• student-devised drama work
• a one-act play
• collage drama
• a one-person show
• documentary drama
• a recognised playtext.
• physical theatre
Presenting learning experiences may include:
• apply knowledge of the social and cultural
background of the text to present the dramatic
action
• participate in relaxation, concentration and trust
exercises for actor readiness
• explore the acting conventions of the medium,
form, period and style, through games, exercises,
improvisations and text workshopping, e.g.
physical theatre, Elizabethan theatre, satire
• explore how dramatic meaning alters through
varying the use of the elements in performance
• experiment with the use of a variety of
performance spaces
• develop acting techniques for realism by
engaging in Stanislavski-based exercises such as
the “magic if” and “emotion memory”
• do exercises that develop ensemble skills
• take part in workshops to develop specific skills
for student-devised performance, e.g. mask,
physical theatre, street theatre
• characterisation exercises in preparation for
performance
• explore methods of presenting a monologue in a
variety of imaginary settings
• practise the movement and gesture of selected
non-western drama styles
• experiment in rehearsal with several
interpretations of the same scene
• develop rehearsal skills, e.g. delivering and
responding to cues, committing text and blocking
to memory
• experience a range of vocal and physical warmup activities
• accept direction and apply feedback to the
rehearsal process
• participate in acting exercises to develop the
physicalisation of a character focusing on
movement, gesture and stillness
• practise with props and costume to aid stylistic
interpretation of text, e.g. use of fans in comedy
of manners
• do acting exercises to develop performance skills
related to focus, such as awareness of horizon,
fixed point, circles of concentration
• experiment in rehearsal with non-naturalistic
ways to present a realistic scene, e.g. freeze
frames, use of mask, image theatre
• annotate a script for performance by breaking it
into beats and signalling vocal variations
• use video or audio to record improvisations and
rehearsals for further refinement
• integrate multimedia into polished performance
• explore the use of props and costumes to
enhance performance
• implement both personal and group warm-up
repertoires in rehearsal and as preparation for
performance
• interpret and rehearse text for polished
performance
• develop skills in using language for particular
styles of performance through exercises using
short text extracts, e.g. comedy of manners,
Greek chorus, Shakespeare
• experiment with the technical aspects of
production such as lighting and sound to support
performance
• participate in workshops to develop skills in
cooperation and ensemble playing
• participate in small and large groups in technical
and dress rehearsals.
• perform workshop activities to develop skills in
voice and movement suitable for the selected
form or style
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Table 3: Responding: possible learning activities and experiences
Responding activities may include:
• seminar
• tutorial
• written essay/assignment
• forum
• exam
• interview
• evaluation/reflection
• dramaturgy
• discussion
• viva.
Responding learning experiences may include:
• use video or audio to record improvisations to
reflect on the development of the drama
• research activities to develop knowledge and
understanding of heritage and contemporary
perspectives and their associated dramatic styles
• identify the dramatic languages in a range of
contexts
• lead a seminar on aspects of drama
• reflect on the use of the dramatic languages in
heritage and contemporary perspectives
• discuss and analyse ways in which dramatic
languages are used in a professional production
• present an oral analysis of one aspect of a
professional performance
• participate in an online chat group with a
playwright, designer or director
• read a range of playtexts to analyse how the
treatment of subject matter varies according to
the field of study.
• view and analyse live theatre
• use a videotape of polished student performance
for the purposes of review and evaluation
• identify, discuss and interpret issues in playtext
and performance
• use books, internet and software to research the
social, historical and political factors that
influenced an era of theatre history
• use “hot seat” to examine knowledge and
understanding, e.g. student in role as Brecht
explaining his theory of alienation
• critically evaluate the use of dramatic languages
in a video of a heritage or contemporary stage
production
• compare plays targeted for specific audiences,
e.g. Out of the Box Children’s Festival, regional
arts festivals
• write program notes, as a dramaturge, for a play
to be seen later in a professional production
• devise a PowerPoint presentation to support
seminar/viva response
• create a website to promote forthcoming
Presenting task to audiences
• justify particular interpretations
• develop knowledge of selected styles of drama
through critical reflection, discussion and
research
• research theatre companies and their artistic
programming on the internet to support seminar
presentations when comparing and contrasting
artistic decision making
• search the internet for past reviews and
photographs of a play to be seen in performance
• compare playtexts and styles of drama through
workshop exploration
• analyse and document the development of
dramatic action within the dramatic process
• read, evaluate and compare dramatic criticism
• analyse dramatic structure of selected playtexts.
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6. Assessment
The purposes of assessment are to provide feedback to students and parents about learning that
has occurred, to provide feedback to teachers about the teaching and learning processes, and to
provide information on which to base judgments about how well students meet the general
objectives of the course. In designing an assessment program, it is important that the assessment
tasks, conditions and criteria are compatible with the general objectives and the learning
experiences. Assessment then is an integral aspect of a course of study. It can be formative or
summative. The distinction between formative and summative assessment lies in the purpose for
which that assessment is used.
Formative assessment is used to provide feedback to students, parents and teachers about
achievement over the course of study. This enables students and teachers to identify the
students’ strengths and weaknesses so students may improve their achievement and better
manage their own learning. The formative techniques used should be similar to summative
assessment techniques, which students will meet later in the course. This provides students with
experience in responding to particular types of tasks, under appropriate conditions. Feedback on
any early assessment tasks may be used in a formative sense to assist students’ preparation for
later assessment tasks.
Summative assessment, while also providing feedback to students, parents and teachers, provides
cumulative information on which levels of achievement are determined at exit from the course of
study. It follows, therefore, that it is necessary to plan the range of assessment techniques and
instruments/tasks to be used, when they will be administered, and how they contribute to the
determination of exit levels of achievement. Students’ achievements are matched to the standards
of exit criteria, which are derived from the general objectives of the course. Thus, summative
assessment provides the information for certification at the end of the course.
6.1
Underlying principles of exit assessment
The policy on exit assessment requires consideration to be given to the following principles
when devising an assessment program for the two-year course of study.
• Information is gathered through a process of continuous assessment.
• Balance of assessments is a balance over the course of study and not necessarily a balance
over a semester or between semesters.
• Exit achievement levels are devised from student achievement in all areas identified in the
syllabus as being mandatory.
• Assessment of a student’s achievement is in the significant aspects of the course of study
identified in the syllabus and the school’s work program.
• Selective updating of a student’s profile of achievement is undertaken over the course of study.
• Exit assessment is devised to provide the fullest and latest information on a student’s
achievement in the course of study.
These principles are to be considered together and not individually in the development of an
assessment program. Exit assessment must satisfy concurrently the six principles associated
with it.
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Continuous assessment
The major operating principle is “continuous assessment”. The process of continuous
assessment provides the framework in which all the other five principles of balance, mandatory
aspects of the syllabus, significant aspects of the course, selective updating, and fullest and
latest information exist and operate.
This is the means by which assessment instruments are administered at suitable intervals and by
which information on student achievement is collected. It involves a continuous gathering of
information and the making of judgments in terms of the stated criteria and standards
throughout a two-year course of study.
Decisions about levels of achievement are based on information gathered, through the process
of continuous assessment, at points in the course of study appropriate to the organisation of the
learning experiences. Levels of achievement must not be based on students’ responses to a
single assessment task at the end of a course or instruments set at arbitrary intervals that are
unrelated to the developmental course of study.
Balance
Balance of assessments is a balance over the course of study and not necessarily a balance
within a semester or between semesters.
Within the two-year course for Drama it is necessary to establish a suitable balance in the
general objectives, assessment techniques and instruments/tasks, conditions and across the
criteria. The exit criteria are to have equal emphasis across the range of summative assessment.
The exit assessment program must ensure an appropriate balance over the course of study as a whole.
Mandatory aspects of the syllabus
Judgment of student achievement at exit from a course of study must be derived from
information gathered about student achievement in those aspects stated in the syllabus as being
mandatory, namely:
• the general objectives of Forming, Presenting and Responding
• the dramatic languages
• the dramatic perspectives.
The exit criteria and standards stated in sections 6.6 and 6.7.1 must be used to make the
judgment of student achievement at exit from a two-year course of study.
Significant aspects of the course of study
Significant aspects refer to those units in the course of study selected from the choices permitted
by the syllabus. Significant aspects can complement mandatory aspects or be in addition to
them. They will be determined by the context of the school and the needs of students at that
school to provide choice of learning experiences appropriate to the location of the school, the
local environment and the resources available.
The significant aspects of the course in Drama are areas which the school has given special
emphasis for reasons of school philosophy or availability of expertise or resources. These
aspects are dramatic languages and dramatic perspectives within the units of work developed by
the school, and they must be assessed.
The significant aspects must be consistent with the general objectives of the syllabus and
complement the developmental nature of learning in the course over two years.
Achievement in both mandatory and significant aspects of the course must contribute to the
determination of the student’s level of achievement.
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Selective updating
In conjunction with the principle of fullest and latest information, information on student
achievement should be selectively updated throughout the course.
Selective updating is related to the developmental nature of the course of study and operates within
the context of continuous assessment. As students’ skills and knowledge in Forming, Presenting and
Responding develop towards increasing levels of complexity, assessment information gathered at
earlier stages of the course may no longer be typical of student achievement at the later stages. The
information should be selectively and continually updated (not averaged) to accurately reflect
student achievement.
The following conceptions of the principle of selective updating apply:
• a systemic whole subject-group approach in which considerations about the whole group of
students are made according to the developmental nature of the course and, in turn, the
assessment program. In this conception, developmental aspects of the course are revisited so
that later summative assessment replaces earlier formative information
• an act of decision-making about individual students — deciding from a set of assessment
results the subset which meets syllabus requirements and typically represents a student’s
achievements, thus forming the basis for a decision about a level of achievement. In the
application of decisions about individual students, the set of assessment results does not have
to be the same for all students. However, the subset which represents the typical achievement
of a student must conform to the parameters outlined in the school’s work program.
Selective updating must not involve students reworking and resubmitting previously graded
assessment tasks. Opportunities may be provided for students to complete and submit additional
tasks. Such tasks may provide information for making judgments where achievement on an
earlier task was unrepresentative or atypical, or there was insufficient information upon which
to base a judgment.
Fullest and latest information
Judgments about student achievement made at exit from a school course of study must be based
on the fullest and latest information available. This information is recorded on a student profile.
“Fullest” refers to information about student achievement gathered across the range of general
objectives. “Latest” refers to information about student achievement gathered from the most
recent period in which the general objectives are assessed. As the assessment program in Drama
is developmental, fullest and latest information will most likely come from Year 12.
Information recorded on a student profile will consist of the latest assessment data on mandatory
and significant aspects of the course, which includes the data gathered in the summative
assessment program that is not superseded.
6.2
Planning an assessment program
At the end of Year 12, judgments are made about how students have achieved in relation to the
standards stated in the syllabus for each of the criteria. These summative judgments are based
on achievement in each of the general objectives.
When planning an assessment program, schools must consider:
• the general objectives over the two-year course (section 3)
• the learning experiences (section 5)
• the underlying principles of assessment (section 6.1)
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•
•
•
•
•
a range of assessment techniques and instruments over the two-year course (section 6.6)
that tasks have their foundations in learning experiences reflecting the objectives of the units
conditions under which the assessment is implemented (section 6.6.7)
the exit criteria (section 6.6) and standards (section 6.7.1) as described in the matrices
verification folio requirements, especially the number and nature of student responses to
assessment tasks to be included (section 6.8)
• minimum assessment necessary to reach a valid judgment of the student’s standard of
achievement.
In Year 11, students should become familiar with assessment techniques and instruments, and
have knowledge of the criteria by which their work will be judged. Care must be taken that the
assessment program is workable and not too onerous for either the teacher or students.
Teachers should plan for 5–7 assessment tasks in Year 11. These tasks must reflect a balance
across the general objectives. Please refer to Appendix 1: “Three sample course overviews”.
6.3
Special consideration
Guidance about the nature and appropriateness of special consideration and special
arrangements for particular students may be found in the Authority’s Policy on Special
Consideration in School-based Assessments in Senior Certification, available from
www.qsa.qld.edu.au/yourqsa/policy/special-c/docs/spec-con.pdf This statement also provides
guidance on responsibilities, principles and strategies that schools may need to consider in their
school settings.
To enable special consideration to be effective for students so identified, it is important that
schools plan and implement strategies in the early stages of an assessment program and not at
the point of deciding levels of achievement. The special consideration might involve alternative
teaching approaches, assessment plans and learning experiences.
6.4
Authentication of student work
It is essential that judgments of student achievement are made on accurate and authentic student
assessment information. Teachers should find ways to ensure that students’ work is their own,
particularly where students have access to electronic resources and when they are preparing
collaborative tasks.
The QSA information statement “Strategies for authenticating student work for learning and
assessment” is available from www.qsa.qld.edu.au/memos/05/047-05.pdf. This statement
provides information about various methods teachers can use to monitor students’ work to
ensure authentic tasks. Particular methods outlined include:
• teachers seeing plans and drafts of student work
• student production and maintenance of documentation about the development of responses
• student acknowledgment of resources used.
Teachers must ensure students use consistent accepted conventions of in-text citations and
referencing where appropriate.
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6.5
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Exit criteria
In Drama, judgments made about student achievement in the three general objectives of
Forming, Presenting and Responding contribute to the exit level of achievement. The exit
criteria reflect the general objectives of the course. The three exit criteria for Drama are
Forming, Presenting and Responding.
6.5.1
Exit criterion: Forming
Forming involves students hypothesising, experimenting and making judgments as they select
and structure, create and shape dramatic action and meaning.
