Cambridge Public Schools Drama Collaborative

Program CPSDC History and Description

"It was the hardest thing I ever did.
What I learned? Accomplishment.
One of the finest things we can give
our kids. So many things get done
half-way."

--Nancy Paratore, 8th grade CPS teacher,
of the program's Summer Institute for
teachers

Program Goals

The Cambridge Public Schools Drama Collaborative exists to integrate the dramatic arts with other core academic subjects to enrich both teaching and learning. The program emphasizes teachers' own knowledge and skill development as well as that of their students, and seeks to sustain participating teachers' work over time by building communities to support teachers and students dramatic work at the building level. Activities are aligned with learning strands from the Massachusetts Arts, English/Language Arts, and History/Social Science frameworks.

Our goals are:
1) to help the educational community value drama education as an essential component of learning and teaching practice in the Cambridge Public Schools;

2) to build a culture within each school that supports the work of K-8 teachers and students in drama;

3) to enable teachers and specialists to expand their teaching repertoires by training them in the skills and techniques of the dramatic arts;

4) to enable students to develop a deep understanding of themselves, others, and what they are learning through drama-related experiences;

5) to provide drama-related experiences as an essential way of achieving learning standards outlined in local, state, and national frameworks;

6) to establish ongoing institutional partnerships that support teaching and learning through drama in K-8 classrooms in Cambridge Public Schools.

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CPSDC: How it works

CPSDC uses a 3-part program of professional development through apprenticeship: full-day training workshops, artist follow-up site visits and consultations. Master artist-trainers provide intensive instruction and support during the initial training phase, with their support gradually reduced as teachers build skills and become sufficiently proficient to accomplish program goals independently.

In addition to training, teachers join a system-wide community of educators who meet in monthly focus groups, attend advanced drama workshops, attend graduate level arts courses at Wheelock College, and receive resources such as tickets to performances, books, videos and theatrical equipment to support their work in the classroom.

First year teachers' program:

First year teachers participate in 5 full-day workshops (25 hours) taught by Studebaker Theater artists on such topics as acting and improvisation techniques, drama assessment, playwriting, dramatizing multicultural literature, and drama in the curriculum.

Each teacher receives two 1-hour visits from artist-trainers following each of the 5 full-day workshops (10 hours total over the school year) to model drama-teaching strategies and to support each teacher's first attempts to apply the drama skills learned in the 5 workshops.

Teachers attend 8 monthly focus group meetings during the school year (2 hours per meeting; total of 16 hours) to share project experiences; examine and analyze samples of students' dramatic work (e.g., journals, reflection logs, short videotapes); and engage in networking, mutual support, and professional consultation among colleagues. Assigned readings, journal-keeping, and guided research will help participants become more reflective practitioners of drama.

Teachers and their students extend and deepen their knowledge of drama by attending a professional production at Wheelock Family Theatre, supplemented by comprehensive study guides and pre-and post-show discussions with actors, directors, designers, and technicians.

All teachers may apply for a tuition-free Wheelock College graduate course (2 slots annually) to further enhance their CPSDC training or otherwise grow professionally in their careers.

All teachers may attend any or all of three Saturday workshops on specific drama-related areas to supplement their training.  

Second year teachers' program:

Second year teachers participate in 3 full-day workshops (15 hours) taught by Studebaker Theater artists on such topics as directing and staging, playwriting, and literature.

Each teacher receives 8 one-hour visits from artist-trainers to support each teacher's drama work in their classrooms.

They are also invited to join in on Saturday workshops, focus group meetings, Wheelock College courses and attendance at a performance at Wheelock Family Theatre.

Third year teachers program:

Third year teachers receive 4 one-hour artists visits to support their drama work.

They are also invited to join in on Saturday workshops, focus group meetings, Wheelock College courses and attendance at a performance at Wheelock Family Theatre.

Master teacher program:

Teachers who have completed the three-year program may attend Saturday workshops, focus group meetings, take Wheelock College courses and attend a performance at Wheelock Family Theatre.

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"The more I think about it, the more happy I am that we ended up doing what we did...the more experience kids get presenting themselves in front of an audience the better for their self-confidence. I really think it forced them to process the history in a way that simply looking at the documents would not. I had kids who had been struggling with the documents coming up with great insights..."

