Analysis of Drama Strategies and Interactional Features in One EFL Process Drama Lesson

Abstract

Process Drama (PD) for foreign language teaching is a teaching approach employing different drama techniques to foster L2 learners’ communication A complete PD lesson contains a series of drama activities which comprise a variety of organization and drama strategies (Kao & O’Neill 1998) Under this approach teacher talk (TT) and teacher-learner interaction play critical roles in creating communicative contexts for language teaching and learning However previous studies had not provided a systematic investigation into how drama strategies and activities were organized through TT and interactional features (IFs) in PD lessons Although some studies (e g Kao 1994; Kao Carkin & Hsu 2011; Kao & Carkin 2012) have investigated different discourse features in PD lessons some IFs performed by the teachers and learners such as scaffolding (Sca) content feedback (ConF) extended learner turn (ExtLT) and extended wait time (ExtWT) have not been explored The present study has two research foci: (a) systematically exploring the design of the drama strategies and activities employed in an intact PD lesson and (b) quantitatively investigating the L2 classroom modes (LCMs) and the IFs in the PD lesson The data analyzed in the present study came from the video recordings of a complete PD lesson for teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) at a university in southern Taiwan The instrument utilized to identify the LCMs and the IFs in the PD lesson is the self-evaluation of teacher talk (SETT) framework proposed by Walsh (2006a) The original SETT framework had four LCMs and 14 IFs The parts including TT and the teacher-learner interaction in the video clips were transcribed verbatim and then coded based on the SETT framework Four additional IFs were identified by this researcher namely comprehension checks (ComC) management checks (ManC) non-verbal surveys (NonVS) and experience sharing requests (ExpSR) Finally the identified LCMs and IFs were calculated for analysis The main findings are summarized as follows 1 Teacher in role (TiR) was the most frequently used and useful drama strategy in the PD lesson because it can be combined with other drama strategies to achieve effective teaching in an EFL setting 2 The teachers employed much more tokens of IFs in the classroom context mode (CCM) and utilized referential questions (RefQ) ExpSR ConF Sca ExtWT seeking clarification (SeeC) confirmation checks (ConC) and direct repair (DirR) in the CCM to promote the learners’ speaking fluency 3 The teachers applied less tokens of IFs in the managerial mode (MM) and adopted extended teacher turn (ExtTT) ComC and ManC in the MM to manage and facilitate the process of the activities in the PD lesson 4 There was not any IF found in the materials or skills and systems mode 5 The teacher-led discussion activities were preferred by the two drama teachers to enhance teacher-student interaction and learner production and three of them produced almost three quarters of the total IFs across the 14 activities The findings reveal the most frequently used and useful drama strategies activities and IFs in the CCM and the MM in the PD lesson The findings of the current study can help L2 teachers better understand how to judicially utilize TT and the IFs with the appropriate management of the drama activities for interactional communication in the EFL setting

Date of Award	2016 Jul 12
Original language	English
Supervisor	Shin-Mei Kao (Supervisor)