• demonstration of knowledge and understanding of the dramatic languages, informed by the
dramatic perspectives
• exploration and interpretation of ideas to create and shape dramatic action and meaning
• management and application of the dramatic languages, experimenting and making
judgments about dramatic action and meaning.
6.5.2
Exit criterion: Presenting
Presenting involves the demonstration and communication of dramatic action and dramatic meaning.
• selection and use of dramatic languages informed by the dramatic perspectives to
demonstrate an understanding of the purpose and function of drama
• communication of action and intended meaning to an audience
• demonstration of planned and rehearsed skills of performance.
6.5.3
Exit criterion: Responding
Responding involves students using the dramatic languages as an analytical framework to
communicate their knowledge and understanding about drama and its meaning informed by the
dramatic perspectives (heritage and contemporary).
• demonstration of knowledge and understanding of the dramatic languages and dramatic
perspectives to communicate a position about dramatic meaning and action
• analysis and evaluation of dramatic action by interpreting dramatic meaning.
6.6
Developing assessment
6.6.1
Techniques, instruments and tasks
A variety of assessment techniques and instruments must be used to design tasks to which
students respond.
Technique
An assessment technique is an overarching strategy for assessing student work. Under it can sit
a variety of assessment instruments.
Instrument
An assessment instrument is a tool developed by the school for assessing students in a subject at
a specific time and used to frame an assessment task.
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Task
An assessment task is work undertaken by a student in response to an assessment instrument, and is
described on a criteria sheet. The standard of response is assessed in relation to specific criteria.
In developing assessment tasks for students, teachers need to ensure that:
• the techniques and instruments chosen allow for demonstration of achievement in the
particular objective or objectives
• they are written in clear, unambiguous language, thereby ensuring that the teacher and the
student have the same understanding of the task
• the selection of dramatic texts and contexts offers a suitable challenge to students, providing
them with opportunities to show the full range of their abilities
• the tasks for assessment become more complex as the course progresses
• while practical assessment tasks are to be balanced in terms of individual, pair and group
involvement, criteria for both formative and summative assessment always refer to the
individual’s achievement within the pair or group
• the reproduction of gender, socioeconomic, ethnic or other cultural stereotypes is used only
after careful consideration as to its necessity
• in the assessment for students with special needs, the principles of equity and fairness to all
students apply
• task-specific criteria and standards descriptors are stated in the form of schemas on criteria sheets
• task conditions are stated on criteria sheets (see section 6.6.7 for suggested guidelines).
6.6.2
Assessment of Forming
Forming tasks are used to assess achievement in the creative process of developing dramatic
action and meaning. As the Forming criterion always requires the students to work as artists in
the making of a creative work, appropriate Forming tasks entail the creation of dramatic action
in both the “live” and written form. For convenience, these two types of Forming tasks are
called practical Forming tasks and written Forming tasks.
Descriptions of Forming tasks should:
• provide clear indication whether the task is written or practical
• require students to manage the dramatic languages to realise dramatic action and meaning
informed by the dramatic perspectives.
Whether for heritage or contemporary dramatic perspectives, an individual written Forming task
such as a dramaturgical folio (appropriate research, interpretation of text, reflection of real
context) could require students to manage selected elements of drama (role, language, symbol)
and skills of performance (dramaturgy) as well as dramatic style. The created drama text should
demonstrate such characteristics as coherence, relevance of text to stimulus material, purpose
and intent.
An individual practical Forming task, such as directing a section of a heritage playtext in the
epic style, could require students to show how they manage the following elements of drama
and performance skills: roles, language, mood and space. The dramatic conventions could
include techniques and strategies associated with heritage styles of the drama, such as using
alienation techniques. The student director could include reference to the “real” and the
“cultural and historical” contexts, integrating the material from which the playtext was shaped
with how the director serves the playwright’s intent.
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A practical Forming task undertaken in a small group, such as physical theatre in the
contemporary perspective, could require students to show, individually, how they manage some
elements of drama (movement, mood, space) and skills of performance (physical, spatial
awareness, collaboration). The dramatic conventions could include techniques and strategies
associated with improvisation, such as viewpoints, multimedia form, and hybridism. The
context could include reference to the development of the scene in relation to the text, stimulus
material, purpose and the intended audience.
6.6.3
Assessment of Presenting
Presenting tasks are used to assess achievement in the presentation and communication of
dramatic action and meaning to others. As the Presenting criterion always requires planned,
rehearsed and/or polished performance for an audience, appropriate Presenting tasks entail a
range of performances demonstrating performance skills and dramatic styles.
Descriptions of Presenting tasks should require students to use the dramatic languages to realise
their performance informed by the dramatic perspectives (heritage and contemporary).
A Presenting task such as a small group performance of scripted drama in the realist style, could
require students to show how they can use the elements of drama (role and relationship, focus,
mood and tension) and skills of performance (vocal, physical acting, ensemble). The dramatic
conventions include the “fourth wall”, communicating truth, and “playing the through line”.
A Presenting task such as an individual performance of mono-drama could require students to
show how they can use elements of drama (role, time, space and place) and performance skills
(manipulation of technology, acting skills, and physical). The dramatic conventions could
include contemporary conventions such as fragmentation, intertextuality and objects/props
taking on symbolic meaning.
6.6.4
Assessment of Responding
Responding tasks are used to assess achievement in the response to the meaning and action of
drama. Appropriate responding tasks entail written, oral, visual and multimedia modes of
communication. While students could respond from a position as an arts practitioner (for
example, designer, actor or dramaturge), students always communicate in the Responding
criterion from a position outside or after the drama. Responding tasks must give students the
opportunity to demonstrate not only their knowledge and understanding of drama, but also their
critical and analytical abilities.
Descriptions of Responding tasks should:
• state whether they are to be written, oral, visual or multimedia
• require students to reflect on dramatic action and meaning by communicating their
knowledge and understanding and by analysing, interpreting, synthesising and evaluating.
A Responding task, where possible, should be based on a live theatre performance or a complex
playtext and require students to evaluate how successfully dramatic languages were manipulated
to create dramatic action and meaning informed by dramatic perspective(s). Students are required
to use drama terminology and apply language skills to communicate the information. In analysing,
interpreting, synthesising and evaluating, students could be required to appraise the production
and select relevant techniques and conventions from the production to justify statements.
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6.6.5
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Examples of possible tasks
Table 4 provides descriptions of possible tasks for the three criteria. These are not to be
considered as definitive or prescriptive, and they may serve as formative or summative.
Forming
Table 4: Examples of techniques, instruments and tasks
Technique
Instrument
Brief task description
Dramatic
exploration
Improvisation
Small group improvisation based on themes and
characters in an Australian drama playtext.
Workshop
Individual directing workshop managing nominated
dramatic languages.
Practical
demonstration
Individual demonstration of a student-devised drama
managing a nominated dramatic style and its conventions.
Dramaturgical folio
Preparation of a text, through research, for a performance
production, to meet the specific needs of an arts
organisation‘s philosophy, budget restraints, director’s
vision etc.
Playwriting
Scriptwriting exercise managing nominated dramatic
languages and dramatic perspectives.
Dramatic treatment
Writing a dramatic treatment into a physical theatre
presentation that transforms a heritage text.
Design
Design concept
Creation and justification of a design for a multimedia
(visual and audio) performance of a play, identifying
specific elements of drama from the text.
Performance
Performance of
scripted drama
Performance of a scene or extracts from an Australian
drama playtext demonstrating Presenting skills on film.
Responding
Presenting
Creative
writing
Performance of a monologue demonstrating a particular
dramatic style through a dramatic perspective.
Student-devised
performance
Student-devised performance demonstrating a range of
conventions associated with a particular dramatic style
such as children’s theatre.
Mediatised dramatic
action
Performance of dramatic action characterised by the
integration of media technologies with live performance.
Critical essay
Critical review of a live theatre performance by a
professional company focusing on an analysis of
nominated dramatic languages.
Article for online
magazine
Write an article for an online magazine evaluating a text or
performance as an emerging form of theatre
Playtext analysis
Script analysis focusing on director’s point of view.
Oral
Seminar
Individual multimedia seminar presentation on teachernominated topics related to Australian theatre.
Written
examination
Extended examination
answer
Performance analysis question based on a scene from a
play shown on video for the purposes of the examination.
Extended
writing
27
DRAMA
6.6.6
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Assessment in more than one criterion
Students could be assessed in more than one criterion using the same content, stimulus or
creative product. If this occurs, there must be distinct and separate sets of learning experiences
and assessment tasks for each criterion. When assessing in more than one criterion using the
same content, teachers should ensure that students have opportunities to be engaged with and
assessed through a balance of dramatic perspectives over a course of study.
Example 1: Students may be assessed in the forming of their drama work and in the presenting
of this same drama work. A Forming task: writing a script for a small group performance using
an epic style is assessed and detailed feedback given. Small groups then select one of these
scripts to rework and present as a polished performance.
It is essential that this occurs as two separate tasks, one with the Forming criterion and one with
the Presenting criterion. This may occur on condition that the Forming assessment is completed
with its own learning experiences and feedback given to students before they proceed to the
Presenting assessment with its own learning experiences. Such an approach will allow students
to rework material if necessary and help safeguard against poor quality material as the basis of
their Presenting assessment.
Example 2: A Responding task: Students may be assessed about their response to the style of
absurdist theatre, before attempting a forming task, such as devising a monodrama using the
style. Again there would be two sets of learning experiences with discrete assessment tasks: one
for the Responding criterion and one for the Forming criterion.
6.6.7
Task conditions
Table 5, which starts on the next page, has suggested guidelines for assessment conditions. The
list is not exhaustive and is provided to indicate manageable task conditions. The upper limits to
these conditions may need to be altered depending on such things as the nature of the
assessment instrument, group size and complexity of the task, and the timing of the task within
the course.
If written assessment occurs in examination format, then the required word length should allow
students time to meet the criteria for the task, for example, in an examination of two hours, Year 12
students could be expected to write at least 600 words.
28
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Table 5: Guidelines for task conditions
Forming:
practical work
— designing
Forming:
practical work
— directing
11
4
No more than two weeks before
date of assessment, including
task
Task briefing
In class and at
home
Not applicable
No
3–4 minutes
12
4
No more than two weeks before
date of assessment, including
task.
Task briefing
In class and at
home
Not applicable
No
4–6 minutes
11
4
At least two weeks before date of
assessment, including task.
Task briefing
In class and at
home
Depending on the
task, none or not
more than two
Not applicable
600–800 words
plus annotated
sketches.
12
4
At least two weeks before date of
assessment, including task.
Task briefing
In class and at
home
Depending on the
task, none or not
more than two
Not applicable
800–1000 words
plus annotated
sketches.
11
4
At least two weeks before day of
assessment, including task —
different play excerpt per student.
Feedback may be
given at teacher’s
discretion, up to
the day before the
assessment.
Two weeks home
time for director;
actors assigned
on the day of
assessment
Not applicable
No. Director not to
meet with actors
before
assessment.
4–6 minutes
directorial input,
excluding time for
actors’ responses.
12
4
At least two weeks before day of
assessment, including task —
different play excerpt per
student.
Feedback may be
given at teacher’s
discretion, up to
the day before the
assessment.
Two weeks home
time for director;
actors assigned
on the day of
assessment
Not applicable
No. Director not to
meet with actors
before
assessment.
6–8 minutes
directorial input,
excluding time for
actors’ responses.
Group
Individual
Forming:
practical work
— devising
Year
Task
(This table spreads over four pages)
Stimulus material and task
given when?
Teacher input or
intervention
Preparation time
— class/home
Rough draft
permitted
Rehearsed
Timing in
minutes
or length in
words
29
11
4
4
11
12
4
4
12
Forming:
written —
scriptwriting
(appropriated
text excerpts
as a feature
of contemporary performances)
Group
Individual
Forming:
practical
work—
improvisation
Year
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Task
DRAMA
Stimulus material and task
given when?
Teacher input or
intervention
Preparation time
— class/home
Rough draft
permitted
Rehearsed
Timing in
minutes
or length in
words
Familiar material but task not
seen until time of assessment or
unfamiliar material on the day.
May intervene
during the
improvisation.
0–10 minutes
class time
immediately
before
assessment.
Not applicable
No
2 minutes
Familiar material but task not
seen until time of assessment or
unfamiliar material on the day.
Listens to the
preparation; may
intervene during
the improvisation.
0–10 minutes
class time
immediately
before
assessment.
Not applicable
No
2–3 minutes per
student
Familiar material but task not
seen until time of assessment or
unfamiliar material on the day.
May intervene
during the
improvisation.
0–10 minutes
class time
immediately
before
assessment.
Not applicable
No
3 minutes
Familiar material but task not
seen until time of assessment or
unfamiliar material on the day.
Listens to the
preparation; may
intervene during
the improvisation.
0–10 minutes
class time
immediately
before
assessment.
Not applicable
No
2–3 minutes per
student
11
4
Depends on the task.
Task briefing
Home and/or in
class; three
weeks.
Depending on the
task, none or not
more than two.
Not applicable
600–800 words
12
4
Depends on the task.
Task briefing
Home and/or in
class; three
weeks.
Depending on the
task, none or not
more than one.
Not applicable
800–1000 words
30
Presenting:
practical work
— stage
acting
11
4
Depends on the task.
Task briefing
Home and/or in
class; three weeks.
Depending on
the task, none
or not more
than two.
Not
applicable
800–1000 words plus
referencing,
annotated sketches,
and appendixes
when appropriate or
4–6 minutes.
12
4
Depends on the task.
Task briefing
Home and/or in
class; three weeks.
Depending on
the task, none
or not more
than one.
Not
applicable
1000–1200 words
plus referencing,
annotated sketches,
and appendixes
when appropriate or
6–8 minutes.
