e virtual experience of the course Drama for

English as Second Language at the Sede del Pacíco

of the Universidad de Costa Rica

Jonathan Salas-Alvarado

InterSedes, Revista electrónica de las sedes regionales de la Universidad de Costa Rica,

ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen XXII, Número 46, Julio-Diciembre, 2021.

10.15517/isucr.v22i46 | intersedes.ucr.ac.cr | intersedes@ucr.ac.cr

R: Este artículo sistematiza la experiencia vivida por el docente y los alumnos del

curso Drama para Inglés como Segunda Lengua durante el primer semestre de 2020. Este se-

mestre estuvo particularmente marcado por el inicio de la pandemia COVID-19. El artículo

proporciona deniciones de términos utilizados durante el curso, pero lo más importante es

el proceso de adaptación por el que pasó el docente para ajustar los contenidos, actividades

e instrucción de este curso a una nueva realidad virtual que nunca había experimentado

ninguno de los participantes (incluido el profesor). Una parte importante del curso es acer-

car a los participantes (11 estudiantes de último año de la carrera de Enseñanza del Inglés)

a diferentes técnicas de drama y teatro que se pueden utilizar en el aula de inglés. Por otra

parte, el artículo también menciona las actividades que se implementaron, la forma en que

se desarrollaron y ofrece la percepción de los participantes sobre el curso en sí, el trabajo que

realiza el docente a la hora de adecuar los contenidos y sus criterios respecto a las actividades

presentadas para que, como futuros profesores, pueden hablar sobre el potencial didáctico

que tienen estas actividades.

A: is article systematizes the experience lived by the teacher and the students of

the course Drama for English as Second Language during the rst semester of 2020. is

semester was particularly marked by the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. e arti-

cle provides denitions of terms used during the course but most importantly it deals with

the adaptation process the teacher went through to adjust the contents, activities, and in-

struction of this course to a new virtual reality that had never been experienced by any of

the participants (including the teacher). An important part of the course is to approach the

participants (11 English Teaching senior students) to dierent drama and theater techniques

that can be used in the English classroom. So, the article also mentions the activities that

were implemented, the way they were developed and it oers the perception of the partici-

pants about the course itself, the job done by the teaching when adapting the contents, and

their criteria regarding the activities presented so that they, as future teachers, can talk about

the teaching potential those activities have.

Sede del Pacíco

Universidad de Costa Rica

Puntarenas, Costa Rica

johathan.salas@ucr.ac.cr

Publicado por la Editorial Sede del Pacíco, Universidad de Costa Rica

DOI 10.15517/isucr.v22i46.47819

K: Drama, Pandemic, Virtual education, English, Teaching

P : Drama, Pandemia, Educación virtual, Inglés, Enseñanza

La Experiencia virtual del curso Drama para Inglés como segunda lengua

en la Sede del Pacíco de la Universidad de Costa Rica

Recibido: 20-07-21 | Aceptado: 17-08-2021

C  (APA): Salas-Alvarado, J. (2021). e virtual experience of the course Drama for English as

Second Language at the Sede del Pacíco of the Universidad de Costa Rica. InterSedes, 22(46), 49–86. DOI

10.15517/isucr.v22i46.47819

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

Introduction

e 2020 pandemic provoked by the COVID-19 reached pret-

ty much every single corner of the planet and, without a doubt,

aected every human action, education was not an exception.

ousands of educational institutions both public and private

starting from kindergartens up to universities all over the world

were forced to put their face-to-face activities on hold and reinvent

themselves to continue providing educational services to their stu-

dents while protecting their health as well as the health of those

who work for them, teachers and administrative sta.

On March 20th, the Universidad de Costa Rica (UCR) an-

nounced the suspension of all of its face-to-face activities from

that day up to April 13th to evaluate the progress of the COVID-19

disease in the country. However, aer some time, the authorities

decided to continue working remotely for the rest of the rst se-

mester. is marked the beginning of a new chapter in the life of

this important educational institution; it opened the window to

virtual education. All courses in all campuses had to be virtualized

and teleworking as well as distance education began.

e process has not been easy for anyone. In the specic case of

the UCR, Oviedo (2020) points out that the institution had been

using a virtual platform for the last 10 years: “Mediación Virtual”.

is platform has been used as the ocial site where teachers and

students have interacted to take advantage of the teaching resourc-

es it oers; nevertheless, its use had not been excessive. Once the

UCR decided to migrate to virtual education all courses had to use

this platform and this generated a high demand in its use which

brought a huge challenge for the department in charge of it.

One of the courses that started working virtually during the

rst semester of 2020 was LM-1364: Drama for English as a Second

Language. is course belongs to the School of Modern Languages

of the UCR and it is part of the B.A in English Teaching major,

students in the Pacic Campus have to take this class during the

rst semester of their senior year. According to the syllabus of the

course, it is an introduction to the use of dramatic techniques for

teaching English as a second language. e idea, as presented on

the syllabus, is also to approach students to dierent plays, ama-

teur, and professional ones, to know their characteristics, and to be

able to discuss the topics they deal with.

