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Acting Lessons for Teachers Using Performance Skills in the Classroom, Second Edition
Robert T. Tauber, Cathy S. Mester
ISBN: 0-275-99204-7
ISBN-13: 978-0-275-99204-0
240 pages
Praeger Publishers
Publication: 11/30/2006
List Price: $34.95 (UK Sterling Price: £24.95)
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Media Type: Paperback
Trim Size: 6 1/8 x 9 1/4
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Description: Acting Lessons for Teachers presents a solid theoretical foundation for the pedagogical benefits of enthusiastic teaching. The authors maintain that students learn better and misbehave less when taught by teachers who teach enthusiastically. They posit that the dynamic of the classroom is similar to that of the stage in terms of speaker-listener relationships and they demonstrate how the acting craft offers teachers a model for the skills and strategies that help convey more enthusiasm for the material, thus successfully engaging the students.

This book presents concrete descriptions of the specific acting strategies that would benefit the teacher: physical and vocal animation, teacher role-playing, strategic entrances and exits, humor, props, suspense and surprise, and creative use of space. Special attention is given to the potential advantage of instructional technology as a modern-day prop. Strategies are explained in terms of their importance and ease of incorporation into the classroom. Each is proposed as a skill that can be learned by any teachers who have the desire to enliven their teaching. Student descriptions of their own experience with teachers' use of acting strategies add real examples for each lesson. Finally, testimony of award-winning classroom teachers from a variety of disciplines and age levels provides evidence of the wide and easy applicability of these strategies.
Table of Contents:
  • Part 1 Background
    Chapter 1 Teacher Enthusiasm: A Pedagogical Necessity
    Chapter 2 Boosting Teacher Enthusiasm: A Crafterperson's Toolbox
    Chapter 3 Educational Foundations for Teachers as Actors
    Part 2 The Acting Lessons
    Chapter 4 Animation in Body
    Chapter 5 Animation in Voice
    Chapter 6 Classroom Space
    Chapter 7 Humor
    Chapter 8 Role-Playing
    Chapter 9 Props
    Chapter 10 Technology Props
    Chapter 11 Suspense and Surprise
    Chapter 12 Making a Dramatic Entrance and Exit
    Part 3 Epilogue
    Chapter 13 Behind the Scenes, Loosening Up, and Preparing for That Step across the Classroom Threshold
    Chapter 14 Classroom Management
    Chapter 15 Enthusiastic Teaching: A Conversation with Friends
    Chapter 16 Conclusion
    Appendix 1 Education Resources Information Center (ERIC)
    Appendix 2 Testimonials from Award-Winner K-12 Teachers and College Professors References
    Subject and Name Index
About the Author: Robert T. Tauber is Professor Emeritus, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, Erie, The Behrend College. He has taught and counseled K-12 and has taught at the university level for 35 years. While at Behrend College, he taught a variety of education courses, supervised students on field experience, and served as Dean's Representative for the College of Education. After retiring from Pennsylvania State University as Professor Emeritus, Dr. Tauber continues to teach graduate courses as an Adjunct Professor at Gannon University, Erie, Penn. and as Adjunct Professor at the University of Florida, Gainesville. He has published, both nationally and internationally, and has served two sabbaticals, one at Durham University (U.K.) and one at the University of Melbourne (Australia).

Cathy S. Mester is Senior Lecturer in Communication, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, Erie, The Behrend College. She is a 35-year member of the faculty in Communication and Media Studies at Pennsylvania State University, Erie, where she also currently serves as Program Chair. She has created a specialized course in instructional communication for pre-service teachers and frequently leads workshops for inservice teachers as well as business and community leaders. Co-author of three books and numerous conference papers and articles, Mester has taught at all grade levels, served as a school board president, a faculty organization president, and is listed in Who's Who Among American Teachers.
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