11
4
At least two weeks before
assessment time. Hand out task
as well.
During rehearsal only In class and at
home
Not applicable
4
3–4 minutes
At least two weeks before
assessment time, including task.
During rehearsal only In class and at
home
Not applicable
4
2–3 minutes per
student
At least two weeks before
assessment time, including task.
During rehearsal only In class and at
home
Not applicable
4
4–6 minutes
At least two weeks before
assessment time, including task.
During rehearsal only In class and at
home
Not applicable
4
3–5 minutes per
student
At least two weeks before
assessment time, including task.
During rehearsal only In class and at
home
Not applicable
4
2–3 minutes
At least two weeks before
assessment time, including task.
During rehearsal only In class and at
home
Not applicable
4
1–2 minutes per
student
At least two weeks before
assessment time, including task.
During rehearsal only In class and at
home
Not applicable
4
3–4 minutes
At least two weeks before
assessment time, including task.
During rehearsal only In class and at
home
Not applicable
4
2–3 minutes per
student
4
11
12
4
4
12
Presenting:
practical work
— screen
acting (one
take only for
each camera
shot
assessed)
11
4
4
11
12
12
Group
Individual
Forming:
written/oral —
dramaturgical
folio
Year
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Task
DRAMA
4
4
Stimulus material
given when?
Teacher input or
intervention
Preparation time
— class/home
Rough draft
permitted
31
Rehearsed
Timing in minutes
or length in words
4
Depends on the task.
Task consultation
Home and/or in
class; three weeks.
Depending on
the task, none
or not more
than two.
Not
applicable
800–1000 words,
referencing when
appropriate to the
task.
12
4
Depends on the task.
Task briefing
Home and/or in
class; three weeks.
Depending on
the task, none
or not more
than two.
Not
applicable
1000–1200 words,
referencing when
appropriate to the
task.
Responding:
oral
11
4
At least two weeks before
assessment, including task.
Task briefing
Home and/or in
class
No more than
two.
4
4–6 minutes
Responding:
oral
12
4
At least two weeks before
assessment, including task.
Task briefing
Home and/or in
class
No more than
two.
4
6–8 minutes
Responding:
extended
analytical
writing
Group
11
Task
Individual
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Year
DRAMA
Stimulus material
given when?
Teacher input or
intervention
Preparation time
— class/home
Rough draft
permitted
Postverification
32
Rehearsed
Timing in minutes
or length in words
DRAMA
6.7
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Determining exit levels of achievement
On completion of the course of study, the school is required to award each student an exit level
of achievement from one of the five categories:
Very High Achievement
High Achievement
Sound Achievement
Limited Achievement
Very Limited Achievement.
The school must award an exit standard for each of the three criteria (Forming, Presenting and
Responding), based on the principles of assessment described in this syllabus. The criteria are
derived from the general objectives and are described in section 6.5. The standards associated
with the three exit criteria are described in section 6.7.1. When teachers are determining a
standard for each criterion, it is not always necessary for the student to have met each descriptor
for a particular standard; the standard awarded should be informed by how the qualities of the
work match the descriptors overall.
For Year 11, particular standards descriptors may be selected from the matrix and/or adapted to
suit the task. These standards are used to inform the teaching and learning process. For Year 12
tasks, students should be provided with opportunities to understand and become familiar with
the expectations for exit. The exit standards are applied to the summative body of work selected
for exit.
Of the seven key competencies * , the five that are relevant to assessment in this subject are
embedded in the descriptors in the standards matrix. The descriptors refer mainly to collecting,
analysing and organising information, communicating ideas and information, working with
others and in teams, planning and organising activities and solving problems.
When standards have been determined in each of the criteria of Forming, Presenting and
Responding, the following table is used to award exit levels of achievement, where A represents
the highest standard and E the lowest. The table indicates the minimum combination of
standards across the criteria for each level.
Awarding exit levels of achievement
VHA
Standard A in any two criteria and no less than a B in the remaining criterion
HA
Standard B in any two criteria and no less than a C in the remaining criterion
SA
Standard C in any two criteria and no less than a D in the remaining criterion
LA
Standard D in any two criteria and no less than an E in the remaining criterion
VLA
Standard E in the three criteria
*
KC1: collecting, analysing and organising information; KC2: communicating ideas and information;
KC3: planning and organising activities; KC4: working with others and in teams;
KC5: using mathematical ideas and techniques; KC6: solving problems; KC7: using technology
33
DRAMA
6.7.1
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Exit criteria and standards
Table 6: Standards associated with exit criteria (This table spreads over two pages.)
Standard C
Standard D
Standard E
Forming
Standard B
The student work has the following The student work has the following The student work has the following The student work has the following The student work has the following
characteristics:
characteristics:
characteristics:
characteristics:
characteristics:
Presenting
Standard A
The student work has the following The student work has the following The student work has the following The student work has the following The student work has the following
characteristics:
characteristics:
characteristics:
characteristics:
characteristics:
• evidence of thorough knowledge • evidence of knowledge and
• evidence of some knowledge of • knowledge of a few dramatic
understanding of the dramatic
and a significant understanding
dramatic languages related to
languages
languages, informed by the
the dramatic perspectives
of the dramatic languages
• shaping simple dramatic action.
informed by the dramatic
dramatic perspectives
• replication of ideas to shape
perspectives
• exploration of ideas to create
elementary dramatic action and
and shape dramatic action and
• meaningful exploration of and
meaning.
meaning
• innovative and discerning
experimentation with ideas to
• use of some dramatic languages
create, shape and interpret
exploration of ideas to create,
• management and application of
when applied to dramatic action.
shape and interpret dramatic
dramatic action and meaning
the dramatic languages to justify
action and meaning
• skilful management and
dramatic action and meaning.
purposeful structuring of the
• competent management and
dramatic languages, providing
proficient structuring of the
an individual interpretation and
dramatic languages, creating
engaging and challenging
judgment about dramatic action
interpretation and judgment about
and meaning.
dramatic action and meaning.
• evidence of extensive
knowledge and insightful
understanding of the
interrelationship of dramatic
languages informed by the
dramatic perspectives
• discerning selection and
• appropriate selection and
meaningful application of dramatic
application of dramatic
languages informed by the
languages informed by the
dramatic perspectives, to
dramatic perspectives to
demonstrate an independent and
demonstrate a clear
insightful understanding of the
understanding of the purpose
purpose and function of drama
and function of drama
• perceptive and coherent
communication of effective and
intended action and meaning to
engage an audience
• planned, rehearsed, polished
skills of performance, convincingly
and consistently demonstrated.
• communication of effective
action and intended meaning to
an audience
• planned, rehearsed and
polished skills of performance.
• selection and use of dramatic
languages informed by the
dramatic perspectives to
demonstrate an understanding
of the purpose and function of
drama
• communication of action and
intended meaning to an
audience
• planned and rehearsed skills of
performance.
34
• use of dramatic languages and
the dramatic perspectives
related to the function of drama
• use of dramatic languages
related to the basic function of
drama
• communication of action and
elementary meaning to an
audience
• attempted communication of
dramatic meaning and action
• some skills of performance.
• some skills of performance
occasionally demonstrated.
DRAMA
Responding
Standard A
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Standard B
Standard C
Standard D
Standard E
The student work has the following The student work has the following The student work has the following The student work has the following The student work has the following
characteristics:
characteristics:
characteristics:
characteristics:
characteristics:
• insightful communication of an
informed and justified position
about dramatic meaning and
action, coherently applying
extensive knowledge and
understanding of the dramatic
languages and dramatic
perspectives
• critical analysis, evaluation,
synthesis and reflection on
dramatic action by interpreting
dramatic meaning
• proficient use of appropriate
drama terminology, referencing
and language conventions.
• communication of a justified
• communication of a viewpoint
position about dramatic meaning
about dramatic meaning and
and action, coherently applying
action, applying knowledge and
knowledge and understanding of
understanding of the dramatic
the dramatic languages and
languages and dramatic
dramatic perspectives
perspectives
• critical analysis, evaluation and
reflection on dramatic action by
interpreting dramatic meaning
• analysis and evaluation of
dramatic action by interpreting
dramatic meaning
• credible use of relevant drama
terminology, referencing and
language conventions.
• use of drama terminology,
referencing and language
conventions.
35
• conveys an opinion
• conveys an opinion based on
some knowledge of the dramatic
• some description of dramatic
languages and dramatic
action
perspectives
• sporadic use of some drama
• description of dramatic meaning
terminology.
and action
• use of some drama terminology
and language conventions.
DRAMA
6.8
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Requirements for verification folio
A verification folio is a collection of a student’s responses to assessment instruments on which
the level of achievement is based. Each folio should contain a variety of assessment techniques
demonstrating achievement in the criteria Forming, Presenting and Responding over a range of
topics. The variety of assessment techniques is necessary to provide a range of opportunities
from which students may demonstrate achievement.
Schools should refer to “Moderation processes for senior certification” available at
www.qsa.qld.edu.au/publications/yrs11_12/moderation/moderation_processes.pdf for
information about preparing monitoring and verification submissions.
Students’ verification folios for Drama must contain a minimum of four and a maximum of five
summative assessment instruments.
Schools must ensure that the verification folios presented in October contain summative
assessment instruments and corresponding sample responses upon which judgments about interim
levels of achievement have been made to that point. Each verification folio submitted must
provide sufficient material to validate judgments made regarding the interim level of achievement.
Each folio is to contain evidence from Year 12 of at least four summative assessment
instruments and student responses which may include:
• one Forming
• one Presenting (published playtext)
• one Responding, extended writing (1000–1200 words)
• one Forming or Presenting (if a second Forming is selected, at least one of the two must be
practical)
• no more than one individual practical task
• original task and criteria sheet for each student response (including any comments)
• a completed student profile (see 6.8.3) with the proposed interim student level of
achievement indicated
• documentation of practical responses, as outlined in section 6.8.2.
6.8.1
Post-verification assessment
In addition to the contents of the verification folio, there must be subsequent summative
assessment in the exit folio. In Drama, this should consist of one other Forming, Presenting or
Responding opportunity for an exit level of achievement.
6.8.2
Documentation of practical tasks
Written documentation
The following written documentation is required:
Task
Documentation
Forming: devising task
Scenario/script with directions for staging
Forming: directing task
Script with relevant annotations
Forming: improvisation task
Stimulus material, notes on teacher interventions,
brief outline (200 words) of student’s role and dramatic action
Presenting: student-devised drama
Scenario/script with student’s role clearly indicated
Presenting: scripted drama
Copy of script with student’s lines highlighted
Responding: oral
Outlines for seminars/tutorials, lists of questions for vivas,
palm cards, OHTs, PowerPoint slides etc.
36
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Video/DVD documentation
With the October submission, audiovisual documentation for a scripted Presenting task (either
individual or small group) is required to confirm teacher judgments. This must show a typical
A standard and a typical C standard for the same task in Year 12. If either of these standards is
unavailable then a typical B standard from the subject group should be submitted; that is, A and
B, or B and C. This audiovisual documentation represents the teachers judgment for the entire
cohort , in the Presenting objective.
Documentation does not have to illustrate presentations by students whose folios are included in
the submission, nor do they have to be from students whose overall achievement is VHA or SA.
Clear labelling of the audiovisual document for ease of identification of students and their
standards is essential.
Sophisticated recording and editing are not required. The documentation should be cued and
clearly labelled with the school name, school code and the achievement of the two students, for
example, mid-A, mid-C. It should also be accompanied by the task sheets and marked standards
schemas for both the samples provided.
Guidelines for the use of video/DVD documentation
The video/DVD is an audiovisual record of the assessment task. It therefore requires only basic
recording techniques and performance space. The following guidelines are strongly advised:
• the camera should, wherever possible,
− remain directly in front of the performance with panning only to keep the performers in view
− film some full body views of the performers
− be placed at a distance and in appropriate lighting for ease of identification of the performers
• the completed audiovisual record is to be a continuous recording of the performance with no
pausing or editing.
Where a task assesses film acting, a student may submit an edited product using only basic
editing, free from unnecessary “artistic” filmic techniques. The focus for assessment should be
on the student’s performance, not film production. The footage must clearly show the subject in
a variety of shots (long shot, medium shot and close-up) suitable to the chosen style.
6.8.3
Sample student profile
The sample profile illustrates one way of recording student achievement. The profile shows the
key elements, namely:
• titles of units of work
• tasks in each semester
• the standards achieved in each criterion for each task
• formative and summative tasks identified
• the interim level of achievement for verification.
• post-verification assessment
• the exit standards
• the exit level of achievement.
Schools may design their own profile as long as the key elements are shown.
The following profile for Year 12 is based on the course overview (sample 1) in Appendix 1.
37
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Sample student profile
Sem.
General objectives
Summative tasks
3
Unit 5: the creation
Forming
Forming : directorial folio
Presenting
Responding
B
Unit 6: the conception
Presenting: scripted performance
4
A
Unit 7: the inspiration
Presenting: performance
A
Responding: extended writing
B
Interim standard in each criterion
B
Verification interim level of achievement
4
A
B
HA
Unit 8: the experience (post-verification)
Forming: script
or
Presenting: audition monologue
or
Responding: text analysis
B
Exit standard in each criterion
B
Exit level of achievement
A
HA
38
B
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
7. Language education
Teachers of Senior English have a special responsibility for language education. However, it is
the responsibility of all teachers to develop and monitor students’ abilities to use the forms of
language appropriate to their own subject areas. Their responsibility entails developing the
following skills:
• ability in the selection and sequencing of information required in the various forms (such as
reports, essays, interviews and seminar presentations)
• the use of technical terms and their definitions (refer to glossary)
• the use of correct grammar, spelling, punctuation and layout.
