Calling on perspectives from instructional design, child development, applied linguistics, dramatic theory, and media studies, this project demonstrates that improv principles have the power to transform our physical and virtual learning spaces, establishing the precedent and rationale for including these principles in the design of e-learning and educational programming.
This project establishes the precedent and theoretical basis for implementing improv principles, such as those developed by Viola Spolin and Augusto Boal and documented in the Upright Citizens’ Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual, in composition and second language learning experiences, namely e-learning and educational programming. These critical and growing markets have seen increased need as a result of COVID-19 quarantines, which have inspired educators to rethink the perceived limitations of distance learning and edutainment and as a result accelerate and innovate digital learning.
These core tenets include “Yes, and;” the use of the most interesting choice; the avoidance of open-ended questions; the denial of ego and use of active listening; the support of co-learners, who are seen as co-creators; the pursuit of honesty; storytelling practice; present-minded thinking; openness to mistakes; transitions from spectator to actor; relinquishing control but retaining agency in decision-making; and physicalizing learning in the body. These tenets are complementary to the equitable and transformative education concepts brought to the fore by Pedagogy of the Oppressed theorist Paulo Freire, and they are particularly valuable in teaching composition and second language learning.
This is because case studies in instructional design document the need for increased spontaneity and personalization to enhance learning engagement, and Vygotskyan and behaviorist perspectives from child development emphasize the importance of play and experimentation in learning. Furthermore, applied linguistics concepts from Stephen Krashen’s second language acquisition theory demonstrate the power of co-creator support, openness to mistakes, and relinquishing control but maintaining agency in building language and composition capabilities.
However, the learning benefits of improv principles aren’t limited to the e-learning sphere or to language education. In fact, these principles have been responsible for some of edutainment’s greatest successes to date, including Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, Sesame Street, Veggie Tales, Dora the Explorer, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, and Doc McStuffins. These franchises demonstrate that increased engagement begets greater retention and application of learned material. In this way, they have paved the way for next-era approaches like Flocabulary, a system that invokes the power of freestyle rap to master content and standards, build vocabulary and develop 21st-century skills in K-12 education. By exploring the educational power of the core improv tenets behind successful approaches like this one, this presentation will reveal a powerful shift in instructional norms as our learning spaces become more digital, flexible, and inclusive.
Beginning with a survey of instructional evolutions that have taken place in the United States since the nascence of American improv in the 1960s, I will trace watershed moments in psychology and technological development that enabled 12 of improv’s key pillars to infiltrate the educational sphere. Then, I will examine television’s most successful educational programming for legacies of Spolinesque teachings, guide audience members in educational theater exercises, offer a simple outline for how improv principles can be used in the digital classroom, and provide a glimpse into how developments in artificial intelligence and social media could offer improv a larger seat at the educational table in the future.