DICE (“Drama Improves Lisbon Key Competences in Education”)
Appetizer
To work with drama is great, releasing, creative, who does it, knows it. However sometimes it is worth to prove this feeling by collecting opinions, observations and good practices. To show and share that not only is drama great, but it is also useful, developmental and needed. This is the aim of this project.
Short introduction
DICE (“Drama Improves Lisbon Key Competences in Education”) was an international EU-supported project. In addition to other educational aims, this two-year project was a cross-cultural research study investigating the effects of educational theatre and drama on five of the eight Lisbon Key Competences.
Project framework
Two-year-long Comenius program – 2008 – 2010
Link to the website of the project
Website: http://www.dramanetwork.eu/
As a final product of the project a book was published – you can find the online version here: http://www.dramanetwork.eu/education_resource.html
Project coordinator
Kava Drama/Theatre in Education Association (Káva Kulturális Mûhely) – Hungary
email: cziboly.adam@kavaszinhaz.hu
Partner countries
Czech Republic, Netherlands, Norway, Palestine, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Sweden and United Kingdom
Target group
Young people aged 13-16 years
Objectives
- To demonstrate with cross-cultural quantitative and qualitative research that educational theatre and drama is a powerful tool to improve the Lisbon Key Competences. The research was conducted with almost five thousand young people aged 13-16 years.
- To publish a Policy Paper based on the research, and disseminate it among educational and cultural stakeholders at the European, national, and local levels worldwide.
- To create an Education Resource – a publication for schools, educators and arts practitioners about the different practices of educational theatre and drama. To disseminate this pack at the European, national, and local levels worldwide.
- To compare theatre and drama activities in education in different countries and help the transfer of know-how between experts.
- To hold conferences in the partner countries in order to disseminate the results of the project, as well as a conference in Brussels to disseminate the first main results to key EU leaders in the relevant areas of arts, culture, education and youth.
Project description
DICE was an international EU-supported project. In addition to other educational aims, this two-year project was a cross-cultural research study investigating the effects of educational theatre and drama on five of the eight Lisbon Key Competences. The research was conducted by twelve partners. All members are highly regarded nationally and internationally and represent a wide variety of formal and non-formal sectors of education. Educational theatre and drama practitioners have believed in the efficacy of their work for a long time, but until now it has rarely been measured with scientific tools. In the DICE project, several dozen educational theatre and drama practitioners from twelve countries, with the widest theoretical and professional background, have allied forces with academics (psychologists and sociologists), to measure the impact of educational theatre and drama.
Teresa
Wow! What an impressive project!
This has been definitely a great enterprise carried out by 12 partners, including one from Palestine!
I found the resources amazing with a Guide for practitioners whose full version contains 217 pages, “Making a World of Difference – A DICE resource for practitioners on educational theatre and drama” and a Policy Paper of 128 pages! I’m reading the materials and learning quite a lot from them. I work mainly with music, but drama is always connected to it, anyway. Few questions: any award for the project? And what about the impact? We know that educational theatre and drama have low funding and/or status and do not have a place in the national curriculum and/or the tertiary education system, as it was highlighted in your research, and although we cannot change the system with one project, still I believe there has been quite an impact on these issues with DICE. Any news about? Finally: how was it working with so many partners…? Challenging but very enriching, I guess.
Let’s keep in touch!
Thanks and warm regards! Teresa