Meagan Wright, 5

Cooperative Learning:
I think the theatre classroom is an ideal place to implement this style of teaching; it closely reflects what the “real (theatre) world” is like. The interdependence on other components are key to success in both the classroom and theater. For example, in the “real world”, a producer needs a director to produce a show, but a director cannot direct without actors. This same dependence on each artist can also be established among students in a classroom that uses this style of learning. In fact, this very structure can be used in the classroom to 1) reach educational goals but also 2) prepare the students for the real world.
For example, students could be assigned to specific elements for a main stage production. A group would be the designers and another group the actors. While they would have an opportunity to learn together about their specific elements, they could also teach what they have learned to the other groups and then ultimately use what they have collectively created to contributed to the school production.