Simulation and Character Ownership in Secondary Dramatic Literature Education

Abstract

This case study examines the effectiveness of incorporating role-playing and simulation techniques into a high school classroom in order to improve student’s mastery of the themes and structure of an American play. After incorporating three techniques to encourage student empathy toward the characters in Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, the teacher compared students’ grades during this unit to their grades earlier that year and to the grades of the previous year’s students during the drama unit. Grades were measurably higher when the teacher applied these role-playing techniques. Both general education and special education students improved their analysis of the play’s themes and structural elements, as measured in daily assignments, quizzes, and exams. Despite limitations in the data, such as limited access to the grades of the previous years’ students and a relatively small sample of special education students, role-playing techniques are a promising tool for secondary educators in the dramatic literature classroom.