| This dissertation is a modified case study using action research methodology to describe, analyze, and interpret a seven-year drama in education project which attempts to redefine Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI) to better meet the needs of drama educators. The study begins with a series of creative drama lessons created for a group of children in 1993, continues through the expansion of these lessons into a two hour drama in education experience called The Provistar Confrontation, and finally chronicles the development of a four-day Theatre In Education production entitled The Incident on Provistar. In each version of the Provistar project, CAI experiences in the form of information-based software and a computer-generated character were integrated into a dramatic scenario in order to identify the inadequacies of traditional CAI and to find a solution to this problem. The result of this work is a Dramatically-Framed Computer Assisted Instruction model which details how a CAI event can be situated within a drama structure and the benefits gained from doing such. Finally, this model for CAI is used to create a professional development experience to explore its applicability for classroom teachers. |
