Heather's Response-3

The theatre standards practically force you to do what we’ve been studying about texts and literacy. I love it! I have read the standards before but after our conversations in class about texts, literacy, and blooms taxonomy, I feel like I understand them so much better. They make more sense to me in how they are set up to really help us as teachers teach what our students need to know in a really productive way.
As I read the Utah State Standards, all I could think about was Bloom’s taxonomy. Each of the foundations builds so perfectly on the next, starting with knowledge and gradually working it’s way up to synthesis and evaluation. Seeing the standards laid out like in context I can easily understand really helped me to understand Bloom’s taxonomy more fully. It helped me to realize how to implement it in my teaching and in my courses.
“There are two basic goals in theatre education: finding meaning in works of theatre art through the study and appreciation of theatre as an art form, and constructing meaning in works of theatre art through the study and skill development of theatre techniques in the creation of that theatre art” This quote from the beginning of each Utah State Standard to me is the epitome of what Text and Literacy seems to mean to me. The first goal deals with texts; finding meaning in each and every aspect of theatre. And this is done in every level of a drama classroom, just more in depth as time goes on. Then the second half is about literacy, being able to take that knowledge and apply it; to create something more. This concept is also found throughout the National Standards as every aspect involves understanding and then analyzing and creating.
Reading through these standards after learning about texts and literacy really helped me to concretely visualize and understand what those terms mean and how they apply to me. I feel grateful to have the standards to help guide me in my teaching, they make me feel less alone. ;-)