Wenger | J.R. Clancy: For Theatre in Our School’s Month, we have explored the different elements of theatre
education and the importance of theatre education advocacy. This week, we are focusing
on the psychological and mental benefits of theatre education on students.
9 comments:
My primary and secondary theatre schooling was super critical to who I have become today. In New York I went to a public art school that had all sorts of different arts. From kindergarten I was doing dance, art, pottery, cooking, theatre, and music. I had a lot of exposure to the arts and specifically theatre. I think having this kind of exposure from such a young age allowed me to think more creatively and made it possible for me to think that I could actively pursue theatre. In middle and high school I did more theatre and was able to explore the interest through productions and classes taken. Because I had these opportunities I think I had the confidence to pursue theatre as career and allowed myself to choose the arts over something that would be seen as more pragmatic. I agree with a lot of what the article discusses about the importance of collaborative art and theatre for the developmental process. I hope that we can continue to advocate for good arts education so that students will continue to develop strong communication and collaborative skills.
This article talked about the benefits of theatre education for children and students, but I believe a lot of what it is talking about can be more broadly applied to humanity as a whole. I do not think that we as a species ever truly stop learning and growing, and part of the reason I love theatre so much is because it can reach people in ways that very few other techniques can accomplish. It was interesting to read about the point about higher test scores as well. Although I do believe that there are far more types of intelligence that are not measured by test scores, I can’t say I would have guessed that people in theatre would get higher scores. I’d be interested in doing a deeper dive into that point specifically, as I’m not sure what skill theatre would create that would facilitate higher scores. Maybe it’s the confidence in who you are? Once you have a more settled sense of self, you might be able to do your work better, or connect with it more.
I can honestly say that I wouldn’t know where I would be right now without my highschool theatre curriculum, it has helped me define who I am as a person and has geared me me towards a path of what I want to do in life. Without that guidance I honestly think I would be unhappy and searching for what I want to do in life, no vision for a future and in general in a worst mental state.Theatre education not only helps you learn how to put yourself out there but it makes you more emotionally intelligent, I think theatre has an affect of making you more tuned into the emotions of yourself and others in a way that I don’t think you can achieve in a normal classroom. It helps you recognize certain behaviors and fosters a more accepting attitude towards others which is a really good thing for young people to master
As someone who wrote just about every college admissions essay about how pivotal the study of theater was to my development as a human, I wholeheartedly agree with what this article is saying. I mean, what would elementary schoolers have to trauma bond with each other about if not a terrible bug themed musical they all have to be in? I think the great thing about theater is that it teaches empathy in a very practical way, especially things like acting, you have to at least try to think about the character and how they would react differently to a situation to you and why. I think theater education is very important for kids development, beyond just the problem solving and communication skills it fosters, it's a way to stop and think about someone's emotions other than your own, and especially in today's climate of AI, and crazy people in the government, that mindset is even more important than ever.
Right now, with the defunding of the Department of Education, government rollbacks in educational and research grants, and the government’s current policies on DEI, theater education is being threatened like never before. However, theater has always been threatened and attacked by the powers that be, with educators claiming it isn’t a useful skill or defunding the arts in general. No matter how many studies are done demonstrating the importance of theater and art in student’s lives, there will always be someone trying to take it away from kids. I think that we can always fight against it and find a way to maintain theatrical spaces and keep art accessible. Everytime that self-expression is threatened, we as a society manage to bounce back and grow stronger together, rebuilding the arts. While I worry about the future of the arts and what will happen to me and my friends post-graduation, I have faith in theater to prevail.
Theatre provides context for why we, as a community, need to study science, math, and literature, because theatre would not exist without utilizing these fundamentals—much less the world we live in. Theatre also offers the ability to see the world from a different perspective, encouraging individuals to imagine the characters and their circumstances. This fosters empathy on a very personal level and informs people of different ways of life and circumstances around the world. As more diverse stories are told from the global majority, students have the opportunity to broaden their perspectives. Theatre students excel in life because of the exposure to these different perspectives. They are able to make informed decisions about what they care about and what they want to work on. Not every theatre student becomes an actor or works in the entertainment industry. In fact, the vast majority do not. However, those who know how to produce a show gain real-world skills that are essential to making things happen. We learn how to collaborate, how to bring our perspectives to the table, and, most importantly, how to listen to others. I wholeheartedly believe that theatre could be the foundation that supports every part of our education system. It is a shame to see funding cut for the arts and for less students to have the opportunity I had growing up. I hope to see arts education become more accessible in the future.
I definitely agree with this article that participating in theatre in middle and high school was very beneficial to me. In high school especially, my friend group basically was the theatre department. Working as both a designer and stage manager also definitely taught me tons of organization and communication skills that have really come in clutch during college. Also, it occurs to me that there’s hypothetically another psychological benefit to a very specific part of theatre education. CMU has this psych course called Changing Your Brain where they do spatial visualization training on you. According to the course description spatial visualization markedly improves students’ grades across a variety of disciplines, but whenever I come across the course, I’m like, I can’t take this. I literally have already been taking Spatial Visualization The Class for two semesters in the form of hand drafting. Maybe hand drafting has psychological benefits? Further research needed.
This, in context with other articles I’ve read, make me even more worried (if that’s even possible) about the dissolution of the department of education and the effects of the Trump administration on children. Given these benefits of theatre education, I wonder what the deleterious psychological effects of a lack of a wider arts education as a whole - which is where the United States unfortunately seems to be moving with the last few years. I hope for the sake of the next generation of theatregoers and theatremakers that theatre education remains a pillar in as many young peoples’ lives as possible. As someone who never took a theatre class yet had opportunities to be involved in theatre as early as five years old. The sense of identity it helped me to develop, as well as to develop social emotional wellness and skills, has proven to be useful. I’m thankful for my theatre education today in undergrad.
I spent two years in high school working for a children's theatre and assisting grant writing and this was such a big part of it. In order to get funding and support we had to spend a lot of time explaining why it was important to fund the arts. This meant a lot of explaining of the benefits. The theatre also did this thing where they sent the kids in the cast out to the community to try and find sponsors. When teaching the kids how to do this they did a presentation called “the business of theatre” and it was used to teach them how to ask for the money and advocate. And I think that was one great example of how theatre teaches skills and also finding ways to connect with the community and gain support. More people need to see this especially with everything going on in the world right now!
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