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

Among the objectives of the course, it is possible to see that

it aims students to get acquainted with drama techniques to be

used in the English classroom as well as with a small corpus of

plays related to education. Also, by the end of the course, students

are expected to be able to use drama techniques to teach English,

think about teaching/learning processes through drama, and re-

ect on topics related to education, prejudice, and stereotypes on

minority groups. In short, the English teaching students who take

this course get exposed to dierent types of texts that help them

understand not only the dramatic structure and its elements but

also reect on dierent issues. At the same time, students are pre-

sented with a set of dierent techniques related to drama or theater

that would help them improve their methodologies in the English

class.

When reading about the course, it is possible to think that it was

never meant to be thought virtually. However, the health emergen-

cy the world was facing pushed the teacher and the students to

look for dierent alternatives to reinvent themselves in a way that

would be eective and that would guarantee the accomplishment

of all the objectives presented on the syllabus.

As for this article, it intends to present the alternatives proposed

by the teacher to cover the contents of the course over the rst se-

mester of 2020. ere is also a review of the main concepts studied

during the course so that all of the terms can be clear to guarantee

a better understanding of the process and the activities developed.

At the same time, the students who were part of the course are

given the chance to present their perceptions and opinions about

two specic aspects: virtual education and its implications as well

as class activities they were part of, the idea is that they can pro-

vide their point of view regarding those activities and that as fu-

ture teachers, they can talk about the potential those techniques

have when applied in the English classroom.

Denition of terms

During the course, there were dierent techniques and activi-

ties presented to the students. e main idea was not just to pres-

ent the concepts or techniques but to request them to put them

into practice so that they could make sure of their eectiveness,

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

their advantages, and their disadvantages. Before referring to the

specic methodology applied in the course, it is important to go

over some of the main concepts and denitions.

Drama/eater

When talking about these two concepts, many misconceptions

may arise. Actually, in many cases, they have been used inter-

changeably. e truth is that they are not necessarily the same. On

one side, drama refers to a written play; on the other hand, the the-

ater is best related to an onstage production. However, for this ar-

ticle, both terms are going to be considered synonyms. at been

said, Salas (2017) considers drama as “an artistic activity whose

general purpose cannot only be limited to mere entertainment”

(p. 308). Indeed, drama’s exclusive purpose is not just to entertain.

As with any other form of art, drama is meant to help the audience

reect on the messages or messages every play transmits.

ere are a lot of dierent manifestations related to theater in

dierent cultures. Guliyeva (2011) mentions forms such as “Turk-

ish shadow puppets, Chinese opera, Greek Tragedy and comedy,

traditional African storytelling and drumming, and fully-staged

shows and performances” (p. 521). is author considers that in-

dependently from the style, in general, “performances have the

potential to create magical and unforgettable moments for their

audiences” (p. 521).

Regarding the use of drama in education, Uysal and Yavuz

(2018) mention that it “can be dened as the activities which stu-

dents portray themselves or act out as another person in an imag-

inary scenario” (p. 377). It is very important to emphasize what

Ulldemolins (2014) points out: “by using drama in the classroom

the goal is not to teach acting or performance skills, but it is pre-

sented as a that can be adapted and integrated to dierent subject

areas” (p. 8). Indeed, using drama in the classroom does not refer

to instructing students on acting but to use such techniques de-

rived from drama in the classroom for the benet of the students.

In many cases, the techniques will need adaptation but that is one

of the reasons why they are useful: they can be adapted easily to

teach dierent contents.

When it comes to the specic use of drama or acting tech-

niques in a language classroom, the benets increase even more.

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

For instance, Uysal and Yavuz (2018) provide a set of good rea-

sons why these techniques should be part of the language class-

room. ey consider that drama, among other things, “make

possible for learners to express their ideas and emotions through

gesture and facial expressions” (p. 377). At the same time, con-

tinue the authors, drama gives students the chance to exchange

language and use it in a scene. Drama “promotes contextualized

and authentic language use in a low stress and positive environ-

ment. erefore, drama cultivates the development of learner’s

emotions, social skills and participation in the community”

(Uysal & Yavuz, 2018, p. 377).

