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"Let's put on our teaching face" : an investigation of teaching styles and their skillsets

The following dissertation analyses teaching as a performance and argues that teachers "enrole" or "put on their teaching face" when in front of their learners (Whatman, 1997:182; Dobson, 2005:334). The dissertation investigates the benefit to teachers of learning the skills of an actor such as voic...

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Main Author: Marrier D'unienville, Krystle
Other Authors: Baxter, Veronica
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: Department of Drama 2016
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access_status_str Open Access
author Marrier D'unienville, Krystle
author2 Baxter, Veronica
author_browse Baxter, Veronica
Marrier D'unienville, Krystle
author_facet Baxter, Veronica
Marrier D'unienville, Krystle
author_sort Marrier D'unienville, Krystle
collection Thesis
description The following dissertation analyses teaching as a performance and argues that teachers "enrole" or "put on their teaching face" when in front of their learners (Whatman, 1997:182; Dobson, 2005:334). The dissertation investigates the benefit to teachers of learning the skills of an actor such as voice, breathing and relaxation techniques, movement and use of space, presence and mindfulness and improvisation. The research argues that actor training may lead to increased effective communication with an 'audience' of learners in order to transmit and transact information. The research process involved observation and analysis of 14 teachers in government schools in Cape Town, using 'performance' as an analytical framework for a total of 36 hours over the course of a month. Questions around the use of acting and drama training are explored, and ethnographic observation and auto-ethnography are used to further the analysis. Trends and patterns were noted in the field using observational research methods such as video-recordings, field notes and interviews with participants. The writer's position as researcher was adapted from outsider (interpretive ethnography) to insider (autoethnography) due to unforeseen circumstances. Findings included the recognition of the predominant teaching style in schools, namely the transmissive approach, the emphasis on content learning, the lack of self-reflexive practice and acute stress due to the pressures of the job. The difficulties teachers are confronted with in their day to day operations became apparent, resulting in possible disinterest in, and lack of time, for professional development. The researcher's position as reflective practitioner and the ethnographic observations of teachers in schools confirmed and reinforced that teachers would benefit from actor and drama training skills such as voice, movement, improvisations and role-play.
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institution University of Cape Town (South Africa)
language eng
last_indexed 2026-06-10T12:34:06.076Z
license_str Not specified — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository
publishDate 2016
publishDateRange 2016
publishDateSort 2016
publisher Department of Drama
publisherStr Department of Drama
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source_str UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository
spelling oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/20650 "Let's put on our teaching face" : an investigation of teaching styles and their skillsets Marrier D'unienville, Krystle Baxter, Veronica Drama The following dissertation analyses teaching as a performance and argues that teachers "enrole" or "put on their teaching face" when in front of their learners (Whatman, 1997:182; Dobson, 2005:334). The dissertation investigates the benefit to teachers of learning the skills of an actor such as voice, breathing and relaxation techniques, movement and use of space, presence and mindfulness and improvisation. The research argues that actor training may lead to increased effective communication with an 'audience' of learners in order to transmit and transact information. The research process involved observation and analysis of 14 teachers in government schools in Cape Town, using 'performance' as an analytical framework for a total of 36 hours over the course of a month. Questions around the use of acting and drama training are explored, and ethnographic observation and auto-ethnography are used to further the analysis. Trends and patterns were noted in the field using observational research methods such as video-recordings, field notes and interviews with participants. The writer's position as researcher was adapted from outsider (interpretive ethnography) to insider (autoethnography) due to unforeseen circumstances. Findings included the recognition of the predominant teaching style in schools, namely the transmissive approach, the emphasis on content learning, the lack of self-reflexive practice and acute stress due to the pressures of the job. The difficulties teachers are confronted with in their day to day operations became apparent, resulting in possible disinterest in, and lack of time, for professional development. The researcher's position as reflective practitioner and the ethnographic observations of teachers in schools confirmed and reinforced that teachers would benefit from actor and drama training skills such as voice, movement, improvisations and role-play. 2016-07-25T07:12:57Z 2016-07-25T07:12:57Z 2016 Master Thesis Masters MA http://hdl.handle.net/11427/20650 eng application/pdf Department of Drama Faculty of Humanities University of Cape Town
spellingShingle Drama
Marrier D'unienville, Krystle
"Let's put on our teaching face" : an investigation of teaching styles and their skillsets
thesis_degree_str Master's
title "Let's put on our teaching face" : an investigation of teaching styles and their skillsets
title_full "Let's put on our teaching face" : an investigation of teaching styles and their skillsets
title_fullStr "Let's put on our teaching face" : an investigation of teaching styles and their skillsets
title_full_unstemmed "Let's put on our teaching face" : an investigation of teaching styles and their skillsets
title_short "Let's put on our teaching face" : an investigation of teaching styles and their skillsets
title_sort let s put on our teaching face an investigation of teaching styles and their skillsets
topic Drama
url http://hdl.handle.net/11427/20650
work_keys_str_mv AT marrierdunienvillekrystle letsputonourteachingfaceaninvestigationofteachingstylesandtheirskillsets