Science learning with emotions: Preservice science teachers as drama facilitators

Abstract

Drama activities have been argued to engage students’ cognitions, emotions and actions, making them a prospective, although not very well understood part of science education. The aim of this study is to understand pre-service science teachers’ (PSSTs) experiences as drama facilitators for high school science students. The experiences of preservice science teachers’ drama facilitation were explored in two cases, in which they designed and facilitated drama activities for high school students (13-15 years old). The PSSTs in both cases read a story to students, who were then given roles related to that story. The data consists of in-depth interviews with the PSSTs. In the interviews concerning their experiences, the PSSTs were found to to recognize science learning opportunities and challenges while taking care of student inclusion and showing sensitivity towards students’ emotional expressions. The study illustrates a novel framework for working with science learning opportunities and challenges related to emotional expression in drama activities.