--Humanities teacher

 

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"This play was a real way for me to get into the studies that we did this year.It was almost like I was living in the theme instead of just studying it..."
--8th grade student

CPSDC and the Massachusetts Frameworks and Learning Standards

The design and content of the Cambridge Public Schools Drama Collaborative is informed by the Massachusetts Arts Curriculum Frameworks.

Our work is related to the Theatre strand (Standards 1-5) and the Connections strand (Standard 10). These standards deal with developing students' acting skills; literacy skills unique to the dramatic arts; directing, rehearsing, and staging skills; technical theatre skills; and critical thinking and analytical skills in theatre -- and with making interdisciplinary connections between the arts and other subject areas such as English Language Arts, History/Social Science, Math, Science, Foreign Languages, etc., in Connections.

Our work with teachers will also closely connect to all 4 strands of the Massachusetts English Language Arts Curriculum Framework: Language, Reading and Literature, Composition, and Media -- and will emphasize Standards 1-3, 6,10, 15-18,20,25, and 28. These standards focus on working collaboratively in groups; making oral presentations; recognizing dialects; understanding different genres; identifying mood and imagery, working with myths and narratives, interpreting literary works, making effective dramatic presentations; selecting appropriate speaking styles; developing criteria for assessment; and designing media productions.

Additionally, our work with teachers will connect to the History, Geography, and Civics and Government strands of the Massachusetts History/Social Science Curriculum Framework -- and will focus on learning standards 1-3,10,16, and 19-20. These standards focus on recognizing the complexity of historical cause and effect and the importance of individual choices, actions, characters, and past events as they were lived, by people of the time; students' ability to apply historical study and research in oral and written presentations; students' ability to describe and explain forms of authority in government and other institutions; learning about civil rights; and analyzing diverse forms of government and ways of life.

Assessment

Student learning of these standards will be assessed using a variety of methods that are integrated into the training from the very beginning of the project in workshops, site visits, and focus groups. Teachers and artist-trainers will collaboratively design and develop useful classroom assessments based on learning goals. They will develop indicators for what quality work looks like, to be measured by a variety of assessment instruments, such as student portfolios, journals, and exhibitions.
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"This program was one of the highlights of my year!"
--CPSDC particpating teacher

"Students have improved their research skills as a result of using drama to study a historical era."

--Teacher

"I feel they are more willing to revise their written work than they were previously."

--Teacher 

 

CPSDC Program History

The CPSDC began in 1994 as a collaboration between the CPS Coordinator of Dramatic Arts and Dance and Studebaker Theater. Beginning with six middle-school teachers, the fledgling program sought to expand the "artist-in-residence" model currently used by most schools to one that could support the development of teacher expertise within the school.

Based on the success of the pilot program, the two original partners invited Wheelock College and Wheelock Family Theatre to join the partnership. Together they secured an MCC Educational Partnership planning grant to expand the program beyond its original teacher membership, and then, in 1998, a three-year MCC Educational Partnership grant.

In the three-year grant period from 1998-2001, thirty-eight teachers received more than 150 hours each of hands-on training, including full-day workshops, summer institutes, in-class modeling of drama techniques, and after-school focus group meetings to refine skills and reflect on classroom practice.

In addition, the CPSDC program addressed broader, systemic elements critical to sustaining teachers' work over time. Through the design of the program the co-directors advocated for the development of middle-school communities to nurture and support teachers' and students' dramatic work at the building level. CPSDC co-directors met with CPS principals and administrators throughout the project and eventually were granted the dedication of district funds for a new K-8 drama staff developer to provide teachers with continued on-site support.

In 2001, the CPSDC partners successfully competed for a two-year Institutionalization and Dissemination grant from the MCC. As a result, many of the curriculum units developed by teachers and artists were recorded for use system-wide (click on curriculum to download individual units). In addition, a cohort of K-5 teachers began training in order to extend the program's activities into the lower grades.

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"We've been through a cycle of one-shot deals. We started that way...but now, to have someone come and work with us speaks to the idea of capacity-building with teachers. Empower them to make use of this technique in ways that we can't even imagine exactly how."

--Principal interview  

CPSDC Program Funders

The work of the CPSDC would not be possible without the support of the Massachusetts Cultural Council; Studebaker Theater; Wheelock Family Theatre; Wheelock College; Draper Laboratory; and the Cambridge Public Schools.

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