Drama in the Classroom

Drama can be a powerful resource in the classroom, easily manipulated in many ways, and creating qualitative engagement and inclusion of a very different order. In recent years, drama has gained prominence like never before, almost becoming synonymous with progressive education. Yet, it has failed to find traction on the ground, in India, in spite of various other developments that point to a growing interest in the practice of drama. This failure is partly the result of a misunderstanding about its nature and purpose. A great deal of misconception surrounding views of drama as a classroom learning resource is located in the inherited understanding of drama, and traditional attitudes towards the arts as ‘soft activities’, and not ‘proper’ subjects, providing stress-relieving benefits at best. This chapter gives a brief survey of the landscape of drama in India and the current issues surrounding the discourse around drama. It also gives a practical example of a drama lesson and suggests a few activities which can be initiated by any teacher interested in using drama in his or her classroom.