Let's Act!

Learning any language is a lifelong experience. The trick with such experiences is that you always have to find fresh approaches to them, so that they don’t become tedious and a mere duty rather than an enjoyable process, which they certainly should be. However, by language I do not mean only the verbal code and the words we utter, but also some other means of communicating ideas, thoughts, attitudes or emotions, such as body language or the language of signs and pictures all around us, which can speak volumes about numerous things. Since classrooms don't always lend themselves to learning and practicing all these ‘languages’ (which are inevitable in life) in addition to what we traditionally mean when we say ‘language’ (the verbal code) and since classrooms are meant not only for mere learning and reproducing, but also for building new, strong, fresh personalities who will one day take the stage of life and perform their own roles as parents, friends, lovers, or enemies, all these can merge into one and be practiced in a single way: through acting. Drama is the key to fighting potential dullness as well as a way to more complete and profound self-discovery.

The moment we are born, we take some roles. As we grow up those roles multiply and we face new situations and challenges and gradually learn how we should or should not behave, what to say on certain occasions etc. This being the case, the foundation for these processes, apart from the parental part, should be in classrooms. A classroom should be a mini-stage where many roles can be tried out before the real thing happens. This is especially important for language classrooms, as languages are meant for communication, which should be practiced constantly. Acting out small sketches and simulating real-life situations in a safe environment is an integral part of enabling an individual to set off on a communicational journey and return with pleasant experience. Moreover, sketches can be enriched with corresponding scenery, background music or costumes, so the students’ creative side can find its way to the world. By implementing drama as a regular part of the classroom routine the traditional ways are not neglected, but just balanced with something new, unusual and almost always exciting. “Drama is like life, but with the dull bits out”. This is what Hitchcock said. So, why don’t we minimize all the dull bits and learn in an enjoyable way?

There is also one more important aspect of introducing drama into language learning: fighting inhibition. Everyone who has already had the task to deliver a speech or perform something in public knows how inhibition can be destructive and discouraging. Learning how to lower your emotional filters and overcome the fear of being criticized, or, at least, accept remarks and use them to progress, is a vital thing, especially in life.  And acting is one of the best ways to do it.

One can never know what will happen tomorrow. Therefore, taking as many roles you can both in classroom and in life can only be to your advantage, no matter how pleasant or sad your role was. Teachers, students and people in general should feel free to experiment with new things, be open-minded and embrace the numerous roles that life generously offers every day. "All the world's a stage". So let's act, learn, play, and, above all, enjoy.