On the other hand, Guliyeva (2011) mentions that if drama is

used eectively, it can be benecial not only for students’ intel-

lectual skills but also for their emotional ones. is is true since

drama activities are meant to help actors and actresses nd the

emotions and learn how to play with them in a way in which they

can portray convincing characters. is is something the helps

the individual improves his or her self-esteem and condence. At

the same time, it gives the person knowledge of the body, the ges-

tures, the voice, and the movement. All this can eventually create

an appropriate space for language to emerge naturally. Ulldemo-

lins (2014) believes that “by using drama techniques to teach En-

glish, pupils get the opportunity to use the language meaningfully

and appropriately, while the monotony of a conventional English

class is broken and the syllabus transformed” (p. 11). Drama gives

teachers the chance to transform the traditional language class-

room in which the teacher has had the main role and has been

in charge of approaching content to the students who have been

passively receiving them. By implementing drama activities in the

classroom, students can have more freedom to create their learn-

ing and improve their linguistic and social skills.

e use of puppets in the language class

Whenever you hear the word puppet you might start thinking

about some sort of a funny doll-like toy that is used to entertain

children. In part, such thought is not wrong; however, the idea of

puppets goes beyond that and their potential is not only limited to

entertainment. Kröger and Nupponen (2019) dene puppets as a:

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

Movable doll that a puppeteer manipulates. e body

movements provide visual impressions: a puppet conveys

emotions and thoughts through movement, for example, of

its hands and head. A puppeteer can also give the puppet a

voice. A puppet is an inanimate object that, in the hands of

a puppeteer, comes to life. (p. 393)

So, it is an inanimate object that comes to life when used by

somebody, the puppeteer. e person that uses it can create a com-

plete world in the life of that object, he or she has the power to

imagine and portray any type of story. ere are dierent kinds of

puppets such as hand puppets, nger puppets, rod puppets, mari-

onettes, among others.

About the importance puppets might have in education, Insani

(2017) considers puppets an eective medium in teaching, espe-

cially in the case of young learners. is use can be even more

benecial in the case of the language classroom since, according to

Insani (2017) “puppet can help young learners to internalize lan-

guage patterns, enhance listening skills, develop risk-taking skills

and student condence” (p. 683).

On the other hand, Remer and Tzuriel (2015) mention that

many studies consider that using puppets might increase motiva-

tion in the learners. Also, the authors consider that the use of pup-

pets can help learners to be able to express feelings and thoughts.

is might be reached since the learners that interact with the

puppets can connect with them and project ideas more easily.

Many times, learners have problems when speaking in public since

they are afraid to be seen and to be judged. When using a puppet

to express themselves, students can hide behind the scenario and

the one that is going to speak in front of others is the puppet. is

disassociation might help the students to start gaining condence

so that one day it is them who speak in front of others with no

problems.

Çağanağa and Kalmış (2015) see in puppets a tool that can be

used by children or adults. ey consider that since puppetry (the

art of using puppets) is a visual one, it can be used to commu-

nicate with people who cannot read or write or who are unable

to understand spoken language. Mentioning Piaget, the authors

agree on the fact that “puppets play helps young children develop

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

creative and cognitive skills by forcing them to use their imagi-

nation. “ey make up the roles, the rules, the situations, and the

solutions” (Çağanağa & Kalmış, 2015, p. 3).

Puppets, continue Çağanağa and Kalmış (2015) are:

a type of three-dimensional symbolic art form and being

able to move and speak. Because of these characteristics,

it serves as a vehicle for transmitting knowledge through

several senses, thereby providing an opportunity for a wide

range of learning abilities.

ese characteristics make them a powerful teaching tool. Di-

yani (2011) as cited in Insani (2017) considers that puppets, used

as the teaching media could help learners to develop language,

have better learning, increasing their creativity, and improve social

skills which eventually might improve the relationship within the

families of those leaners.

Storytelling in the language classroom

Storytelling is probably one of the oldest human practices. It

is how people transmitted ideas, thoughts, events, among others

back then when paper, computers, or cellphones were not even

part of anyone’s mindset. Ikrammuddin (2017) mentioning Stan-

ley and Dillinghan (2009) denes storytelling as “an oral activity to

grab audience’s attention by using multisensory stirring emotion

of an event in a story, it involves improvisation in telling a story,

facial gestures, and body movement” (p. 17). McDury and Alterio

(2003) as mentioned by Satriani (2019) dene storytelling as an

activity that is used to pass information from one person to anoth-

er one or from a generation to the next one. en, it is telling oth-

ers what is in your mind, what is going on in your life, in someone

else’s life, in your town, or anywhere else.

In many cases, storytelling has been used to instruct others or

just to keep some piece of information alive. en, it is possible

to nd the educational value it has always had. Indeed, this activ-

ity might bring several benets when used eectively in the class-

room. For instance, some of the ones mentioned by Satriani (2019)

are motivation, improvement in students’ memorization capacity

as well as in the increase of their vocabulary. Students’ interest in

reading might also be beneted from the use of storytelling since

it motivates students’ imagination and curiosity for what is there

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

on the books, for the stories they haven’t found yet. Ikrammuddin

(2017) considers that this technique helps children (whenever it’s

used on young learners) to use language in an extended period

of time while reconstructing stories; this, according to the author,

helps language development in learners since it requires active

participation.

