Document Type

Thesis - Open Access

Award Date

1982

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department / School

Speech

First Advisor

Wayne E. Hoogestraat

Abstract

Some of the students who study theatre at the college level intend to enter the field of education. Noting this, the investigator became interested in the field of theatre education. It was assumed that certain certification requirements would have to be met in order to teach theatre courses in each of the fifty states and the District of Columbia. A resource containing comprehensive data about these requirements would be helpful for college students as they select coursework throughout their college careers. An investigation was made to determine if such a resource had been written which enumerated the certification requirements one must meet to be certified as a secondary theatre teacher. That investigation yielded four articles on the topic of theatre education. "Teachers' Perceptions of Competencies Needed for Effective Speech Communication and Drama Instruction, Communication Education, April 1981. "Guidelines for Speech Communication and Theatre Programs in Teacher Education,'' Speech Teacher, November 1975. "A Performance-Based Teacher Education in Speech and Drama," Speech Teacher, January 1975."The Identification and Analysis of Theatre Competencies Needed by High School Theatre Teachers in Texas," a 1977 Doctrinal Dissertation. These works are primarily concerned with specific competencies which various people have felt were needed by a theatre teacher. They also dealt with competency-based teacher education and guidelines for teacher training. Although these resources have valuable information about theatre education, they do not address the issue of certification. The National Education Association periodically publishes A Manual on Standards Affecting School Personnel in the United States. This manual is a collection of information on certification and accreditation. The most recent copy was surveyed by the investigator, who discovered two inadequacies in this source. The manual was published in 1974 and has not been updated since. Also, it does not cover theatre specifically but rather addresses only the general field of speech arts. Therefore, it would be of little use to someone who needed comprehensive current information concerning theatre certification. The investigation, therefore, revealed no comprehensive informational source regarding theatre certification in all fifty states and the District of Columbia. If a theatre education student wanted to be prepared to teach in any combination of the fifty-one units, the student would face the impractical task of consulting each state or unit individually. The motivation for th8 study was based on an apparent need to provide educators with comprehensive data on the requirements which must be fulfilled in order to teach theatre courses on the secondary level in each of the fifty states and the District of Columbia.

Library of Congress Subject Headings

Theater -- Study and teaching (Secondary) -- United States -- States
High school teachers -- Certification -- United States -- States

Format

application/pdf

Number of Pages

162

Publisher

South Dakota State University

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