Teaching Empathy and Ethics with Drama

Teaching Empathy and Ethics using Drama

Ali Clinch

Learn simple exercises and games to engage your students in critical and creative thinking. Forum theatre and ‘Theatre of the Oppressed’ is a style of theatre created by the innovative & influential practitioner Augusto Boal. Boal created Forum Theatre as a platform to engage and inspire communities to reduce oppression and stigma. Audiences are presented with a scene or play involving conflict. Forum Theatre places the onus on audience members to not just suggest different actions, but to come on stage and perform their own interventions to resolve the conflict.

This workshop will give you the tools to explore ethical concepts and issues in an engaging and safe way. A great extension for your student’s exploration of other learning areas such as Humanities and Social Science, English, Science, Languages and The Arts as well as a unique model to resolve conflict within your own school community.

Trained by the founding members of the ‘Cooling Conflict’ and ‘Acting Against Bullying’ Programs, Ali Clinch has been running Forum Theatre programs in ACT and QLD schools since 2009. In this workshop, you will learn how to create a forum theatre play using your students as the actors and how to engage your audience (other students in your class) to attempt to solve the conflict occurring in the performance.

In developing and acting with ethical understanding, students recognise ethical concepts; explore ethical concepts in context; reason and make ethical decisions; consider consequences; reflect on ethical action; examine values; explore rights and responsibilities; and consider points of view.

About Ali

BA Applied Theatre (Hons) Griffith University

Ali is an award-winning actor & director winning an Australian Award for University Teaching Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning in 2013 and for her work as Artist Director of Acting Crazy Theatre in 2010. Ali specialises in applied theatre, with special focus on using Theatre in Education and theatre in mental health settings. Previously a lecturer in the Arts Education Courses at University of Canberra & Griffith University, she is passionate about the effectiveness of drama and dance as a tool for learning & engagement. Ali has worked extensively both in and outside of the public and private education systems in QLD, NSW & ACT. Ali’s theatre experience spans over 16 years across varying roles including director, scriptwriter, consultant, lecturer, actor and project coordinator.