{"id":12596,"date":"2016-01-04T09:48:38","date_gmt":"2016-01-04T14:48:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/college.unc.edu\/?p=12596"},"modified":"2024-07-02T16:27:13","modified_gmt":"2024-07-02T16:27:13","slug":"setting-the-stage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/collegearchive.unc.edu\/?p=12596","title":{"rendered":"Setting the Stage"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Instructor<\/a>
Instructor Heather Patterson King talks to students during a PlayMakers outreach program. Gabrielle McHarg, a 2015 SURF recipient majoring in psychology, conducted research on the effects of drama on young children\u2019s reading ability.
(Photo courtesy of UNC-Chapel Hill.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

G<\/span>abrielle McHarg grew up on the stage. She began performing in local theater at the age of 8 and never\u00a0stopped.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy the time I graduated, I had spent more years of my life in theater than I hadn\u2019t,\u201d McHarg says. \u201cI often talk about memories from my childhood not based on what grade I was in, but rather what show we were\u00a0doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2012, when McHarg enrolled at UNC<\/span>-Chapel Hill with a major in psychology and minor in music, she assumed that the curtains had closed on her theater days.<\/p>\n

\u201cI began to notice how much my theater experience was benefiting me in college,\u201d she says. \u201cI had learned about times tables and the preamble in \u2018School House Rock,\u2019 Hoovervilles and U.S.<\/span> history in \u2018Annie,\u2019 Jewish culture in \u2018Fiddler on the Roof,\u2019 and racism and segregation in\u00a0\u2018Hairspray.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

This revelation sparked McHarg\u2019s interest in researching theater\u2019s role in education. So in the spring of 2015, she applied for UNC<\/span>\u2019s Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship Award (SURF<\/span>)<\/a>, a program designed to enhance the educational experience of undergraduates by engaging them in research\u00a0opportunities.<\/p>\n

Flipping the\u00a0script<\/strong><\/p>\n

Reflecting on her own experience, McHarg developed a research question: Do theatre programs help young students with reading? So, for her research project, she looked to Wilson, North Carolina\u2019s summer theater programs \u2014 some of which she\u2019d participated in as a kid. \u201cI remember spending six weeks sitting in one story, trying to figure out the ins and outs,\u201d she\u00a0says.<\/p>\n

She asked a selection of first-, second-, and third-grade students, both involved and not involved in the theater programs, to participate in her study. She tested for reading comprehension by having the students read aloud, and also instructed them to create a story from a selection of\u00a0pictures.<\/p>\n

\u201cOftentimes, when I would go to do assessments, kids would act like what was going on was very important,\u201d McHarg recalls. \u201cOne little girl told her grandma, \u2018I cannot be late for my very important job!\u2019\u201d Many of the students enjoyed being in the study, potentially because of the individual attention \u201ctheir teacher lady\u201d gave\u00a0them.<\/p>\n

McHarg developed a set of prompting questions as a consistent measure for each type of testing. For example, if the students read a sentence like, \u201cWhere is Joe?\u201d McHarg rated their responses using criteria such as: Did they read it like a question or a quotation? Did they use different voices for different\u00a0characters?<\/em><\/p>\n

She administered a baseline test and followed up every two to three weeks to measure progress. Tests were scored via video recording after each session \u2014 and the results were\u00a0surprising.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe drama program showed to have a positive effect on storytelling,\u201d McHarg says. \u201cThe students would make up elaborate back stories that included everything from hiding out in caves to needing to find lost pets to using magic\u00a0crayons.\u201d<\/p>\n

But for flow, structure, and reading comprehension there was no overwhelming impact. McHarg did, however, notice subtle differences in the responses of the students. For example, the drama students remembered different specifics about the stories they read compared to the students who did not participate in theater performances.<\/p>\n

The responses for the third test were also striking. McHarg found that students involved in the drama programs read more quickly than those who were not, but this did not necessarily lead to increased reading comprehension. \u201cThe reading comprehension was actually lower in those children who read quicker,\u201d she says. \u201cOverall, the scores were higher in the kids who participated in theater \u2014 just not\u00a0significantly.\u201d<\/p>\n

A two-woman\u00a0show<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we have learned is that we need to learn more,\u201d Barbara Goldman, a senior scientist at the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute<\/a>, says. All SURF<\/span> projects must be overseen by a faculty adviser or mentor. Having spent a lot of time in Goldman\u2019s lab, McHarg felt she\u2019d be the best choice. \u201cAnd I said \u2018yes\u2019 because I had fantastic experiences with Gabrielle in my lab,\u201d Goldman\u00a0says.<\/p>\n

While McHarg\u2019s research was all her own, Goldman provided help along the way. She served as a sounding board for McHarg throughout the process, and even connected her to more relevant faculty members when\u00a0necessary.<\/p>\n

Although, McHarg didn\u2019t need much help. \u201cShe is very, very competent and works really well on her own,\u201d Goldman says. \u201cShe did not need a lot more than what I was able to\u00a0provide.\u201d<\/p>\n

But that is indicative of SURF<\/span>. Undergraduate students must have good academic standing to apply to this competitive and respectable program. Once accepted, they are expected to spend a minimum of 20 hours per week, for nine weeks, engaging in research. The Office of Undergraduate Research<\/a> selects only 60 students \u2014 each of which receives a $3,000 award to pursue their studies \u2014 every year for the\u00a0program.<\/p>\n

To Goldman, this opportunity is invaluable. \u201cThey get their hands dirty in their own research and get to see how that feels,\u201d she says. \u201cYou don\u2019t remember the content of the test you took in college \u2014 you remember the projects you\u00a0did.\u201d<\/p>\n

And for McHarg, the case stands. After her project ended, she spent a lot of time reading about the research of others in this area, and has become a proponent for theater in the classroom. \u201cReading out loud is often hard for kids because they are afraid of messing up,\u201d McHarg says. \u201cSo if they take on a character, it may become easier for\u00a0them.\u201d<\/p>\n

McHarg believes that acting and reading plays should be a part of all curriculum. She has observed how theater exchanges anxiety for excitement in students learning to read. In a perfect world, she sees theater playing an active role in every\u00a0classroom.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a lot of research that shows how it helps kids,\u201d McHarg says. \u201cNow, my research is a small part of that, which is really\u00a0exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Gabrielle McHarg is a senior at UNC<\/span>-Chapel Hill studying psychology and music in the College of Arts and Sciences. She also serves as a work study student for the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute\u00a0(FPG<\/span>).\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Barbara Goldman is a senior scientist at the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute and the director of the Behavioral Measurement Core and Audio-Visual Resource\u00a0Center.<\/em><\/p>\n

SURF, administered through the Office for Undergraduate Research in the College of Arts and Sciences,<\/span> offers more than $3,000 to students pursuing research, scholarship, or performance with the guidance of a faculty\u00a0adviser.<\/em><\/p>\n

Story by Jessica Porter, <\/em>Endeavors magazine<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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