Promoting critical thinking within the drama: Using theory to guide practice

Abstract

Abstract This article uses case stories from drama workshops conducted within primary and secondary classrooms to illustrate the ways in which post-structuralist theory can inform pedagogical design when using drama to engage in critical inquiry. It draws on research theory to illustrate the need for critique of the types of knowledge that are created in the drama and builds on the work of Deleuzian researcher Elizabeth St Pierre, relating her use of metaphor and figurations in research writing to the use of anti-naturalistic conventions in dramatic play. The article discusses the way in which some conventions invite replication of dominant storylines and subject positions while others more readily open up the play space for critical inquiry and the creation of new possibilities. It then proposes the need for new metaphors to enrich the use of drama as a method for critical inquiry.