Second language learners may nd storytelling useful in their

process. Khodabandeh (2018) mentions that this is “one of the best

ways to help students learn the four skills in their rst and second

language because of the numerous benets embedded in stories”

(p. 25). Stories have dierent linguistic aspects in a meaningful

context which makes them ideal in the language classroom since

students are going to be learning grammar, vocabulary, pronunci-

ation, and intonation funnily.

eater games in the classroom

e game is something that comes naturally to human beings.

It is part of the learning and socialization process we go through,

it is part of life. eater, as a human activity that aims to develop

people’s abilities to use their bodies and voices to portray dierent

activities, situations, and emotions, has found in the game a way to

help actors and actresses develop that capacity. A lot of the acting

training that people receive in drama schools or informal theater

groups consists of the use of games, games that teach the partici-

pants how to use their bodies, their voices, how to build the char-

acters they have to impersonate, how to be someone else. Consid-

ering those aspects, it is important to think about the possibilities

that such games might have within an educational environment,

particularly in a foreign language classroom.

Dundar (2013) mentioning Savignon (1983) suggests that

drama activities “can enhance communicative competence and

thus facilitate language learning in general” (p. 1425). e author

considers that the theater setting gives students the chance to use

the target language in a realistic and meaningful context. Indeed,

Dundar (2013) paraphrasing Smith (1984) points out that both, a

professional actor and a language learner, intend to communicate

a message and, at the same time, both face the obstacles of dealing

with new roles and the language itself. en, the same strategies

could be used in both cases to overcome the problems and reach

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

the objectives: the eective use of the language to convey an in-

tended message.

Students learn better within a less restrictive and stressful envi-

ronment. Salas (2017) considers that

the use of drama in education seems to be more benecial

since it can eventually lower anxiety and stress, at the same

time, it can place students into ctional scenarios in which

they can use the target language in a realistic and sponta-

neous way. (p. 308)

Dundar (2013) also considers that drama games “are meant

to create immediate motivation as well as physical and/or mental

stimulation, which will draw students into or sustain active learn-

ing that, is centered on authentic/actual communication in the tar-

get language” (p. 1425). So, these types of activities can help teach-

ers lower the anxiety that students might develop when learning

a new language. e idea is to make learners understand that the

process could be as natural and as funny as a game so that learning

could take place more easily.

Farmer (2012) mentions that drama games should be used

within the classroom environment since they improve teamwork,

they encourage students to be creative and interact more. At the

same time, they help them develop their kinesthetic intelligence as

well as their communication skills. ey give students the chance

to improve their condence and understand that learning may be

something they can enjoy and remember. en, without a doubt,

these activities are benecial for students’ learning process.

Readers eater in the language classroom

Readers eater is a technique that has been gaining popularity

over the years and the reason why it is becoming more popular is

that its characteristics make it easy to use and the results it pro-

vokes are very positive for the people who put it into practice. Le-

kwilai (2014) denes it as “an instructional method that requires

to orally perform reading from scripts” (p. 96). In general terms,

what it proposes is that a person takes a play script and reads it out

loud. It doesn’t require scenography, lights, or costumes. Actually,

it doesn’t even need the reader to memorize any lines from the

text but it needs the reader to use his or her voice to transmit the

message, so the reader has to portray the emotions presented in

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

the text only by using voice inections and if is necessary change

the tone of his or her voice according to the situations and based

on each of the characters he or she performs in the reading.

When applied eectively in the classroom, Readers eater

can oer students many benets. For instance, Ortlieb and Young

(2018) consider that among all the dierent strategies used to im-

prove readers’ uency, the most notable one seems to be Readers

eater. e reason is that for this strategy to work, students have

to read the text many times while rehearsing for the presentation.

Repeated reading implies an easier word recognition and if the

person that is doing the reading is doing it with a text written in a

foreign language that might be his or her target language (in the

case of a foreign language classroom), the benet is even higher

since this person is exposed to grammar, spelling, vocabulary, and

syntax and while reading out loud his or her pronunciation, into-

nation, and uency might also improve.

Rasinski et al., (2017) mention that this activity could be un-

derstood as a fun reading activity, but the benet goes beyond that.

e authors consider that Readers eater “may be a very inu-

ential instrument for improving a variety of components of read-

ing and social development” (p. 174). ese authors also point out

that the strategy helps the students to share and interpret dierent

stories with others. e nature of Readers eater might also in-

crease other aspects in students such as teamwork, collaboration,

and condence.

e use of songs and theater in the classroom

Music surrounds us in everyday life

and almost everybody is connected

to it in one way or another. Most

people listen to music, can name

favorite composers, music genres,

vocalists, bands, or musicians. Many

sing, learn or play instruments.

(Mõts, 2016, p. 11)

What the author says is undeniably true. Music is pretty much

everywhere and it is part of many human activities. en, the idea

of using it within the language classroom is not crazy.

