Standing in Dorothy’s Shoes: What Can Language Teachers Learn from Dorothy Heathcote? Part Two: Process Drama and Language Teachers

Abstract

To explore language teachers’ attitudes to using drama activities, and to determine the level of use and understanding of process drama techniques in language classrooms, a survey was carried out. The results showed a high level of support for the benefits many theorists and researchers have claimed for the use of drama activities in language learning. They also showed that process drama techniques were used to a lesser extent than activities such as warm­up games and scripted role­plays. Following the survey, a workshop was planned, to explore language teachers’ responses to using process drama­based techniques. The workshop was designed to include a number of process drama activities, including Mantle of the Expert, Teacher in Role, Tableau and Improvisation. The feedback from the workshop showed enthusiasm for these techniques, and for their potential use in language teaching.