English through drama activities

Abstract

The aim of the course “English through Drama Activities” was to develop students’ both receptive and productive skills, as well as to enhance their confidence in speaking English. The participants of the project were 12th-graders of “Aregnazan” Educational Complex in Yerevan. The piloting took place twice a week for 45 minutes at the same school during their regular English lessons and lasted two months and a half. At the end of the course, the students had a vocabulary test to check how well they internalized the newly learned words. They also had to make a final speech for 2-3 minutes to test their fluency. The students with the lowest scores at the writing test were the ones with irregular attendance. Due to the implementation of drama activities in their English lessons, students enriched their word-stock and became more fluent in expressing their thoughts in English. By the end of the piloting, a teacher’s guide with 20 lesson plans and materials, and a student’s book were developed ready to be used again with other students of pre-intermediate and intermediate levels of English proficiency.