Assessment in all subjects needs to take into consideration appropriate use of language.
7.1
Oracy
The drama teacher has a special responsibility towards oracy, and has a detailed concern with
the following requirements of listening and of spoken language:
• clarity and fluency
• coherence in the selection and presentation of ideas, information and images
• functional competence in grammar and syntax
• authenticity and appropriateness of register and vocabulary
• control and appropriateness of paralanguage
• vocal effectiveness.
7.2
Strategies for developing language skills
At all times, learning experiences in Forming, Presenting and Responding involve the use of
dramatic languages and conventional language. In Drama, teachers should incorporate language
education within the context of the overall syllabus rather than as a separate area. This
responsibility entails developing the language skills necessary for effective oral, gestural and
written communication. To do this, teachers should plan for the development of their students’
language skills by adopting a developmental approach that builds on students’ existing language
abilities. Concepts, terminology and skills should be contextualised within the dramatic
perspectives.
Students should:
• use specialised vocabulary and terminology correctly
• use the language conventions related to spelling, grammar, punctuation and layout
• develop reading skills specific to texts, reports, critiques/reviews, websites
• select and sequence relevant information in a variety of genres such as essays, seminar
presentations, magazine articles
• present information in the most effective way, using forms of communication suitable for
purposes and contexts
39
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
• develop effective small group, personal and interpersonal communication skills for
successful Forming and Presenting
• use standard referencing conventions such as Harvard (author-date system) or Oxford
(documentary-note system)
• become familiar with the language of assessment tasks, including the language used in task
criteria and standards.
Table 7 lists suggested ways of developing students’ facility with language. Those selected for
teaching should be modelled for, and practised by, students so that requirements for purpose and
context are met.
Table 7: Developing students’ facility with language
Drawing upon sources of
information, such as:
Using language for the purposes of:
Communicating information in
ways such as:
Texts
Performing
Body language
Observations
Giving directorial input
Images/tableaus/freeze frames
Demonstrations
Reworking scripts
Dialogue, interview and narration
Experiments in techniques
Transforming stories into drama
Monologue/soliloquy
Improvisation and playbuilding
Extending playtexts with a scene
Mime
Theatre productions
Explaining roles and relationships
Movement/dance
Discussions
Arguing a proposition
Design of set or costumes
Artists-in-residence
Synthesising information
Commentary
Textbooks
Proposing action
Seminar
Journal articles
Defending a position
Speechmaking
Drama magazines
Justifying a position
Playtexts and scripts
Newspapers
Evaluating an argument/script
Theatre critiques/reviews
Broadcast media
Developing an idea
Expository essays
Advertisements
Interpreting and analysing a
playtext
Collage/documentary
Videos
Films
Lectures
Interviews
Discussions
World Wide Web
Artists-in-schools
Persuading
Reports and critical analysis
Dramaturgy
Describing a process
Devising symbolism
Designing sets and costumes
Researching plays and
playwrights
Hypothesising consequences in
role developments
Scenarios
Letters
Discussions
Demonstrations
Sketches
Models
Electronic media
40
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
8. Quantitative concepts
and skills
Success in dealing with issues and situations in life and work depends on the development and
integration of a range of abilities, such as being able to:
• comprehend basic concepts and terms and apply numerical, spatial and measurement
concepts and techniques
• extract, convert or translate information given in numerical or algebraic forms into plans,
diagrams, designs, maps, graphs or tables relevant to the students of Drama
• calculate number, time, length, symmetry, dimensions, shape, weight, comparison,
patterning and sequencing
• use calculators and computers
• use skills or apply concepts from one problem or one subject domain to another.
Some subjects focus on the development and application of numerical and other mathematical
concepts and skills. These subjects may provide a basis for the general development of such
quantitative skills or have a distinct aim, such as to prepare students to cope with the
quantitative demands of their personal lives or to participate in a specific workplace
environment.
Nevertheless, in all subjects students are to be encouraged to develop their understanding and to
learn through the incorporation — to varying degrees — of mathematical strategies and
approaches to tasks. Similarly, students should be presented with experiences that stimulate
their mathematical interest and hone those quantitative skills that contribute to operating
successfully within each of their subject domains.
The distinctive nature of a subject may require that new mathematical concepts be introduced
and new skills be developed. In many cases, however, it will be a matter for teachers, in the
context of their own subjects, to encourage the use of quantitative skills and understandings that
were developed previously by their students. Within appropriate learning contexts and
experiences in the subject, opportunities are to be provided for the revision, maintenance, and
extension of such skills and understandings.
41
DRAMA
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9. Educational equity
Equity means fair treatment of all. In developing work programs from this syllabus, schools
should incorporate the following concepts of equity.
All young people in Queensland have a right to gain an education that meets their needs, and
prepares them for active participation in creating a socially just, equitable and democratic global
society. Schools need to provide opportunities for all students to demonstrate what they know
and can do. All students, therefore, should have equitable access to educational programs and
human and physical resources. Teachers should ensure that particular needs of the following
groups of students are met: female students; male students; Aboriginal students; Torres Strait
Islander students; students from non–English-speaking backgrounds; students with disabilities;
students with gifts and talents; geographically isolated students; and students from low
socioeconomic backgrounds.
Subject matter chosen should include, whenever possible, the contributions and experiences of
all groups of people. Learning contexts and community needs and aspirations should also be
considered. In choosing appropriate learning experiences teachers can introduce and reinforce
non-racist, non-sexist, culturally sensitive and unprejudiced attitudes and behaviour. Learning
experiences should encourage the participation of students with disabilities and accommodate
different learning styles.
Resource materials used should recognise and value the contributions of both females and males
to society and include social experiences of both genders. Resource materials should also reflect
cultural diversity within the community and draw from the experiences of the range of cultural
groups in the community.
To allow students to demonstrate achievement, barriers to equal opportunity need to be identified,
investigated and removed. This may involve being proactive in finding the best ways to meet the
diverse range of learning and assessment needs of students. The variety of assessment techniques in
the work program should allow students of all backgrounds to demonstrate their knowledge and skills
related to the criteria and standards stated in this syllabus. The syllabus criteria and standards should
be applied in the same way to all students.
Teachers should consider equity policies of individual schools and schooling authorities, and
may find the following resources useful for devising an inclusive work program:
ACACA (1996) Guidelines for Assessment Quality and Equity, available from www.acaca.org.au
ANTA (2004) A guide to equity and the AQTF, available from Australian Training Products Ltd
www.atpl.net.au
QSA (2006) Policy on Special Consideration in School-based Assessments in Senior Certification,
available from www.qsa.qld.edu.au
QSA (2006) Policy Statement: Equity, available from www.qsa.qld.edu.au
EQ 2005 Inclusive education statement, available from http://education.qld.gov.au/studentservices/
EQ 2006 Education Policy and Procedures Register: Inclusive education, available from
http://education.qld.gov.au/strategic/eppr/
QSCC (2001) Equity Considerations for the development of curriculum and test material, available
from www.qsa.qld.edu.au
QCEC (2001) Inclusive Practices in Queensland Catholic Schools, available from
www.qcec.qld.catholic.edu.au
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DRAMA
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10. Resources
Text and reference books
A wide variety of textbooks and resource materials that could be used as sources of information
about Drama are available. Book suppliers can provide information about current publications.
A is for Aesthetic: Essays on creative and aesthetic education, Abbs, P 1989, Falmer Press,
London. ISBN 1850004250
Acting is Believing: A basic method, McGaw, C, Clark, L, & Stilson, KL 2004, Thompson
Wadsworth, Belmont CA USA. ISBN 0-15-505982-3. A comprehensive interpretation of
Stanislavski’s acting theory aimed at the undergraduate. Covers the following topics:
approaches to learning acting, approaching the creative state, auditioning, suggested plays for
scene work (duet and trio).
All the World’s a Stage, Harwood, R 1984, Martin, Secker & Warburg Ltd, London, ISBN 0436-19132-6. Traces the whole development of theatre from Aristophanes to Brecht, focusing
on the artistry and ingenuity which have given playwrights and actors their place in history.
Drama Worlds: A framework for process drama, O’Neill, C 1995, Heinemann, Portsmouth, NH.
ISBN 0435086715. Examines and analyses process drama and its significance as a legitimate form
of theatre. The connection between drama elements and conventions in process drama and their
application in theatre texts provides a rich source of ideas for structuring drama work.
Key Concepts in Drama and Performance, Pickering, K 2005, Palgrave Macmillan, Hampshire
GB. ISBN 1 4039 3436 3. Provides an explanation of the language and conceptual framework
of drama and performance. The book is organised around five key concepts: textual concepts
(playscripts); performance concepts; production concepts; staging concepts and critical
concepts. It traces the work of Aristotle, Stanislavski, Brecht, Shakespeare and Schechner (the
Performance Group) and is a valuable tool for teachers and drama students.
Games for Actors and Non-Actors, Boal, A 1992, Routledge, London. ISBN 0415061547. The
games, methods and techniques of Augusto Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed, including image
theatre, forum theatre and invisible theatre.
Racing Against Time: The actor’s handbook for working in film and television, Carter, D 2005,
Currency Press, Sydney. ISBN0868197726.
A Short Course in Surviving the Casting Process in Film and Television to Post-production,
This manual provides practical hints and valuable insights into the working world of film and
television.
Reel Players? Drama, technology and education, Carroll, J, Anderson, M & Cameron, D 2006,
Trentham Books Ltd. Stoke on Trent, UK. ISBN 10: 1-85856-365-8. Brings together the
performance world of educational drama and the real-world digital environment inhabited by
many young people. It illustrates the dramatic conventions drama teachers can bring to using
interactive and online performance in their classrooms.
Teaching Drama 11–18, “Introduction: Dramatic practices and pedagogic principles”,
Nicholson, H 2000, Continuum, London and New York.
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DRAMA
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Theatresports Downunder: A guide for coaches and players, Pierse, L 1993, Improcorp
Australia, Sydney. ISBN 0 646 13286 5. A comprehensive guide to the teaching principles and
methods of Theatresports in Australia. The book outlines the art and process of improvisation
and theatre games, and the valuable theatre and communication skills they teach.
The Process of Drama: Negotiating art and meaning, O’Toole, J 1992, Routledge, London.
ISBN 0415082447. Demonstrates how dramatic meaning emerges, shaped by its multiple
contexts, and illuminates the importance of all the participants to the dramatic process. It
provides a unique model of the elements of drama in context and explains how these are
negotiated to produce dramatic art.
Drivers of Change: Contemporary Australian theatre for young people, Gattenhof, S 2006,
Drama Australia Monograph no. 5. ISBN 9780958755160. Provides a comprehensive
framework for analysing contemporary theatre for young people, going beyond the traditional
elements and conventions of drama.
Student texts
Acting in Person and Style in Australia, Crawford J, Hurst C, Lugering M, & Wimmer C 2003,
McGraw Hill Sydney. A comprehensive text that features actor development exercises plus
overviews and conventions of the main styles from ancient Greek to eclectic and Australian.
Where possible, photos from Australian productions are used.
Beyond the Script: Drama in the classroom, Ewing, R & Simons, J 2004, PETA (Primary
English Teachers Association). Support for teachers who are looking for ways to support
genuine classroom inquiry. It demonstrates that drama offers a risk-free “proving-ground” in
which students can test and contest ideas and perspectives.
Dramawise: An introduction to the elements of drama, Haseman, B & O’Toole, J 1987,
Heinemann, Melbourne. ISBN 0858594110. A seminal work, which identifies and exemplifies
all the elements of drama through games, exercises and script extracts.
Australian Drama, Gadaloff, J 1991, Jacaranda, Brisbane. ISBN 0701628693. Provides a broad
historical overview of the development of Australian drama with accompanying play excerpts
and drama activities.
Springboards: Australian drama 2, Gadaloff J 1998, Jacaranda, Brisbane. ISBN 0701633417.
This edition supports the student as director, dramaturge and critic and includes key scenes and
key Australian plays.
Structuring Drama Work, 1990, Neelands, J 1990, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge,
UK. A comprehensive guide to using a range of drama conventions for context building and
narrative, poetic and reflective action. Includes sections on structuring drama for learning
opportunities and theatre as a learning process.
Theatre Studies, Cooper, S & Mackay, S 2000, Stanley Thornes, UK. ISBN 0748751688. A
student-friendly guide to the key theatre practitioners and styles of the twentieth century.
Accompanied by illustrations and a clear and engaging layout.
The Actors Audition Manual, vol. 1, (revised edition), Carey, D 2006, Currency Press, Sydney.
The “red audition bible”. A wealth of practical advice for the young actor, and a fresh and
diverse range of speeches for men and women, including first-rate contemporary Australian
monologues.
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World Wide Web
Many interactive and static websites can be used to enhance a course in Drama, and they often
include useful resources. Some particularly useful sites, the links for which were tested in
December 2006, include:
ABC artsonline, www.abc.net.au/arts/ Interviews with theatre practitioners/companies,
such as Ariane Monouchkine, Theatre du Soleil.
Alastair MacLennan, http://art.ntu.ac.uk/liveart/maclennan/ UK-based installation artist
and performer Alastair MacLennan creates installed, “sited” action/rituals, evolving through
stages of transition, for predetermined durations, with content engaging political, social and
cultural issues.
Arena Theatre Company, www.arenatheatre.com.au Based in Melbourne, and celebrating
its 40th Birthday in 2006, Arena Theatre Company creates contemporary live performances
specifically designed to speak directly to children and young people aged 5 to 25.
Art Angel, www.artangel.org.uk/ Art Angel are a UK organisation who collaborate with
artists to create performance events outside the conventional contexts for art making and
presentation. They believe there are forms of expression where the relationship between artist
and place is of primary importance.
