Background: Teacher-in-role (t-i-r) drama method is explored as a pedagogical approach that can transform special needs curricula in South Africa.Aim: To use t-i-r to create a collaborative educational environment between learners and teachers. This article drew on Paulo Freire’s problem-posing pedagogy as a framework that encourages critical thinking and engagement.Setting: The study took place in the Skills Phase classroom, which handles school-to-workplace transitions at a local special school in a small town.Methods: This practice-led research study reflects on the uses of Dorothy Heathcote’s teacher-in-role to extend the curriculum beyond the Foundation Phase (Grade 3) level. The lessons involved a series of practical cross-curricular drama lessons that integrated topics from the Life Orientation (Grade 10–12) and the Drama (Creative Arts Grade 7–9) curriculum. The topics encouraged better linkages to work environment capabilities such as communication and problem-solving.Results: The findings revealed that combining drama-based pedagogy with Freire’s problem-posing pedagogy can help learners become decision-makers and problem-solvers in the classroom. As a result, the learners improved their critical thinking skills, self-esteem and confidence.Conclusion: The paper showed how drama-based pedagogy within a South African context of learning disability is an area that remains untapped, thus advocating for the uses of this approach as a possibility in improving special needs curricular implementation and practice.Contribution: The research provided insight into the care and education of special needs learners. Thus, it contributes to the growing academic literature on Drama-in-education (D-i-E) and inclusion in special needs schools in drama practices in South Africa.
Many everyday stories and experiences of African women remain underrepresented and undocumented. For example, the omission of Fingo Village women’s names from official deeds records silenced their voices. African women faced gender and racial discrimination that denied them fundamental human rights and limited their participation in urban life. Title deed records constitute one type of public record where African women’s names were omitted for centuries by the colonial and apartheid governments. Under apartheid, African women occupied the social status of minors; hence, the government denied them urban land rights. This African feminist study enlists narratives of a sample of seven African female heads of households residing in Fingo Village who are also property owners. Fingo Village is an atypical environment where African people had a rare legal advantage of owning title deeds dating back to 1855. This study employed an interdisciplinary approach by mixing oral history methodology and applied theatre methods to record, interpret and present Fingo Village women’s narratives of family property inheritance and the significance of title deed documentation in the suburb. The multiple technique approach created opportunities for authentic dialogue between the researcher and the participants beyond the inherent limitations of public history oral interviews. The traditional oral history interview and the participatory theatre methods helped uncover unconventional practices in family property relations. Though customary transfers of family homes to custodians were prevalent, title deed registration of family property was also acknowledged as a vital practice that empowered women legally. The researcher used participatory theatre techniques inspired by playback, image and forum theatre to enhance the researcher and participants’ relationship. These methods encouraged the researcher and respondents’ shared authority as they embarked on an extended participatory research project. In this regard, through dialogical and performance-based activities, the participants and the researcher became co-creators of untold Fingo Village stories. Moreover, the theatre techniques became interpretation and analysis tools that ensured that the participants’ untold stories were well represented. The first phase of the research involved engaging with the literature about the title deeds history of Fingo Village and conducting oral history interviews that served as data. In the second phase, the interviews were analysed and packaged in a documentary format. The third phase was a playback theatre inspired session in a 10-minute performance based on themes from the participants’ filmed interviews. Additionally, the performance was a catalyst for forum theatre activities that allowed the participants to interact with the performer and suggest solutions to the dilemma posed by the performer regarding family property use. The participants were decision-makers and family property relations experts within this imagined context. In the fourth phase, the image theatre adaptation and memory work activities were essential tools. The tools aided the visuals and information from an existing Fingo Village exhibition as additional resources that prompted dialogue and discussions. The exhibition encouraged participants to share their personal experiences and memories of the Group Areas Act (GAA) era. The findings showed that the GAA era saw many families revert to communal tenure practices as a strategy to evade forced sales; as such, this gave rise to undocumented family property transfers. Additionally, the findings revealed that though customary practices are often patriarchal, there are circumstances favouring women as the preferred family property custodian. These are embedded in the social status of women who are traditional healers, firstborn daughters, and those from families with just daughters. This study contributes to the growing literature that advocates for positive representation of African women’s stories by using active research methodologies that strengthen partnerships and shared authority between the researcher and the public. This methodology could inspire other researchers to explore theatre techniques to create more profound and meaningful engagements with their participants. The links to the video materials accompanying this thesis are provided on the contents page.
The Isikhumbuzo Applied History Unit (IAHU) of Rhodes University History Department specializes in innovative methodologies for bringing historical information closer to non-academic audiences. The National Research Foundation of South Africa funds the research work conducted by Isikhumbuzo Applied History Unit. This article shares insights from a reflective discussion that took place February 4, 2019 at Rhodes University. The team reflects on the challenges of doing Public History work in South Africa, particularly drawing attention to the issues surrounding academics and the public when it comes to engaging in research and storytelling exercises that unearth untold stories.Experimenting with creative arts such as drama and dance as strategies that can improve public participation in historical work, the team discusses how they are bridging the gap between the public, artists, and academics. The views expressed in this roundtable discussion contribute to the reflexive nature of the methodology employed by the Isikhumbuzo Applied History Unit.
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