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

Within her study, Degrave (2019) mentions that in dier-

ent surveys carried out by Engh (2013), Jamoulle (2017) and Tse

(2015), teachers mentioned they think that music has benets in

the acquisition of a foreign language since it can help the devel-

opment of language skills as well as cultural aspects. At the same

time, according to the analysis made by the author, music “creates

a good, enjoyable, relaxing atmosphere and that it lowers stress

levels or aective lters” (Degrave, 2019, p. 412).

Degrave (2019) also points out that when it comes to music in

the foreign language class there are three main categories to be

used: music with no lyrics, songs, and the use of rhythmical activ-

ities. ese are all possibilities that language teachers can explore

to enrich their teaching-learning processes.

e use of music within the language class brings many benets

to the students. Indeed, Alfred and Joe (2018) arm that “songs

can help students acquire a foreign language. Song lyrics are repet-

itive, the language is simple and easily remembered” (p. 75). ese

authors also point out that a person doesn’t need to understand a

language to be able to memorize the lyrics of a song. is might

make no sense when it comes to teaching but, think about this:

by constantly repeating a song, even if the person doesn’t know

exactly what it says, this person is memorizing a structure, a group

of words (vocabulary) as well as the pronunciation of those words.

Human curiosity and interest might lead this person to look for

the meaning of such vocabulary and then new learning begins.

Alfred and Joe (2018) also mention that songs are full of informal

everyday use language. is might help students to understand

and develop meaningful structures which is what, at the end of the

day, many teachers want their students to do.

According to Mõts (2016):

Learning any foreign language requires a great deal of

memorization, particularly concerning vocabulary and

grammar. As songs contain rhymes, measured phrases,

many repetitions, and are melodic, they help students to

remember structure and lexicon. For younger learners

teachers try to nd simple texts with lots of repetitions and

simple, conversational language. Because they are eective,

songs may oen be the most eective choice to aid memo-

rization. (p. 11)

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

erefore, the use of songs in the class helps students learn

vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation in a low-stress environment

since listening to music and humming songs is part of what they

might do at home, at a party, at the gym, when driving somewhere,

or during the breaks in the school.

Improvisation activities in the classroom

Life is not written down on any script, it is something that is

built every day and people react to every situation naturally with

the obligation to handle them, hopefully in the best way. So, peo-

ple are constantly improvising. It seems that improvisation is part

of life. Improvisation or Impromptu is widely used in modern

theater, according to Vilč (2017), it “is a specic theatre tradition

where performances are created through spontaneous interactions

of performers, live in front of the audience” (p. 33). According to

the author, the technique requires a set of rules that must be fol-

lowed on stage. It can be practiced individually or in groups.

is type of theater improvisation can be adapted from the

stage to the classroom. Landy (1982) as quoted by Dundar (2013)

denes it as “an unscripted, unrehearsed, spontaneous set of ac-

tions in response to minimal directions from a teacher, usually

including elements of which one is, where one is and what one is

doing there” (p. 1426).

Seppänena et al., (2018) point out that according to Johnson

(1985, 1999) and Spolin (1999), “besides being a popular genre of

performing theater, improvisation is a suitable tool for the study of

social interaction” (p. 2771). ey consider it exible and easy to

adjust. Having that information in mind, it is possible to say that

there are some benets in this technique that might help students

learn, in this case, a foreign language.

Bresnahan (2015) establishes that “in a general sense impro-

visation is spontaneous, unplanned or otherwise free-ranging

creativity” (p. 1). So, it’s a technique that promotes freedom and

creativeness in the ones that use it. According to Komulainen et

al., (2011), this technique can motivate students’ enjoyment of the

learning process. It can be used as something that goes out of the

routine and regular language classes where many things are pro-

grammed and the teacher expects a specic answer or response

from the students. When expecting the unexpected teachers can

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

discover what students can produce (linguistically speaking) also,

it can help to work on learners’ condence as they manage pres-

sure when having to produce something with no time to prepare it.

In improvisation, students are expected to build up situations, they

have to use the language while acting, they have to pay attention to

their interlocutors and be able to react eectively to the input they

receive from them.

Maples (2002) as cited by Dundar (2013) mentions that im-

provisation gives students the chance to enhance their linguistic

skills as well as their condence. ese types of exercises, “pro-

vide three main goals: student pronunciation improves, proper use

of a grammatical structure is reinforced, and vocabulary practice

is enhanced” (Dundar, 2013, p. 1426). e problem of this tech-

nique might be that to produce substantial and meaningful lan-

guage, students are expected to have certain linguistic knowledge,

it would not be recommended for beginners unless some adapta-

tions are made. Dundar (2013) also mentions that improvisation

is used in the language classroom with the idea of giving students

a way to express themselves. Condence will build with practice

and exposure to the activity.

e use of lms within the instruction of acting skills in the

language classroom

Movies and short lms have been around for quite a long time

so that they have become part of life. ey create these dier-

ent worlds that trigger viewers’ imagination and interests. Chen

(2015), considers that lms are “the art of reproduction of life. At

the same time, they can vividly reect all aspects of social life, and

can bring people the auditory and visual enjoyment” (p. 764).

