Taiwan's Abused Readers' Theater and Spelling Bees

     The Taiwan Ministry of Education has tried different ways to make learning English as a Foreign Language (EFL) more viable for students and teachers. Many studies show how Readers' Theater is effective in encouraging early beginners and low achievers to use their new language skills. RT was originally meant for classroom practice because it could improve students’ English listening, speaking, reading and writing. However, because  of a lack of training by the Ministry of Education, most EFL teacher do not use Readers' Theater in class. Some schools have decided to turn RT into a inter-school competition. Because the competition was so fierce, many schools have shied away from joining contests. The schools that play to win need professional advice. That is where I come in. 
     I am a consultant for one of Taiwan's three textbook publishing companies in the Taichung area the past few years. As a favor to schools that use the publisher's textbooks, I am sent to give workshops with students in English-language contests such as choral singing, spelling bee, and RT if they request coaching; I am also a judge at these competitions, though there has been no conflict of interest, so far.
     A few weeks ago I was asked to do three two-hour Readers' Theater workshops
at Guang Jung Middle School. The skit Guang Jung chose was "A Quiet Noise;" more accessible than the "Frog King" Shuang Wen Middle School asked me to observe a month earlier. (see http://e-e-o.blogspot.tw/2015/09/the-readers-theater-that-was-killed-by.html) The children at Guang Jung were not constricted by their teachers' interference. At the first of three dates the school asked my publisher to arrange, I saw that the skit was simple, funny, and the students were typecast correctly. I was proud that, last year, the workshops I gave helped the school troupe win third place in the Taichung English Readers' Theater Contest. I am confident they will win again.
     Readers' Theater is a form of drama that focuses on reading. It is a method of adding fun to oral reading activities and helps stimulate interest in reading. RT can be used to teach mainstream and ESL/EFL students. It generally involves two or more readers reading aloud; in Taiwan, the rules are not more than seven players for a six-minute skit. Students use their voices, facial expressions and gestures to interpret a story. It is not frightening since readers have a script and get to practice before performing.
     For this workshop appointment, the publishing company sent a van to pick me up unlike last readers' theater workshop when we had to take a taxi to Shuang Wen. At Guang Jung, the staff prepared refreshments for us, also unlike the Shuang Wen experience the month before. 
     In the rehearsal room, seven bright-eyed students and a few teachers were already assembled and practicing. The children were a bit nervous; it would be the first time they would be showing their skit to an English-speaking foreign teacher. 

   There would be three workshops with this theater troupe, I planned to make suggestions one step at a time. First, I would listen to the students practice making notes of their loudness, intonation, and pronunciation. I sat with my copy of the script drawing stars around questionable lines and checks near those well done. I drew intonation lines over sentences, vowel signs over wrongly pronounced words, and accent marks where they were needed. But I didn't speak with the children about their performances yet; I told them how well they had done and predicted that they had a good chance to win the contest this year. The feasibility of the script was the predominant review on this first workshop date. It had to be fun and comprehendable or the audience and judges would balk at hearing it.  Only those lines by students I felt would need three sessions to correct were mentioned before I left the two hour workshop. For example, I mentioned if a child wasn't speaking up loudly enough. Most importantly, I made suggestions to tighten the script and delete any distraction lines unnecessary to the gist of the play. The children ended the quality time with a second reading. There was already improvement over the first.
     At the second workshop session, after another reading by the troupe, I concentrated on body language and stage presence. Every part of the performance would be essential to winning, from how the children walked onto the stage to how they bowed at the end before they exited the stage. I updated my notes and honed in on each student's performance. I spent quality time with the children and they paid heed to my suggestions on intonation and streamlining the script; remove 'hallelujah' and add 'ah-mi-tow-fo' to the script with Buddhist overtones. "A Quiet Noise" had the hapless Mr. Lin going to a Taoist priest for advice on adding animals to quiet a noisy house in addition by subtraction.
     Before I returned to Guang Jung for the last workshop, I was asked to return to Shuang Wen Middle School to be the reader at a school-wide spelling bee. I had been the reader at a few spelling school-wide spelling bees the past few years but this was the first this season, it was also the smallest with only a hundred or son students participating.
     Spelling bees are another way English teachers in Taiwan encourage their students to learn. It is counterproductive. Instead of concentrating on comprehension and phonics, it forces the students to memorize without any residual purpose.
    The spelling bee works like this: The students sit down with a white board on their laps. I read a word and a sentence using the word. I then repeat the word again and say "Time starts now," at which time the official running the bee sets a timer for ten seconds. Assistants then rove around the contestants and eliminate the students who have spelled incorrectly. It is sad to see that over 75% of the contestants are eliminated before I reach the third word! In exasperation, the Taiwan teachers scramble to find easier words to extend the contest. I wait as they re-number the words I am to read and return the list to me.

     On October 22, I returned to Guang Jung Middle School for the third of three readers' theater workshops. It was the last public school gig I would be doing for readers' theater this season. The students had really improved. They added body language, shortened the script, and improved their loudness, intonation, and accent. Most importantly, unlike the children at the Shuang Wen readers' theater workshop, these children were having fun. The teachers were loving and not condescending to them.  My reward is knowing that the children are enjoying learning English but it a small percentage of students who benefit and for the school's glory; it is a shame more teachers do not do readers' theater regularly within the class instead of wasting time doing grammar worksheets and 'cloze' exercises.
     Since 2000, English has been a required foreign language in Taiwan beginning in the second grade. Because of the cognitive  grammar-based approach, students are relegated to learning and not acquiring English language skills.  The Natural Approach should be used instead (see http://e-e-o.blogspot.tw/2015/10/do-following-and-you-will-succeed-as_16.html). Taiwan students still cannot read, write, or communicate in English  (Taiwan Assessment of Student Achievement, 2005). Most children give up on learning English before they enter high school (Liao, 2006). Going to after-school bushibans that mimic the methodology of public schools is not the solution though the smaller class size could help at least give the child more opportunity to participate; a main barrier to acquiring English language skills is the large class size; the Ministry of Education requires at least 30 students of varying proficiency in a class.
     Through Readers' Theater in the classroom, students develop a more positive outlook, perceive themselves to improve in pronunciation and reading fluency, and develop better relationship with their peers. As a contest, RT has minimal use for most students learning EFL. Spelling bees, too, may encourage children to spell better only if they are based on a phonics program in the classroom.