Abstract
This paper primarily demonstrates the role of theatre as an enabling resource to address classroom diversity with possible negotiation of individual identity. Inequity, linguistic multiplicity and ethnic plurality are the defining characteristics of the Indian mosaic. Several homogenising forces dominant in schools often negate the multiplicity of socio-cultural identities. Tensions between social diversity and academic conformity impose a problematic contest for children's cultural confidence, making schools sites that impact the lives of children in unintended ways. By using the medium of theatre to present multi-layered representations of life at school that honour the voices of children, the author attempts to generate a compelling concern to use methods of theatre and drama in pedagogy as theatre naturally directs adults towards knowing children's socio-cultural selves. Through the processes of theatre educators revisit the experience of childhood, reorienting their own adult psyches towards the spirit of childhood.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
