Jane Deluzio, long-time Code member, was invited to teach drama in Astana, Kazakhstan in early November by Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools (NIS).
She worked for two days with teachers from across the country introducing them to drama in education strategies. One focus of the work was on developing student-centred, inclusive and collaborative classrooms that promote critical and creative thinking. The other was to use drama to deepen oral language skills; NIS is in the process of developing tri-lingual citizens: Kazak language, English and Russian.
Jane also presented at the NIS International Research-to-Practice Conference on November 13th, unexpectedly repeating her presentation when the Italian presenter’s plane failed to take off on time!
“It was exciting and inspiring to work with such committed, highly educated and hard-working teachers. It was a real challenge to bridge cultural differences, especially with the language barriers. In the end, drama gives voice to everyone and movement is definitely a universal language. The teachers loved drama and I have been receiving emails from participants describing their success using our shared work with their own students. (Thank you, Google translator!)”