Films are an artistic manifestation that goes beyond art, they

have a social incidence that can generate thoughts and ideas on

the audience. Like many other artistic manifestations, lms can

be used in the language classroom. Blasco et al., (2015) consid-

er that the use of movies in teaching is a way to get to students’

eective domain and this, according to the author can enhance

reective attitudes and make a connection between learning and

experiences. What happens with this is that movies have to power

to connect the viewers with dierent characters and situations and

that could help them to interact in a way that empathy is built up

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

and the learning experience can be more eective since it is going

to be meaningful.

Alluri (2018) points out that:

Films aid in teaching various skills while using in a foreign

language teaching classroom. Teachers can exploit in teach-

ing verbal skills, Writing, Vocabulary, Grammar, and cul-

tures as these are dierent skills of a language which are not

interrelated, the teacher must use dierent teaching tech-

niques/methods while teaching these areas. (p. 146)

By taking a lm as a starting point, language teachers can ex-

plore several strategies to develop dierent linguistic skills in the

students. Movies, as well as songs, oer authentic language which

is more meaningful when learning since it is very similar to what is

used by native speakers of the target language in everyday conver-

sations. Movies are not made to be used in a language classroom

but they oer plenty of possibilities to develop not just a language

but also to understand cultural aspects. For Chen (2015), since the

words or the language in lms is more vivid, learners can remem-

ber them and imitate them more easily so that aspects such as pro-

nunciation and intonation can be improved. Another aspect that

is good about the use of lms, according to Chen (2015), is that

they use colloquial language or slang that is not very common on

language books or audiovisual material that was made for the sole

purpose of teaching a language.

Finally, Kusumaningrum (2015) oers some advantages related

to the use of lms in language class. e author considers that they

can be used to teach linguistic skills such as listening, writing, and

speaking. Also, aspects such as vocabulary and grammar can be

approached more funnily.

Kusumaningrum (2015) mentions that the movies present lan-

guage in a natural way since the one used in the lms comes from

native speakers of the target language and because of this, students

can have to chance to learn a more accurate pronunciation. At the

same time, dierent expressions can be learned within an appro-

priate context. Films, according to the author, motivate students to

learn and they teach them intercultural aspects.

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

Radio eater

Before television and, of course, before the internet and stream-

ing arrived, there was the radio. is massive means of communi-

cation provided people not just with information related to what

was taking place in their communities, countries, or around the

world it also worked as an entertainment tool. According to Ur-

rego (2020), families gathered around the radio to listen to stories,

many of those were plays or literature classics. Radio theater or

radio drama, based on Urrego (2020), is a ction or drama genre

where dierent stories could be broadcasted. It lacks any type of

visual component, it exclusively depends on the sound, that is, dia-

logues, music, and sound eects. All of those components, contin-

ues the author, help the audience (listeners) to imagine the story

being told.

Like many other ideas presented in this document, radio the-

ater can have a didactic use. Rodríguez (2014) considers that radio

theater can produce a link between culture, entertainment, and

acoustic memory. Radio theater can take advantage of a pedagog-

ical eect through active learning developed from listening, rec-

ognition and emotion. Kaplún (1992) as mentioned by Rodríguez

(2014) considers radio theater a popular education instrument.

Urrego (2020) considers that this technique is a didactic proposal

that requires no scenography.

is technique behaves pretty much like Readers eater since

it implies the reading of a dramatic text out loud. e only dier-

ence is that readers are not standing in front of an audience but in

front of a microphone. However, benets such as the enhancement

of uency, pronunciation, intonation, and vocabulary remain the

same. Urrego (2020) points out that its use helps students to de-

velop their communicative skills as well as verbal and nonverbal

communication. At the same time, the author also considers that

aspects such as motivation play an important role in Radio e-

ater. e radio is not as popular right now as it was 50 or 60 years

ago so, some adaptations might be welcome such as the use of

podcasts, which in the end it is the same, the only dierence is the

channel that broadcasts the information.

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

Virtual education

When thinking about virtual education, there are dierent

names such as e-learning, virtual learning, online education,

among others. All those terms refer to the same idea: teaching and

learning from home by using the internet and technological de-

vices as the main source of communication between teachers and

students.

Heng and Sol (2020) mention terms such as e-learning, online

learning, distance learning, blended learning, and hybrid learning.

All of them, according to the authors, refer to the idea of using

technology within the learning process. What makes the dier-

ence, based on Heng and Sol (2020) is the way students engage in

the process. To clarify the terms, it’s important to mention that,

according to the authors, online learning or e-learning are both

a type of distance education in which all the educational process

takes place using the technology to transmit the information which

is sent through the internet. In some cases, and depending on the

institutions and the programs, students might have to regularly

join online sessions. Learning materials; however, will be accessed

online and assignments have to be submitted to the platform that

the educational institutions decide to use.