Bangarra Dance Theatre, www.bangarra.com.au Bangarra Dance Theatre is fuelled by the
spirit, energy and inspiration derived from the culture, values and traditions of Indigenous
Australians. From these roots, they create theatre that is artistically innovative and technically
outstanding for audiences throughout Australia and the world.
Blast theory, www.blasttheory.co.uk/ The UK-based Blast Theory are a group of artists who
create interactive performances and installations. Their work explores interactivity and the
relationship between real and virtual space with a particular focus on the social and political
aspects of technology. Their works confront a media-saturated world in which popular culture
rules, using video, computers, performance, installation, mobile and online technologies to ask
questions about the ideologies present in the information that envelops us.
British Council, www.britishcouncil.org/arts.htm The British Council assists artists to have
their work viewed internationally. The website has excellent definitions of art forms and profiles
leading artists.
Circa: Rock’n’Roll Circus, www.rocknrollcircus.com/ Circa has a unique vision of circus as a
delightful, challenging and contemporary art form. The ensemble of multiskilled performers work
year round to explore and extend the limits of what circus can do. Circa’s shows feature amazing
skills pulled apart and re-invigorated. Circa runs year-round circus training programs from its base at
the Judith Wright Centre in Brisbane. They deliver circus training to schools, regional areas and
corporate clients.
Company in Space, www.companyinspace.com/front/cis_fs.htm Based in Melbourne, the
company has consistently pioneered applications of new technology to movement. The
provocative works create dialogues between our visual, aural and kinetic perceptions, and exist
in a number of media — live performance installations, video and interactive virtual spaces,
accessed from anywhere in the world.
deBASE productions, www.debaseproductions.com Established in 1998 deBASE
productions produces unique shows that display artistic excellence. Based at the Metro Arts
Building in Brisbane, deBASE creates original shows, everything from sketch comedy and
clown shows to drama. The company predominantly works in theatre but has aspirations to
work on the small and big screen.
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Flipside Circus, www.flipsidecircus.org.au/ Flipside Circus is a Brisbane-based youth circus
that teaches kids between the ages of 4 to 18 years tumbling, handstands, juggling, stilts, human
pyramids, trapeze, tissue (type of rope) acrobatics. Flipside also provide entertainment in shows,
festivals and events.
Forced Entertainment, www.forcedentertainment.com/ Forced Entertainment is a group of
artists who create performances as well as projects in other media and contexts. Based in the
UK, their work spans theatre and performance through digital media, video installation and
publication. It is original, contemporary work that develops new forms and old to find the most
effective articulation of its ideas. The work is shown in a variety of contexts appropriate to the
individual projects, ranging from theatres to public sites and art galleries.
Force Majeure, www.forcemajeure.com.au/ Force Majeure is a Sydney-based dance-theatre
company led by Kate Champion as artistic director and Geoff Cobham and Roz Hervey as
associate directors. Force Majeure was formed in 2002 and is based around a collective of artists
from varying disciplines who are committed to creating stimulating movement-based theatre.
Frank Theatre, www.franktheatre.org/ Frank Theatre is a Brisbane-based professional
theatre company committed to producing unique work that stretches the skills of the artists who
create the work while simultaneously challenging the everyday perceptions of the audience
through the exploration of ideas and issues of social, political and/or cultural concern.
Kneehigh Theatre Company, www.kneehigh.co.uk/. Kneehigh now finds itself celebrated as
one of Britain’s most innovative theatre companies. For 25 years the company has created
vigorous, popular and challenging theatre for audiences throughout the UK and beyond. Using a
multi-talented team of performers, directors, designers, sculptors, administrators, engineers,
musicians and writers, Kneehigh perform their groundbreaking work with joyful anarchy.
Kooemba Jdarra, www.kooemba.com.au/ Kooemba Jdarra is Queensland’s premier
Indigenous Performing Arts Company. Dedicated to producing works that embrace all aspects
of performance including song, dance, theatre and storytelling, Kooemba Jdarra continually
produces work that challenges mainstream perceptions of Indigenous Australians. Kooemba
Jdarra produces works that allow the performer/artist and audience alike to appreciate the many
different aspects of Indigenous culture through producing works that challenge preconceptions
of Indigenous Performing Arts.
La Boite Theatre Company, www.laboite.com.au The La Boite Theatre Company in
Brisbane is a national leader in the creation and production of high-quality new Australian
theatre, which is relevant and accessible to audiences locally, nationally and internationally. As
part of their ongoing commitment to the education sector, La Boite Theatre Company provides
comprehensive educational resources to teachers and students with their publication
Performance Cues and resources available through the education section of their website.
La Fura Dels Baus, www.lafura.com/entrada/index2.htm La Fura Dels Baus is a Spainbased performance group. Their works draw on a range of resources that include music,
movement, use of natural and industrial materials, application of new technologies and the
implication of the spectator directly in the spectacle.
Laurie Anderson, www.laurieanderson.com Laurie Anderson is an American performance
artist and musician.
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Live Art Development Agency, www.thisisliveart.co.uk/ London-based group Live Art
Development Agency describes itself as part research tool, part training ground, part advisory
service, part broker and part lobbyist. The Live Art Development Agency is committed to
supporting the high risk artists, practices and ideas of contemporary culture.
Parallelo, www.parallelo.on.net/ Parallelo is a contemporary performing arts company that
uses diverse cultural heritages and artists to build and present innovative theatrical approaches
to tell distinctly Australian stories. They produce works with artists interested in exploring new
forms and processes, as well as traditional ones. They aim to create culturally diverse and
transcultural performances.
Peter Greenaway, http://petergreenaway.co.uk Peter Greenaway is a British film maker who
attempts to reinvent cinema as we know it.
Queensland Performing Arts Centre, www.qpac.com.au In addition to the theatre
experience, QPAC provides a range of materials and events encouraging greater understanding
and enjoyment of the live arts. Learning and engagement opportunities will enrich the in-theatre
experience for all patrons, and support formal learning contexts for students.
Queensland Arts Council, www.qac.org.au QAC is Australia’s largest regional arts network
and most extensive not-for-profit community-based arts organisation. QAC promotes the value
of the arts in regional communities and supports an extensive volunteer network. The Ontour
Inschools program has the world’s largest program of performances for schools, providing
around 5500 performances for 500,000 primary and secondary schools students annually.
Queensland Theatre Company, www.qldtheatreco.com.au The Queensland Theatre Company is
Queensland’s state theatre company. The Company’s Youth and Education Program provides a
wide range of projects including education performances, in-school workshops, Young Playwrights
Program, Theatre Residency Week, behind-the-scenes tours and teacher briefings. The company
tours annually into regional Queensland, presenting education programs.
Just Us Theatre Ensemble (JUTE), www.jute.com.au/ Established in 1992, JUTE is an
award-winning theatre company producing bold contemporary theatre from the evocative North.
JUTE provides considerable access to the performing arts for the regional and remote
communities of Far North Queensland. JUTE’s philosophy demands creative excellence,
diversity of voices, access to artistic development and collaboration and partnerships with the
broader Australian theatre industry.
Robert Lepage, www.exmachina.qc.ca/ENGLISH/ex.asp?page=Accueil Canadian artist
Robert Lepage is the founder of the multidisciplinary performance company Ex Machina. The
works of Ex Machina rely heavily on technology. Lepage draws on film, opera, rock and
museology in creating performances.
Tadashi Suzuki, www.blesok.com.mk/tekst.asp?lang=eng&tekst=484 Tadashi Suzuki is the
creator of the Suzuki method of actor training and founder of the Suzuki Company of Yoga. The
Suzuki Method is a system of exercises, designed to be a realisation of Suzuki’s Philosophy.
The site contains a translation of an article by Tadashi Suzuki called “Culture is Body”. It
outlines his method of actor training.
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Theater du Soleil, www.theatre-du-soleil.fr/ French theatre collective Theatre du Soleil is
founded by Arianne Mnouchkine. Their performances (whether of Greek, French or
Shakespearean dramatic origins) draw on traditional Asian theatrical forms, at the same time
producing theatre reflecting the political, cultural and ideological concerns of the present.
Tess de Quincey, www.bodyweather.net/ Tess de Quincey is an Australia-based
choreographer and performer. She established the De Quincey Co, which uses the training
technique of Body Weather. The company uses interdisciplinary practice and creates sitespecific and time-based “durational” works.
Third Angel, www.thirdangel.co.uk/ Third Angel creates work that uses the forms of theatre,
performance, live art, installation, film and video. This UK company works with collaborators
from the fields of performance, film and photography. The work is shown in theatres, galleries,
art centres, festivals, cinemas and on TV, as well as in a range of alternative sites. These have
included office foyers and windows, an infants school hall, disused industrial units and a damp
cellar in Leicester.
TRIX Circus, www.users.bigpond.com/rodtrapeze/ Based on the Gold Coast, Rodleigh
Stevens, a highly accomplished international trapeze artist and circus acrobatics trainer, founded
Trix Circus, which is dedicated both to performing and to training others in circus skills and
associated apparatus at all levels.
Zeal Theatre, www.zealtheatre.com.au/ Zeal Theatre is a touring theatre company based in
Melbourne and Sydney. Founded in 1989 by actor/writer/director Stefo Nantsou, Zeal is
dedicated to creating original, educative and entertaining theatrical productions for theatres,
schools, universities, national and international festivals. The multiskilled ensemble prides itself
on a collective group-devising process using an eclectic mix of musical and theatrical styles.
Zen Zen Zo, www.zenzenzo.com Brisbane-based physical theatre company founded in 1992,
Zen Zen Zo pursues two artistic goals: the creation of new work in the area of physical theatre
and the dissemination of a variety of physical performance skills through year-round training
programs and residencies.
Electronic media and learning technology
A wide range of videos, DVDs and television recordings are available on a variety of topics related
to Drama. Computer software programs and CD-ROMs may also be useful for a course in Drama, as
learning tools, to gain access to information presented in a variety of forms, and to help students gain
ICT skills. Educational program distributors can supply updated resource lists.
Stagestruck: Discover Australian performance, A NIDA CD-ROM, available from the
Department of Community, Information, Technology and the Arts.
Physical Theatre Performance and Pretext, a Drama Queensland CD-ROM.
Changing Stages Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Rosalind P Walter, the LuEsther T
Mertz Charitable Trust, public television viewers, and PBS. In six one-hour programs, Sir
Richard Eyre, one of the world’s leading directors, explores his passion for theater and gives his
personal view of key moments in the story of the stage and the 20th century through the work of
American, British and Irish writers, directors and actors. The series features John Gielgud,
Arthur Miller, Vanessa Redgrave, Julie Taymor, David Mamet, and George C. Wolfe among
many other artists. It is complemented by an extensive community and educational outreach
plan including a website.
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The Fire within Cirque Du Soleil. This 13-episode television documentary offers an intimate
look into the day-to-day lives of the people who played vital roles in the creation of Varekai.
It takes us, both onstage and off, deep into the characters and personalities of the men and
women immersed in the creative process of creating the Cirque du Soleil.
The Drama Skills Videos, 1996, published by Blake Education Pty Ltd PO Box 234, Alexandria
NSW 2015. The videos are titled Movement, Characterisation, and Acting the Part, and are
based around a workshop format where basic exercises are developed into a performance piece.
They are accompanied by a workbook.
Toil: The Making of Zen Zen Zo’s Macbeth, 1998, directed by Tim Roane, Zen Zen Zo. A 30minute documentary film giving a behind-the-scenes look at a physical theatre company in
action, with a focus on two of Zen Zen Zo’s core training systems: the Suzuki Method and
Ashtanga Yoga. The documentary follows the company into its 1998 production of Macbeth:
As told by the weird sisters, and examines the company’s training routine, rehearsal process and
fight training sessions. It features commentaries by Director Simon Woods, Choreographer
Lynne Bradley and fight choreographer Scott Witt.
The Best of Colin Webber’s Soundtracks for Zen Zen Zo. Original music created and recorded
by Zen Zen Zo’s composer, Colin Webber. A great resource for physical theatre workshops and
performance stimulus, this CD includes the music for the Zen Zen Zo productions of
Steel Flesh, Unleashed, Macbeth: As told by the weird sisters, Oedipus, The Man Who Sold the
World, XL-D Express, The Mayne Inheritance and The Odyssey.
The VCE Theatre Studies Monologue Performance Examination Kit, Drama Victoria,
dramavic@netspace.net.au Two talented Year 12 students present their VCE examination
monologues followed by a critique by drama educators.
The Weyreap’s Battle Education Pack, Drama Victoria in conjunction with Melbourne
International Arts Festival and AMRITA Performing Arts (Cambodia).
A DVD of the 2005 Melbourne International Arts Festival Performance of Weyreap’s Battle —
the classical masked dance of Cambodia — Lakhaon Kaol. A CD-ROM of updated resources
and activities designed to give teachers and students insights into the Lakhaon Kaol style, and
practical ideas for further exploration. This resource is low-priced, and all profits go to
AMRITA Performing Arts in Cambodia to assist their work.
A Taste of Shakespeare: Macbeth basics and the character of Macbeth, 2004, Marcom Projects
Queensland. Explains the origin of Shakespeare’s style and breaks down the play with simple
synopsis and character analysis. Also available for other Shakespearian plays.
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Appendix 1: Three sample
course overviews
Course overview (sample 1)
Year 11
Unit 1: The actor — Marc Bau
The seminal force of this expressive art is dramatic action and so at the
heart of physical theatre we find the actor. — Marc Bauman
Examine the role of the actor.
8
weeks
Explore the elements of drama
through practical exercises and
textual analysis.
4
4
4
4
Practical
Written
Group
Task conditions
Individual
Responding
Presenting
General objectives
Forming
Dramatic
perspectives
Contemp.
