NCEA Level 1 Drama

There are many ways in which Drama education leads to your success:

Social Awareness  -   Legends, myths, poems, stories, and plays used in drama teach students about social issues and conflicts from cultures – past and present – all over the world.

Self-Confidence  -   Taking risks in class and performing for an audience teaches students to trust their ideas and abilities. The confidence gained in drama applies to school, university, careers, and life in general.

Imagination   -  Making creative choices, thinking of new ideas, and interpreting familiar material in new ways are essential to drama. Einstein said: ‘Imagination is more important than knowledge’.

Empathy   -  Acting roles from different situations, time periods, and cultures promotes compassion and tolerance for others’ feelings and viewpoints.

Cooperation & Collaboration  -  drama combines the creative ideas and abilities of its participants. This cooperative process includes discussing, negotiating, rehearsing, and performing.

Communication Skills  -   Drama enhances verbal and nonverbal expression of ideas. Listening and observation skills develop by playing drama games, being an audience, rehearsing, and performing.

Concentration   -  Playing, practicing, and performing develop sustained focus, body, and voice, which also helps in other subjects and courses, and, again, life in general.

Problem solving  -   Students learn how to communicate the who, what, where, and why to the audience. Improvisation fosters quick-thinking solutions, which leads to greater adaptability in life.

Fun  -   Drama brings play, humour, and laughter to learning; this improves motivation and reduces stress.  Emotional Outlet  -   Pretend play and drama games allow students to express a range of emotions.  Many drama activities reduce stress by releasing mental, physical, and emotional tension.

Self-discipline  -   The process of moving from ideas to actions to performances teaches the value of practice and perseverance. Drama games and creative movement improve self-control.

Course Description

This is a practical course that explores four key areas of Drama: 

* developing skills in using  the elements, techniques, conventions, and technologies of Drama; 

* developing ideas through innovation, imagination, and personal experience.  

* learning how to co-operate and collaborate with others to generate ideas and turn them into action. 

* learning how to communicate and interpret ideas. 

We learn these things in Drama in a variety of ways: through playing drama games, participating in workshops, learning how to devise our own drama, and through studying and performing scripted plays.  We discuss and write about our own and others’ work and prepare for a Drama exam.  

What will I learn and How will I learn?
This Level 1 Drama course builds important foundation skills in Drama. Students must be willing to actively participate in all activities.  You will work in groups, learning to co-operate and collaborate.  You will develop knowledge and awareness of dramatic techniques, elements and conventions, and how to use these to create performance work.  You will develop acting and theatre skills, learn how to devise drama and how to interpret a script.  You will learn how to perform in front of others  using different theatre forms, elements and conventions.  You will learn about drama technologies and how to use these as important elements in performance works.