On the other hand, Heng and Sol (2020) mention blended and

hybrid learning that are the same. e idea, as the authors point

out, is to mix traditional face-to-face methods with online instruc-

tion. is methodology, according to the authors, oers students

a better understanding of contents due to the social interaction

that’s obtained using face-to-face instruction.

Obeidat et al., (2020) consider that there are two types of

e-learning: simultaneous delivery and asynchronous delivery. In

the rst type (also known as synchronous), both instructors and

learners “communicate and interact directly at any real-time” (p.

96). In the case of the second type, the communication does not

occur in any real-time. Instructors prepare the materials and make

them available to the students who can work with them any time

they want to.

With the COVID-19 pandemic, this type of instruction rapidly

increased its popularity since there was no other way to keep the

educational systems going while keeping people safe at home to

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

prevent the spread of the virus. Virtual education has many advan-

tages but it also presents dierent disadvantages.

Surkhali and Garbuja (2020) mention that in an ideal context

(student having access to technology), online learning has many

advantages, for instance, it can

Oer a great deal of contents, interactions, exibilities, and

reinforcements. Learners can keep themselves engaged

from any place using any devices such as mobile phone,

laptop, or computer at their convenience. In general, online

learning is benecial in accelerating learning and reinforces

students and teachers at the comfort of home during this

time of global crisis. (p. 1)

Dwidienawati et al., (2020) mention that e-learning can oer

benets not only to the students but also to the universities that

use it. In the case of the universities that put it into practice, ac-

cording to the authors, it could imply cost-saving since there is

no investment infrastructure, at the same time, universities can

oer global education services, that is, their services are not going

to be limited to one single country, they can get students from all

over the world with no problems. In the case of the benets for the

students, the authors consider that virtual education gives them

instruction that is not limited in time and space, it could be done

anywhere as long as there is an internet connection and a techno-

logical device such as a computer, a tablet or even a smartphone.

In terms of the disadvantages, Alsoud and Harasis (2021)

consider that virtual education has aected students’ education-

al process since in some cases, access to certain materials such as

digital textbooks is compromised due to copy-right limitations.

Also, they point out the fact that some students have had di-

culties doing group projects due to the limitation of on-campus

socialization and interaction. Also, the authors mention aspects

such as a higher chance of distraction on virtual education and

well as the lack of social interaction, and the diculty to stay in

touch with teachers. Finally, it is important to remember that not

everybody has the same opportunities when it comes to access to

technological devices and internet connection. Many people don’t

own a computer or live in very remote areas where internet ser-

vice is not available or their socio-economic conditions limit them

from aording such service.

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

Methodology

Drama for English as a Second Language course was taught

during the rst semester of 2020, right aer the COVID-19 pan-

demic took over in Costa Rica. At that time, there were more ques-

tions than answers, insecurities and doubts were part of teachers’

and students’ lives. Even though many people thought the pan-

demic would be over soon and face-to-face classes would go back

to normal, the truth is that it did not happen and nothing has been

the same ever since. Education could not be stopped, contents had

to be covered and objectives fullled; however, changes and adap-

tations had to be made. e objective of this section is to describe

the adaptations that were made in the methodology of the course,

a course that went from a face-to-face format to a high virtual mo-

dality.

Participants

e participants of this course were 11 senior year English

Teaching Major students (only one student did not complete the

instrument but participated in the discussion of the activities each

week, so he/she is part of the investigation as well), 8 men and 3

women whose ages went from 21 to 31 years old. ese students

lived in dierent cities such as Puntarenas, Cartago, Orotina, De-

samparados, Palmares, Pérez Zeledón, Turrialba, and San Mateo

and during the whole semester, they had to stay in their home-

towns and attend virtual classes all week long. Also, it is important

to mention that this was the rst time all of the participants took

that course.

Course methodology and activities developed

Originally, the course was composed of 15 weeks in which

contents had to be covered and evaluated. However, due to the

COVID-19 pandemic, there were two weeks in which the class

was stopped. is pause was made based on a decision of the ad-

ministration of the Campus. ose two weeks (from March 22

April 5

) were used for teachers and students to train on the use

of virtual tools and the migration from face-to-face instruction to

virtual education.

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

Aer those two weeks and holy week break, classes restarted

on April 13

. e methodology of the course was hybrid since the

teacher used a virtual classroom on a platform provided by the

UCR (Mediación Virtual). e virtual platform was used to assign

students materials, readings, and assignments they had to cover

week aer week. At the same time, the application WhatsApp was

used to have more direct communication with the students since

all of them found it easy and convenient to use. For the synchro-

nous part of the course, the teacher, following the instruction of

the university, used the meeting platform Zoom and he met with

the students for two hours every week.

e contents of the course were divided into three dierent cat-

egories: theory and history of drama and theater, Plays reading

and analysis, and the use of dierent drama and theater techniques

in the English class. In the case of the theory and history of dra-

ma and theater, students were assigned one topic to present to the

class in no more than twenty minutes, they worked in pairs and

there was a group of three. ose presentations were synchronous.