Time
Heritage
Unit title and unit features
(incl. dramatic languages)
4
Examine the actor’s role in
scripted and improvised
dramatic forms.
Introduce theory of viewpoints.
Use drama terminology.
Nurture group skills.
Year 11
Unit 2: The character the
Theatre is the dream life of the city. Without artists throwing up images of
ourselves around the walls. — Rose Myers
Examine the features of
scripted drama and the
classical narrative dramatic
structure.
10
weeks
4
4
Explore realism through
practical workshops focusing on
acting and rehearsing realism.
4
4
Engage with Stanislavski’s
theory and exercises for actors.
Prepare polished performance
of text.
Examine scripted realist texts.
50
4
4
4
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Year 11
Unit 3: The story
Artists are for disclosing the extra-ordinary in the ordinary — Maxine Greene
Investigate circus techniques,
companies, training principles
and stories — history,
sociology, physiology,
management, performance,
safety awareness (personal and
audience), costume, make-up,
set design.
12
weeks
4
4
4
Practical
Written
Group
Task conditions
Individual
Responding
Presenting
General objectives
Forming
Dramatic
perspectives
Contemp.
Time
Heritage
Unit title and unit features
(incl. dramatic languages)
4
4
4
4
Exemplify ensemble training.
Experience heightened physical
and emotional engagement
through active participation.
4
Challenge physical limits in an
artistic form.
Face fears of personal failure
within a sequentially structured
set of physical skills.
Explore the use of space and
the concept of using
“architecture” in circus
performance.
Workshop storytelling via circus
skills.
Workshop the use of music,
soundscape and body
percussion in the creation of
mood, focus, tension and
ultimately meaning within both
heritage and/or contemporary
circus styles.
Use storytelling with discrete
circus skills as a way to convey
dramatic meaning.
Analyse a professional circus
performance and present
commentary on level of skills,
artistic presentation and
storytelling.
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DRAMA
Year 11
Unit 4: The author
I continue to weave my net, inevitably full of holes, from the ideas of
everyone whose work I have encountered in practice or on the page —
Cecily O’Neill
Investigate live and mediatised
performance.
8
weeks
4
Explore the philosophies and
dramatic works of emerging
dramatic artists who employ
multidisciplinary approaches to
theatre, e.g. Company in
Space, Tess De Quincey,
Urban Dream Capsule, Robert
Lepage, Robert Wilson, Laurie
Anderson.
Examine the role of the
designer in theatre.
Research and critique dramatic
works that employ emerging
dramatic languages.
Workshop technology and
design skills in conjunction with
the creation of short dramatic
works.
Deconstruct meaning through
contemporary
performance/deterritorialisation
model.
52
4
4
Practical
Written
Group
Task conditions
Individual
Responding
Presenting
General objectives
Forming
Dramatic
perspectives
Contemp.
Time
Heritage
Unit title and unit features
(incl. dramatic languages)
SENIOR SYLLABUS
4
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Year 12
Unit 5: The creation
Drama and theatre are inseparable in the popular imagination and come with
the expectation of suspenseful and exciting stories. — Marcus Wessendorf
Examine the features of
minimalist theatre.
8
weeks
4
4
4
Practical
Written
Group
Task conditions
Individual
Responding
Presenting
General objectives
Forming
Dramatic
perspectives
Contemp.
Time
Heritage
Unit title and unit features
(incl. dramatic languages)
4
Workshop textual analysis and
characterisation skills.
Explore the role of the director
using techniques and exercises
in a workshop mode.
Explore the relationship
between the actor, empty space
and an audience.
Enact a script using Minimalist
principles.
Students will be given a budget
which they will manage and
account for in the creation of a
minimalist performance.
Explore the Minimalist texts of
Beckett.
Year 12
Unit 6: The conception
Theatre has always reflected the contemporary state of the world. —
Stephen Schrum
Examine contemporary theatre
practices and performancebuilding exercises within
emerging dimensions of nontraditional narrative forms, stage
and multimedia technologies,
techniques, companies and
information technology.
10
weeks
4
Develop knowledge of the
poetics of performance and
criticism models.
Revise elements of drama,
viewpoints and styles of
physical theatre.
Direct and perform in physical
theatre — viewpoint
compositions.
Explain community and cultural
theatre.
Construct meaning through
multidisciplinary performance.
Develop reflective practice
techniques.
53
4
4
4
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Year 12
Unit 7: The inspiration
One must care about a world one will not see. — Bertrand Russell
Study political dramas:
• Arianne Mnouchkine:
Theatre du Soleil
14
weeks
4
4
4
4
Practical
Written
Group
Task conditions
Individual
Responding
Presenting
General objectives
Forming
Dramatic
perspectives
Contemp.
Time
Heritage
Unit title and unit features
(incl. dramatic languages)
4
• Bertolt Brecht: epic theatre
• Augusto Boal: theatre of the
oppressed.
4
4
4
Collaborate in groups.
Explore technological
relationships between actors
and text.
Perform text/scripted drama
e.g. David Hare.
Refine research skills and
critical appreciation/analysis.
Year 12
Unit 8: The experience
(post-verification)
Explore reflective practices.
Study philosophical paradigms:
It must always be remembered that our instrument for talking about the
world is not the world, it’s the theatre. — Arianne Mnouchkine
6
weeks
4
4
• existentialism
• feminism
• Marxism
• socialism
and their influence on:
• theatre spaces and
technology
• scripts.
Review dramatic journey.
Perform text.
Apply paradigm to text.
Examine the art of solo
performance.
54
4
4
4
or
or
or
4
4
or
4
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Year 12 unit overview (guide only for sample 1)
TIME: 10 weeks
Unit title, general
objectives and features
Unit 7: The inspiration
One must care about a
world one will not see —
Bertrand Russell
General objectives
Presenting
Responding
Unit features
This unit is designed to
expose students to the
potential of theatre to
examine and challenge
political issues:
• explore political drama
through the work of key
practitioners: Boal,
Mnouchkine, Brecht
• explore the relationship
between technology,
text and actor
• explore scripted texts
that focus on political
issues e.g. David Hare.
Subject matter
Learning experiences, including affective
Dramatic languages
Dramatic perspectives
Elements of drama
Heritage styles
• epic theatre
• theatre of cruelty
• absurdism
• symbol
• space
• mood
• movement
Skills of performance
• physical
• acting technique
• ensemble
• playbuilding
• designing
• collaboration
• manipulation of
technology
Conventions
• direct address
• use of song and music
• historification
• multiple role-taking
• projected images
• chorus
Contemporary styles
• physical theatre
• theatre of the oppressed
• contemporary circus
and mime
• visual theatre
• cinematic theatre
• mediatised performance
Through exposure to a range of political drama practitioners,
students will come to appreciate the political influence and
power of selected dramatic works.
Work collaboratively to produce dramatic statements.
Work individually to value self-discipline and task management.
Work in an ensemble to appreciate the group synergy and its
collective strength.
Research the philosophies and performance practices of political
practitioners.
Present scripted playtext by controlling and manipulating the
dramatic languages.
View and workshop texts that exemplify the style and convention
of the heritage and the contemporary perspectives.
Discuss and identify the dramatic conventions and style in
unfamiliar and student-devised dramatic works.
Workshop the dramatic conventions of the heritage perspective
then apply these conventions to contemporary or studentdevised texts.
Workshop the dramatic conventions of the contemporary
perspective then apply these conventions to contemporary or
student-devised texts.
Conventions
• appropriation
• intertextuality
• fragmentation
• metanarrative
• multimedia forms
• redactive
• chorus
Use research skills to grapple with the role and dramatic context.
Heritage texts
Develop rehearsal skills, such as delivery and responding to
cues, committing text to memory, use of costumes and props.
Contemporary texts
Experiment with and reflect on mediatised performance
techniques.
Experiment with and reflect on the integration of technology into
performance using technologies such as podcasting, mobile
phones, video, audio sampling and mixing.
View their own and others’ work, evaluating the impact and
success of dramatic decisions by the artists.
Contexts
55
Possible assessment
tasks
Presenting
In groups, students will
present a selection from a
published script dealing
with political issues. 5–6
minutes per student.
Responding
Individually, students will
attend a live performance
of a play focusing on
political issues. They will
write an extended
analytical essay
examining the dramatic
meaning and evaluating
the manner in which
dramatic meaning was
conveyed. 1000–1200
words.
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Assessment overview for course (sample 1)
Unit 1:
The actor
Unit 2:
The character
1.
Scriptwriting folio
2.
Student-devised
performance
3.
Responding to live
theatre — extended
writing
4.
Improvisation
5.
Performance analysis —
oral
6.
Scripted performance
„
†
„
†
†
„
„
Practical
Written
Group
Conditions
Individual
Year 11 formative
Responding
General objectives
Presenting
Assessment instrument
Forming
Unit
†
†
†
†
†
†
†
Unit 3:
The story
Unit 4:
The author
„
„
†
†
Year 12 summative
Unit 5:
The creation
7.
Directorial folio
Unit 6:
The conception
8.
Scripted performance
„
†
†
9.
Performance
„
†
†
10.
Response to live theatre
— extended writing
„
†
†
Unit 7:
The inspiration
„
†
†
†
†
verification: instruments 7–10
post-verification: instrument 11 a or b or c
11a. Script, or
Unit 8:
The experience
„ or
†
„ or
11b. Simulated audition, or
„
11c. Text analysis
56
†
†
†
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Course overview (sample 2)
Time
Year 11
Unit 1: Un-expected~
Acting impulsively: living in the real world — Honesty
19 wks
4
4
4
Practical
Written
Group
Task conditions
Individual
Responding
Presenting
Heritage
Building a trusting and safe
ensemble environment
General objectives
Forming
Dramatic
perspectives
Contemp.
Unit title and unit features
(incl. dramatic languages)
4
Revision of elements of drama
through improvisation and
scripted text exercises
Exploration of human context,
focus and tension
Framing the dramatic moment
Improvisation skills
Introduction to Anne Bogart’s
viewpoints
4
4
4
Exploration of the devising
process
Devising and playbuilding
workshops
Overview of the development of
world theatre, art and world
events
Acting techniques:
• Stanislavski and Eric Morris
• method acting
Explore 20th-century realism
4
Realist text study (e.g. A Dolls
House, Streetcar Named Desire,
Hedder Gabler)
Rehearsal techniques
Polished performance of text for
audience
Actors journal
Viewing and critical analysis of
live performance
Analysis of dramatic conventions
to create dramatic meaning
Essay writing skills
57
4
4
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Year 11
Unit 2: Un-recognisable
Staying in style: looking beyond the square — Imagination
Exploration of visual and physical
theatre techniques, companies,
texts and training principles:
19 wks
4
4
4
4
• Suzuki, Viewpoints, Circus
• Cirque du Soleil, Blue Man
Group, SITI, etc
• Slava’s Snowshow, STOMP
Exploration of technology in
performance
Development of ICT media and
connectivity skills
Hybrid arts practices
Conventions of community
performance, theatre in
education, children’s theatre
and/or theatre for young people
Devising performance skills
Exploration of mood, symbol and
contrast
Scriptwriting workshops
4
Rehearsal techniques
4
4
4
4
Polished performance for
audience
Guest director/artists-inresidence (e.g. Circa Rock ‘n’
Roll Circus, Vulcana Women’s
Circus, Zen Zen Zo Physical
Theatre, Frank Theatre)
Development of critical
perceptions of the world
Viewing and critical analysis of
live performance
Dramaturgical skills
Using existing art and media
works as stimulus for
performance
Reflective practice techniques
Reviewing writing skills, critical
review employing criticism
models
4
58
Practical
Written
Group
Task conditions
Individual
Responding
Presenting
General objectives
Forming
Dramatic
perspectives
Contemp.
Time
Heritage
Unit title and unit features
(incl. dramatic languages)
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Year 12
Unit 3: Un-done
Reinterpreting the classics: breaking the mould — Beauty
History of Greek, melodramatic,
Elizabethan, Shakespearean,
and restoration theatre
15 wks
4
4
4
4
Workshopping of styles: Greek,
melodramatic, Elizabethan,
Shakespearean, and restoration
theatre
Exploring the stories of Greek,
Shakespearean and restoration
theatre
Adapting existing stories using
contemporary performance
forms, styles and practices
Guest director/artists-inresidence (e.g. Circa Rock’n’Roll
Circus, Vulcana Women’s
Circus, Zen Zen Zo Physical
Theatre, Frank Theatre)
Breaking theatre and
performance conventions
4
Visual and physical theatre
performance skills
Exploration of language,
movement and space
Rehearsal skills
Polished performance of text for
audience
Production and technical theatre
skills
Interconnectivity project —
connecting to schools across
the country
Actor’s journal (documentation
for presenting)
Viewing and critical analysis of
live performance
Analysis of dramatic conventions
to create dramatic meaning
Essay-writing skills
Digital documentation skills
59
4
Practical
Written
Group
Task conditions
Individual
Responding
Presenting
General objectives
Forming
Dramatic
perspectives
Contemp.
Time
Heritage
Unit title and unit features
(incl. dramatic languages)
4
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Year 12
Unit 4: Un-told
Storytelling Australia: expressing ourselves, our way — Courage
Australian and Indigenous
Theatre history
15 wks
4
4
4
4
Practical
Written
Group
Task conditions
Individual
Responding
Presenting
General objectives
Forming
Dramatic
perspectives
Contemp.
