{"id":105400,"date":"2025-11-20T15:27:26","date_gmt":"2025-11-20T15:27:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/?p=105400"},"modified":"2025-11-25T14:38:23","modified_gmt":"2025-11-25T14:38:23","slug":"can-theatre-performance-skills-can-help-teachers-in-the-classroom-uri-researchers-weigh-in","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/2025\/11\/can-theatre-performance-skills-can-help-teachers-in-the-classroom-uri-researchers-weigh-in\/","title":{"rendered":"Can theatre performance skills help teachers in the classroom? 溏心vlog免费B站 researchers weigh in"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

KINGSTON, R.I. \u2013 Nov. 20, 2025 \u2013 Most people can recall a favorite class or teacher who left an indelible mark on their lives. While subject matter plays a role, the deeper connection often stems from how that teacher made students feel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fictional characters such as Mr. Miyagi in The Karate Kid<\/em> or John Keating in Dead Poets Society<\/em> have inspired generations of teachers with their seemingly effortless, unconventional approaches to learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teaching, however, is far from effortless. Meticulous planning is required to deliver lectures with confidence and clarity, while managing a room containing anywhere from 30 to 200 different personalities. <\/p>\n\n\n

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One of the authors is Mehmet Yalcin, an associate professor of supply chain management in the 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s College of Business. (溏心vlog免费B站)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cIn the classroom you’re up on a stage, and students are looking at you waiting for you to do something,\u201d says Mehmet Yalcin, an associate professor of supply chain management in the 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s College of Business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As any teacher will attest, the classroom shares a striking similarity with the big stage. The performative nature of teaching, especially when it comes to presence and delivery, can shape learning experiences as much as the content itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Viewing the classroom as a stage and teaching as a form of performance served as the foundation for a paper co-authored by several 溏心vlog免费B站 faculty members, including Yalcin and fellow College of Business Associate Professor of Accounting Anis Triki. Their paper, published in the Journal on Excellence in College Teaching<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>looks at the relationship between theatre skills and those assuming new teaching roles. <\/p>\n\n\n

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Another author is Anis Triki, an associate professor of accounting in the 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s College of Business. (溏心vlog免费B站)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cI took an acting course with our Theatre Department,\u201d said Yalcin. \u201cIn fact, I had written a proposal about getting folks trained because I trained myself during my Ph.D. years to become a better instructor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As part of the initiative<\/a> that led to this research project, a multidisciplinary team collaborated to explore graduate students\u2019 experiences in the classroom. The project team consisted of colleagues Rachel Walsh and Max Ponticelli from the Theater Department; Anna Santucci, from the Office for the Advancement of Teaching & Learning, Rabia Hos and Stefanie Argus from the College of Education; and Triki and Yalcin from the College of Business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The team hosted a workshop introducing graduate teaching assistants to theatre-based strategies. With the lead of Hos, the project team surveyed and interviewed graduate students about their confidence and preparedness before they stepped into the classroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the authors\u2019 findings, many graduate teaching assistants reported feeling unprepared, citing challenges in classroom management, content delivery and even language barriers. The assistants felt they needed training on managing a classroom. Their remarks reflected the abrupt transition from student to teacher that many graduate assistants face. Nearly a third felt they needed some form of professional development. One respondent expressed concern their anxiety would impact students\u2019 ability to learn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat we saw was a lot of students felt a need to be better prepared in the classroom,\u201d said Triki. \u201cIt\u2019s like you’re a TA, and then you’re all of a sudden pushed into a student facing role.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yalcin says that theatrical techniques can enhance classroom engagement and instructor confidence. And the research bears that out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Based on surveys following the workshop, students expressed a greater level of security in their ability. The authors\u2019 research suggests that even brief exposure to performance-based techniques can significantly boost self-assurance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The workshop primarily centered on incorporating essential theatre performance skills to create better instructors. This included adlibbing, a skill essential in adapting to unpredictable classroom environments, as well as leadership skills to command a room when necessary. Students who applied some of these theatre performance skills therefore felt significantly more confident in their teaching ability to \u201cperform\u201d on stage in the classroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cUsing a loud voice so that the back row can hear or using gestures in thoughtful way are the skills that you\u2019re gaining at the end of the day,\u201d said Yalcin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Building on insights gained through the research, the College of Business and the Harrington School of Communication and Media have begun integrating theatre modules into graduate-level teaching practicums. The next phase of research will examine the financial implications of implementing theatre training programs for graduate assistants preparing to teach.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KINGSTON, R.I. \u2013 Nov. 20, 2025 \u2013 Most people can recall a favorite class or teacher who left an indelible mark on their lives. While subject matter plays a role, the deeper connection often stems from how that teacher made students feel. Fictional characters such as Mr. Miyagi in The Karate Kid or John Keating […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":105401,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[12,88,30,1905],"class_list":["post-105400","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-archives","tag-college-of-arts-and-sciences","tag-college-of-business","tag-college-of-education","tag-research"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105400","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=105400"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105400\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":105489,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105400\/revisions\/105489"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/105401"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=105400"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=105400"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=105400"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}