Dr Claire M Coleman

Senior Lecturer

Keywords

Arts and Language Education; Curriculum; Drama; Education; Education Research; Emotional Intelligence; Learning and Education; Pedagogy; Schools (Primary/Secondary); Teacher Education; Teaching

Process Drama Critical Pedagogy Arts based Methodology Drama in Education Collaborative learning

Qualifications: PhD, MEd(Res), PGDipEd, GradDipTchg(Prim), BA, DipPerformArts

Papers Taught

About Claire

I began my career in education as a puppeteer in a disability awareness education programme and taught in a variety of educational settings. I discovered process drama through my studies in the Postgraduate diploma in Education and went on to gain my Masters in Education at the University of Sydney. I remain deeply passionate about education and the potential for drama as both an aesthetic artform, effective pedagogy and catalyst for critical engagement.

My doctoral thesis ‘Dancing through the fourth wall’, explored the potential relationship between the principles of critical pedagogy and process drama. It interrogated the capability of process drama to provide an embodied form of critical pedagogy. Positing that the ambiguities and uncertainties available within the dramatic world provide a playful space within which social constructions of identity and power may be challenged.

I am passionate about embodied and creative pedagogies for transformative education. My other research examines the shift to ILE spaces within schools and the cultivation of learning cultures for collaboration and creativity. Currently, I am researching my workspace of Initial Teacher Education, my own practice as a teacher educator and developing the critical process drama framework.

Research Supervised

Completed Supervision

Mong Na Boon

Helen English: The Effect of Arts Education on Cognition in Community Settings MEd Completed February 2019

Current Supervision

PhD: Dawn Lawrence

Masters: Annette Thomson

Directed Study: Alaina Parkinson

Research Interests

Critical Pedagogy

Process Drama

Applied Theatre

Creativity

Embodied Learning