Time
Heritage
Unit title and unit features
(incl. dramatic languages)
4
Indigenous oral histories
Australian plays and playwrights
(e.g. Marjory Ford’s X-Stacy,
Ray Lawler’s Summer of the
Seventeenth Doll, Deborah
Mailman’s Seven Stages of
Grieving, Nick Enright’s
Blackrock, David Williamson’s
Corporate Vibes and The
Removalists, Leah Purcell’s Box
the Pony)
Viewing and critical analysis of
live performance
The role of the director for stage
and screen
4
Directing techniques
Exploration of time and space
Theatre spaces and
performance styles
Voicing issues that are important
to us
Devising performance skills
Scriptwriting workshops
Rehearsal techniques
Polished performance for
audience
60
4
4
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Year 12
Unit 5: Un-covered
Arts impacting on society: embracing the future — Strength
Arts industry practices
6 wks
Analysis of stereotyping and
perceptions
The role of drama within
community
Viewing and critical analysis of
live performance
Auditioning skills and processes
Arts funding possibilities
Study of arts organisations and
networking (e.g. Backbone
Youth Arts, Youth Arts
Queensland, Theatre Arts
Network Queensland,
Access Arts)
Preparation for further study and
industry entrance
61
or
or
4
Group
Individual
4
Practical
4
Responding
Presenting
4
Task conditions
Written
4
General objectives
Forming
Dramatic
perspectives
Contemp.
Time
Heritage
Unit title and unit features
(incl. dramatic languages)
4
4
or
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Assessment overview for course overview (sample 2)
1.
Directing/devising
workshop
2.
Scripted performance
3.
Live performance
analysis: extended
writing
„
†
Practical
Written
Group
Conditions
Individual
Responding
Assessment instrument
Presenting
Unit
Forming
Yr
General objectives
†
Un-expected
11, formative
Acting impulsively:
living in the real world
4.
Student-devised
performance
5.
Dramaturgical folio
6.
Live performance
analysis: extended
writing
„
†
„
†
„
†
†
†
†
Un-recognisable
12, summative
Staying in style:
looking beyond the
square
Un-done
7.
Scripted performance
Reinterpreting the
classics: breaking the
mould
8.
Live performance
analysis: extended
writing
Un-told
9.
Directing workshop
Storytelling Australia:
expressing ourselves,
our way
10.
Student-devised
performance
„
„
†
†
†
†
„
†
„
„
†
†
†
„
11A. Arts funding application
or
†
†
†
†
„ or
†
†
Un-covered
Arts impacting on
society: embracing the
future
11B. Simulated audition or
11C. Text analysis
†
„ or
„
62
†
†
†
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Year 12 unit overview (guide only for sample 2)
TIME: 13 weeks
Unit title, general objectives
and features
Unit 4: Un-told
Storytelling Australia: expressing
ourselves, our way
General objectives
Forming
Presenting
Unit features
“Australian writers, directors,
actors, producers and drama
students in Australia have
transformed ‘Australian thought
and the Australian scene’.
Through their insightful pieces
they provide a reflective record of
the changes and adjustments that
Australian society has made in its
goals, customs, politics and ideals
over the past fifty-two years.” —
Acting in Person and in Style in
Australia, Wimmer, C 2002,
p.299)
This unit is designed to expose
students to a variety of Australian
performance texts while exploring
the role of the director in bringing
to life Australian voices and
stories, and, therefore, as
Australians, our own stories:
• explore Australian plays and
playwrights (heritage and
contemporary)
• explore the role of the director
• explore oral history drama
(Indigenous, multicultural and
personal)
• contemporary performance
practices for writers, directors,
play builders and performers.
Subject matter
Dramatic languages
Dramatic perspectives
Elements of drama
• time
• place
• space
• language
• mood
Heritage styles
• realism
• Indigenous Australian
Skills of performance
• directing
• scriptwriting
• playbuilding
• acting
• voice
• movement
• working as an ensemble
• environmental
• technological
• personal
• geographical
Learning experiences, including affective
Possible assessment tasks
Introduction to Australian and Indigenous theatre
history
Forming
You are a director of a
contemporary theatre
company with a reputation for
the creative interpretation of
distinctly Australian drama.
You are to select an excerpt
from an Australian play of your
choice and make directorial
decisions about the scene with
a view to privileging the
elements of time and place to
create a distinctly Australian
dramatic meaning. In the
workshop you must introduce
the play, your concept and the
importance of time and place.
Your blocking must be
appropriate for a theatre-inthe-round stage. Your
directorial choices must be
clearly explained and justified
to your actors at the start of
your rehearsal period. 6–8
minutes of directorial input.
Indigenous oral histories and other styles (creation
story drama, spiritual narratives, dramatic recount,
blak comedy/humour, ceremonial functional drama)
Conventions
• not breaking the 4th wall
• communicating truth
• playing with through line
• motivated by super objective
• motivated by moment-by-moment objective
• subtext
• circumstances (given and created)
Contemporary styles
• physical theatre
• visual theatre
Classroom visits – Indigenous elders
Study of Australian plays and playwrights
(e.g. Marjory Ford’s X-Stacy, Ray Lawler’s Summer
of the Seventeenth Doll, Deborah Mailman’s Seven
Stages of Grieving, Nick Enright’s Blackrock, David
Williamson’s Corporate Vibes and The Removalists,
Leah Purcell’s Box the Pony, Errol O’Neill’s The
Mayne Inheritance, Stephen Davis’ Blurred etc.)
Viewing and critical analysis of live performance
(e.g. La Boite Theatre Company)
Examination of Australian Stereotyping – using
Speaking in Tongues by Andrew Bovell and
Lantana, Dir: Ray Lawrence
Conventions
• physical composition
• manipulation of energy
• complicité
• choreographic techniques
• stylised and ritualised movements
• projected images
• metanarrative
Heritage texts
Various Australian playtexts
Exploration of the role of the director for stage and
screen
Experimenting with directing styles
Directing technique workshops
Exploration of time and space
Workshops using different theatre spaces
(proscenium, theatre-in-the-round, thrust, traverse,
promenade etc.) and performance styles (realism,
Australian Gothic, Indigenous Australian, physical
theatre, etc.)
Voicing issues that are important to us
Contemporary texts
Workshops to develop devising performance skills
Various Australian playtexts:
• Kooemba Jdarra Theatre productions
• La Boite Theatre Productions
Scriptwriting workshops
Contexts
• dramatic
• real
• historical
• cultural
Exploring playbuilding
Activities to develop ensemble and group
awareness
Revision of Anne Bogart’s Viewpoints method
Practising rehearsal techniques
Preparing a polished performance for audience
Experimenting with production roles.
63
Presenting
You are to present to a public
audience a group-devised
performance, in the style of
physical and visual theatre,
telling the stories of your family
and/or cultural heritage. You
may tell one story or multiple
stories, depending on your
group dynamic. 3–5 minutes
per student.
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Composite class course overview (sample 3): Year A
Practical
Written
Group
4
Individual
4
Presenting
4
Task conditions
Responding
General objectives
Forming
Unit title and unit features
(incl. dramatic languages)
Dramatic
perspectives
Contemp.
Time
Heritage
Semester 1 Year 11, and
Semester 3 Year 12
Unit 1: The actor and creation
Examine the role of the actor.
6 wks
4
4
Introduce and explore the dramatic
languages through practical exercises
and textual analysis.
Examine the actor’s role in scripted and
improvised dramatic forms.
Explore process drama — heritage
style in contemporary context.
Explore theory of viewpoints.
Use drama terminology.
Nurture group skills.
Improvise in response to stimulus.
Unit 2: Wings of love
Explore representations and portrayal
of “love” across heritage and
contemporary texts .
12 wks
4
4
4
4
4
Undertake a comparative study of
portrayal of relationships in Kabuki,
Chinese opera, Australian Gothic and
Greek tragedy.
4
4
4
Deconstruct meaning in eastern and
non-eastern theatre.
Research and critique dramatic works .
Develop a critical analysis.
Prepare polished performance of text.
Unit 3: The character and story
Create a character — Stanislavski and
realism.
10 wks
4
4
Explore realism through practical
workshops focusing on acting and
rehearsing realism.
Engage with Stanislavski’s theory and
exercises for actors.
Prepare polished performance of text.
Examine scripted realist text.
Analyse context.
Examine elements of drama, skills of
performance, styles and their
conventions.
64
4
4
DRAMA
Practical
Written
Group
Task conditions
Individual
4
Responding
4
Presenting
Unit title and unit features
(incl. dramatic languages)
General objectives
Forming
Dramatic
perspectives
Contemp.
Time
Heritage
Semester 1 Year 11, and
Semester 3 Year 12
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Unit 4: Flights of fantasy
Investigate live and mediatised
performance.
10 wks
Year 11
Explore the philosophies and dramatic
works of emerging dramatic artists who
employ multidisciplinary approaches to
theatre e.g. Company in Space, Tess
De Quincey, Urban Dream Capsule,
Robert Lepage, Robert Wilson, Laurie
Anderson.
4
4
4
4
4
Research and critique dramatic works
that employ emerging dramatic
languages.
Workshop technology and design skills
in conjunction with creating short
dramatic works
Deconstruct meaning through
contemporary performance/
deteritorialisation model.
4
8 wks
Year 12
65
4
4
4
or
or
or
4
4
or
4
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Composite class course overview (sample 3): Year B
Practical
Written
Group
Task conditions
Individual
Responding
Presenting
Unit title and unit features
(incl. dramatic languages)
General objectives
Forming
Dramatic
perspectives
Contemp.
Time
Heritage
Semester 1 Year 11, and
Semester 3 Year 12
Unit 5: The creation
Examine the features of minimalist
theatre.
6 wks
4
4
4
4
Introduce and explore the dramatic
languages through practical exercises
and textual analysis.
Nurture group skills.
Workshop textual analysis and
characterisation skills.
Explore the role of the director using
techniques and exercises in a
workshop mode.
Explore the relationship between the
actor, empty space and an audience.
Enact script using minimalist principles.
Students will be given a budget which
they will manage and account for in the
creation of a minimalist performance.
Explore the minimalist texts of Beckett.
Use drama terminology.
Unit 6: The conception
Examine contemporary theatre
practices and performance-building
exercises within emerging dimensions
of non-traditional narrative forms, stage
and multimedia technologies,
techniques, companies, information
technology.
4
10 wks
Develop knowledge of performance
and criticism models.
Develop and revise elements of drama,
viewpoints and styles of physical
theatre.
Examine elements of drama, skills of
performance, styles and their
conventions.
Direct and perform in physical theatre
— viewpoint compositions.
Explain community and cultural
theatre.
Construct meaning through
multidisciplinary performance.
Develop reflective practice techniques.
66
4
4
4
DRAMA
Practical
4
Written
4
Group
Individual
Task conditions
Responding
4
Presenting
4
General objectives
Forming
Unit title and unit features
(incl. dramatic languages)
Dramatic
perspectives
Contemp.
Time
Heritage
Semester 1 Year 11, and
Semester 3 Year 12
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Unit 7: The inspiration
Study political dramas:
12 wks
4
• Arianne Mnouchkine: Theatre du
Soleil
• Bertolt Brecht: epic theatre
• Augusto Boal: theatre of the
oppressed.
Collaborate in groups.
4
4
4
Explore technological relationships
between actors and text.
Perform text/scripted drama
e.g. David Hare.
Refine research skills and critical
appreciation/analysis.
Write a critical review employing
criticism models.
Unit 8: The experience
Explore reflective practices.
Study of philosophical paradigms:
4
10 wks
Year 11
4
4
4
• existentialism
• feminism
4
4
4
• Marxism
• socialism
and their influence on:
• theatre spaces and technology
• scripts.
Review dramatic journey.
Perform a text.
4
8 wks
Year 12
Apply paradigm to text.
Examine the art of solo
performance.
67
4
4
4
4
4
or
or
or
or
or
4
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Appendix 2: Glossary
The following terms are defined for the purposes of this syllabus. The definitions are not
exhaustive, and in some cases, because of the variety of meanings for particular terms,
interpretations suitable for the school context have been made. This section provides examples
of the different ways in which some of the terms are used. To ensure a shared understanding of
the terms, the meanings outlined in this section are to be used in the implementation of this
syllabus.
Acting techniques: skills associated with preparing an actor for performance, such as relaxation
and concentration, imagination, improvisation, movement, voice, role analysis, character
preparation, use of acting space, and rehearsal.
Aesthetic learning describes the mode of learning that students predominantly use in a Drama
classroom. It can be defined as a means of inquiry that operates cognitively and affectively
through the senses to offer a particular way for students to understand the world.
Affective: values and attitudes related to the emotions.
Applied theatre: the application of theatre to the objectives of wider social organisations,
institutions and agencies. Applied theatre occurs in clearly defined contexts (though often
outside traditional theatre buildings) with and for specific audiences and/or participant groups.
The work usually involves some form of partnership between theatre workers and another
agency. It attempts to meet educational, social or political objectives. It is theatre and drama
intended to improve the lives of individuals and create better societies. Examples include theatre
in the community, theatre in war, theatre in prisons, and theatre in hospitals.
Appropriation: borrowing from a previously established/accepted style/text/idea and
reconstructing it into something new and different.
Aural: auditory, hearing, acoustic. Learning through listening.
Artefacts: everyday objects such as items of clothing, documents and personal belongings.
Within a dramatic context, such objects have the potential to signal a range of meanings. These
meanings could relate to characters, relationships and contexts.
Assessment instrument is a tool developed by the school for assessing students in a subject at a
specific time within a course of study and used to frame an assessment task.
Assessment task: work undertaken by a student in response to an assessment instrument and
learning experiences, and outlined in a task sheet. The standard of the response is assessed in
relation to specific criteria.
Assessment technique is a strategy for assessing student work and forms part of an assessment
instrument.
Australian Gothic: The Australian Gothic style of playwriting is a genre that has grown from
the Gothic 19th century and the weird melancholy of the Australian landscape. The Australian
Gothic play will often include things from the environment as participants in the drama (e.g. the
bush) as well as themes of the supernatural, violence and escape.
68
DRAMA
SENIOR SYLLABUS
Australian Indigenous dramatic styles
• Creation story drama: Dramatic action and meaning related to passing down knowledge and
stories associated with the creation of life and form within Aboriginal communities. Creation
story drama is linked to specific areas of land and often sees the artist take on living
representations of inanimate objects and/or land forms. Emphasis is placed on connection to
country, creations and life, and it is often narrative.
• Spiritual narratives have been used for thousands of years with indigenous peoples worldwide. Spiritual narratives within Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander societies and culture
are categorised as functional drama, serving the purpose of passing down stories of life and
form reflective of the spiritual beliefs found within a language group. Spiritual narratives
retell creation stories through moral and spiritual obligations and consider concepts of time
and change through group narratives. Spiritual narratives are often associated with
Aboriginal dance and language, and Torres Strait Islander dance and language.
• Oral history monologues contextualise historical and contemporary stories and viewpoints
for Indigenous people. The story is often related to the “elder” retelling family stories.
Contemporary monologues express personal positions and reflections on individual
dispositions/attitudes, human rights issues and family struggles. Soundscapes and visual
accompaniment to dramatic action and meaning is often a feature of oral history
monologues.
• Dramatic recount refers to dramatic reconstructions of events, episodes and situations
representative of Indigenous perspectives on the time, place and sequence of the scenario.
Dramatic recount considers colonial assumptions and the role of dominant and cultural
paradigms on historical and contemporary situations and events. It engages the audience in
not only a narrative (linear and nonlinear) of the event, episode or situation but also the
attitudes and perceptions that have influenced this. When dramatic recount is embedded in
theatre, film, roleplay and improvisation, dominant Western paradigms are recontextualised
through an Indigenous perspective.
• Blak humour/comedy is a term used to describe dramatic comedy styles and conventions
positioned from an Indigenous perspective. Black humour in this context is at times satirical
but more often than not reflects an Indigenous cultural language and social conventions
through a whimsical analysis of these practices. Black humour sees Indigenous characters
poke fun at their own cultural paradigms. This area of comedy is very sensitive as it is often
comical, but highlights stereotypes and may reinforce ignorance and assumptions made
about Indigenous people.
• Ceremonial functional drama refers to dramatic forms found within ceremonial practices.
Ceremonial functional drama relates to the passing on of Indigenous knowledge through
traditionally positioned ceremonies. Ceremonial functional drama may consider aspects for
both public and private audiences, and is linked to birth, coming of age, smoking and
mourning ceremonies. Aspects of ceremonial functional drama are often found within
Indigenous film and theatre productions.
Collage drama: a collection of material, selected around a theme, and shaped into a dramatic
performance. The material may be selected from diverse sources such as plays, poetry, prose,
songs, music, dance, newspapers, electronic media, and improvisational workshops. This
selection is workshopped, linked, shaped and rehearsed until a performance playtext is created.
(Wall, D & Lawson, A 1997, “Collage Drama” QADIE Says, vol. 19, no. 2 March.)
Content: the selection and integration of curriculum elements and intent evident in learning
experiences.
Context: a lens or frame through which dramatic action and meaning is viewed.
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Dramatic context: in roleplay, improvisation and playtext, the dramatic context is created by the
participants agreeing to explore, and to work in and/or around, fictional roles, relationships,
situations, plot, tension, time and place.
Real context: refers to the live situation for which the drama is created and/or presented. This
includes participants’ skills, attitudes and backgrounds, the performance space, the purpose(s) and
the intended audience, for example, community theatre, street theatre, theatre for young people.
General contexts: may include real or imagined factors, beliefs and values that influence
dramatic meaning and action. These contexts may include historical, cultural, sociological,
political, environmental, technological, philosophical, personal, and geographical.
Culture pertains to society. It may include traditions, customs, philosophies and structures that
describe a particular form of civilisation.
Cultural and historical context: the cultural and historical features surrounding a dramatic
work. These may refer to the cultural and historical background in which the work was created
as well as in which it is set. For example, a play such as Brecht’s Mother Courage was created
in 1938–39 but set in the 17th century.
Cyberdrama: the process of participants taking on roles in a fictional world realised within a
digital space, with the potential for interaction in the development of a story or narrative. It has
been described as “a reinvention of storytelling itself for the new digital medium”, and “as a
new generation grows up, it will take participatory form for granted and will look for ways to
participate in ever more subtle and expressive stories”.
Designing: developing a plan, scheme or strategy for a task/context.
Deviser: the person managing the development of a drama.
Devising:
• creating, shaping and refining dramatic material resulting in a “devised” playtext such as a
one-person show
• leading workshops and other activities through which the participants explore and develop
their dramatic material.
Documentary drama: a collection of material, selected around an issues-based theme and
shaped into a dramatic performance. Some of the selected content is grounded in fact and
slanted to express particular points of view.
Dramatic action: action is the basic medium of all drama. Dramatic action is the concrete
physical expression of roles and relationships, time and place, focus and dramatic tension.
Dramatic action may be totally spontaneous and improvised, or time may be spent planning and
rehearsing the drama. The playtext provides direction for building the dramatic action. (Burgess,
R & Gaudry, P 1985, Time for Drama: A handbook for secondary teachers, Longman Cheshire,
Melbourne.)
Dramatic content: the material from which dramatic meaning is shaped: what the drama is
about. In playtext-based drama, the dramatic content is inherent in the playtext. In non-playtext
forms of drama, the dramatic content will arise from whatever material provides the stimulus.
This could come from a scenario provided by the teacher, a photograph, newspaper headline,
pretext and so on. It includes the ideas expressed/developed, issues raised, themes explored,
plot/storyline/sequence of events, roles and relationships, and knowledge of the source material
(such as playtext).
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Dramatic conventions: accepted techniques and strategies associated with dramatic forms and
styles. For example, in process drama, dramatic conventions include belief building, multiple
role-taking, teacher-in-role, mantle of the expert, and frozen effigy. In Shakespearean drama,
dramatic conventions include the soliloquy, the aside and boys playing female roles. In the epic
style, dramatic conventions include the use of alienation techniques such as multiple role-taking,
actors addressing the audience, character and scenic gestus, use of song and music, projected
images and banners.
Dramatic form: involves managing the elements of drama to explore and structure dramatic
action through using the particular conventions and techniques associated with the form,
for example, conventions of improvisational drama such as taking on role, giving and receiving
offers, negotiating roles and relationships. The term encompasses a range of dramatic
experiences including:
• Dramatic languages — The dramatic languages consist of elements of drama, skills of
performance, styles and their conventions, text and context. These languages are the
foundations and working materials of drama. When dramatic languages are used in
combination with diverse and socially critical reflections, dramatic meaning and action is
created. This mode of learning and expression integrates oral, kinaesthetic, visual and aural
dimensions and sign systems.
• Dramatic meaning — is how students articulate their ideas for the drama. They provide a
sense of why, what and how about the drama. It is directly related to the dramatic action and
is conveyed through the dramatic languages and dramatic perspectives.
Dramatic perspectives — heritage (pre-1980) and contemporary (post-1980). The dramatic
perspectives are characterised by texts and practitioners, styles and their conventions and
contexts that are synonymous with the specified era. They are a lens through which the dramatic
languages are viewed. Fields of study, the term for the organisers in the previous syllabus, have
been replaced by dramatic perspectives.
Dramatic structure: the organisation of the dramatic action to create a particular dramatic
meaning using the conventions of the chosen dramatic form. In a devised work, structure will be
influenced by the participants — the actors, director, deviser, dramaturge — and the choices
they make. In written text, the dramatic structure is often strongly influenced by the
playwright’s choices, for example, in a well-made play the structure will have a strong linear
plot, whereas in epic theatre the structure usually consists of a series of linked episodes.
Dramatic style: this arises from the selection of characteristics related to cultural and historical
features such as language, class, social conventions, setting, and historical background. These
characteristics are made explicit through the dramatic conventions appropriate to the style.
Examples of European dramatic styles include ancient Greek tragedy, ancient Greek comedy,
Commedia dell’Arte, Shakespearean drama, restoration comedy, comedy of manners, Brechtian
and epic theatre, theatre of the absurd, theatre of cruelty, melodrama, satire, realism and
naturalism. Asian styles include noh, kabuki and kathakali.
Dramaturge: a person who assists in the preparation of any text for production. Aspects of the
role include research that provides insight into all aspects of the world of the performance,
facilitation of text development by working with the playwright or deviser to improve the
performance, and creation of program notes, news articles etc.
Ensemble: a group of actors working collaboratively.
Form: provides structure to organise and represent dramatic action and dramatic meaning.
Gestus: a term used by Brecht and derived from the German word for gesture to refer to the
actor’s or ensemble’s physical actions which reveal the thematic ideas of the play.
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Hypertext is a way of connecting text, pictures, film and sound in a nonlinear fashion via
electronic links. Hypertext is fully electronic reading and writing which differs from printed text
by offering users multiple pathways through a web of information. Such a text is constructed in
part by the writers who create the links and in part by the readers who decide which links to
follow. The reading process is from one chunk of text to another, and is rapid and nonsequential. (Snyder, 1997).
Hypermedia: hypertext combined with multimedia on a website or CD-ROM.
Improvisation is a spontaneous dramatic exploration. The purpose of improvisation is to create
dramatic meaning based on a given idea, stimulus material, situation, role and/or relationship
and so on. It involves accepting and making offers, being in the moment, structuring the action,
and creating time and place through language, movement and props.
Interactive drama: The central idea of interactive drama is to abolish the difference between
author, spectator, actor, and character. In interactive drama, the interactor is choosing what to
do, say, and think at all times. The performance of the users within the fictional world is not
directed toward an audience in the real world, but toward the users themselves. Interactive
drama will be staged solely for the benefit of the interactor(s).
Intermediality: the incorporation of digital technology into theatre practice, and the presence of
film, television and digital media in contemporary theatre. (Chappel, F & Kattenbelt, C, (eds)
2006, Intermediality in Theatre and Performance)
Intertextuality is the defining quality of an “open” or “writerly” text. It highlights the
interdependence that exists between a present text and the intersecting and ever-expanding web
of reference and quotations which may have preceded it. (Haseman)
Kinaesthetic: sensation of bodily motion, the perception or sensing of the motion, weight, or
position of the body as muscles, tendons, and joints move.
Mediatised (or mediated) performance: performance which is staged or realised through a
technological medium. Mediatised representations appeal primarily to the visual and auditory
senses.
Multimedia: is usually made up of several modes and can include digitised sound, graphics,
animation, photographs, video and virtual reality — the term is often used to describe both the
hardware and software that embodies it (Snyder, 1996).
Mixed-media performances: events which combine live and mediatised representations
including live actors with film, video or digital productions (Gattenhof, S 2006, Drivers of
Change: Contemporary Australian theatre for young people) An interesting point is that with
mixed-media or mediatised performance there is a “competitive opposition” because different
cultural media do not enjoy equal degrees of cultural presence or prestige: some are dominant,
some subordinate, and these positions shift over time as new media arrive on the scene.
Different media therefore do not interact with one another as equals. If you have live bodies and
projections on the same stage, most people are going to look at the projections. (Auslander, A)
Oral: spoken; by word of mouth. Students learn through discussing their ideas.
Paralanguage: the system of non-phonemic but vocal factors in speech, such as tone of voice,
tempo of speech, and sighing, by which communication is assisted.
Playbuilding: unlike writing a play or rehearsing a play that has been written by a playwright,
playbuilding is a collaborative venture that involves the entire group in the creative process.
Collaboration occurs both in developing the script and performing the final product. (Tarlington,
C & Michaels, W 1995, Building Plays, Addison Wesley Longman, Melbourne.)
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Playtext: although in this document the term playtext refers mainly to a written text by a
published playwright, a range of material can be considered playtext. This material could
include script, written text by a playwright, collage drama, documentary drama, polished
improvisation, process drama, spontaneous improvisation.
Post-dramatic theatre: a term that has emerged to describe contemporary theatre practices.
A theory further developed by Hans-Theis Lehmann, it includes experimental theatre,
postmodernism, neo avant-garde and minimalism in its description. The term implies that other
components of the mise en scene are no longer subservient to the text. The aesthetics of time
and space, the representation of the body and the use of media are all key aspects of postdramatic theatre.
Process drama: the primary purpose of process drama is to establish an imagined world created
by the facilitator and participants as they discover, articulate, and sustain fictional roles and
situations. Process drama is an improvised dramatic event that proceeds without a written
playtext and can include episodes that are composed and rehearsed rather than improvised. An
important difference between process drama and improvisation is that process drama is not
limited to single, brief exercises or scenes. Process drama does not necessarily end in a product,
but does have a meaningful conclusion for the participants. The starting point for a process
drama may include stimulus material, such as an issue relevant to the participants, or a pretext
such as a story, myth or legend, a song, newspaper cutting, poem, photograph or other visual
image. (O’Neill, C 1995, Drama Worlds: A framework for process drama, Heinemann,
Portsmouth.)
Sampling: the process of recording sounds for use in other media.
Scriptwriting conventions may include play synopses, character synopses, dialogue layout,
structuring devices (acts, scenes or episodes), stage directions and technical directions (sound
and lighting).
Spatial awareness: a perception or recognition of the space/area in which the drama takes place
or the space in which an actor moves.
Technology: skills, tools, knowledge and expertise that is used in the production of dramatic
meaning and dramatic action for either heritage or contemporary styles of drama.
Virtual drama: drama in which the body is present but in a virtual mode (through text-based
dialogue or through the use of an avatar).
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