For the reading and analysis of plays, students were assigned a

total of 15 plays. e topics they dealt with were related to the ones

proposed by the syllabus of the course: educational issues, the role

of women and minorities. Depending on the week’s assignments,

students had to read one or two plays per week. Before the analysis

and discussion, students were requested to complete comprehen-

sion quizzes on Google Forms to cover aspects related to the con-

tents of the plays, aer that, the topics of the plays were discussed

in class through Zoom.

Regarding the most important element: the use of drama and

theater techniques in the English class, from all available resourc-

es, the teacher selected the following:

Drama and theater games to teach English

To present this topic, the teacher used a PowerPoint Presenta-

tion that mentioned the main concepts of the topic such as drama,

theater, games, as well as the advantages that the use of those ac-

tivities might have in the language class.

Aer the theoretical content, students were presented with 8

dierent theater games that they put into practice (virtually). Once

the games were developed, students talked about the teaching

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

potential they had and they suggested possible variations to make

the games even more useful. e games can be found in the article

Salas (2017).

Readers theater technique

To present this technique, the teacher used a PowerPoint pre-

sentation in which he explained the characteristics and the correct

process to apply it in the class. Aer that, students took some ex-

cerpts from the plays they read that week and put into practice the

technique. In the end, there was a discussion about the benets

they found in Readers eater.

Teaching through puppets

To work on the topic of puppets and their use in the language

classroom, students were provided with a short presentation and

an article that talked about the type of puppets available, their

characteristics, advantages, and disadvantages when used in the

classroom. at information was provided using Mediación Vir-

tual. Also, students were requested to work in groups, elaborate

their puppets, create a story based on the contents provided by the

Ministry of Public Education (MEP) and present it next class. All

the students completed the task successfully and talked about their

experiences.

Storytelling in the English class

For this technique, students were briefed on the concept, char-

acteristics, and implementation of storytelling. en, they were

requested to prepare a short story and present it the week aer in

class. Aer the presentation, each student received feedback from

his or her classmates and teacher.

eater and songs in the English class

To implement this idea, students were requested to watch some

videos in which deaf people used American Sign Language to

“translate” some popular songs. is worked as an inspiration and

a starting point for the students. e idea of the activity was not to

actually use sing language but to take a popular song, check the lyr-

ics, and try to nd gestures and signals to represent or to mime the

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

content that is being provided. How can this technique be useful?

When preparing the song, students are pushed to read the lyrics of

the song and look for the meaning of certain words so they can be

able to look for appropriate gestures and movements to mime it to

their classmates. So, grammar and vocabulary could be improved.

Due to the characteristics of this task, students worked alone. ey

had a week to prepare the presentation that was delivered to the

class. Aer the performance, each student received feedback from

classmates and the teacher.

Teaching English through movies and short lms

e use of movies and short lms in the language classroom, as

previously stated, is very convenient since they help learners de-

velop dierent linguistic skills. e skills to be developed depend-

ing on the technique or activity carried out by the teacher. ere

are several possibilities but in the case of the course, the activity

that was put into practice was the dubbing of short scenes. To un-

derstand this a little bit more, it is important to point out that the

dubbing of movies is a very common process. It consists of replac-

ing the language used in a movie with a dierent one. is is very

easy to see when you go to the movies and a lm that was original-

ly made in English is streamed in Spanish or any other language.

Having this idea in mind, students were requested to work in small

groups, choose a short scene from a popular lm (no more than

ve minutes long) and rewrite the dialogue presented in the scene

so they could produce something dierent. Obviously, they had to

respect aspects such as the number of characters in the scene. It is

important to mention that they were asked to choose a movie that

was originally made in English and that the dialogue they had to

create had to be also in that language. Students could choose from

recording the scene and present the video to the class or do it live.

All of the groups decided to record it in advance. ey were given

a week to work on this project, aer the presentation, each group

was given feedback from classmates and the teacher.

Impromptu theater technique in the English class

e idea of impromptu is basically to request participants to

improvise a specic situation, no preparation time is provided so

that they have to respond to what they are required almost instantly.

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

Participants should have a very acceptable command of the

language they are being asked to use when carrying out the activity.

In the case of this specic course, that was not a problem since the

participants were all senior English teaching students. With that

in mind, students were divided into three dierent groups. Each

group had to provide the teacher three sets of words: ve movie

genres, ve crazy titles such as “e revenge of the green cow” and

ve dierent settings such as the living room, Mars, China, etc.

When the lists were ready, they were sent to the teacher through

WhatsApp and the teacher wrote them on separate papers that

were later mixed up and selected randomly to assign each group

a title, a setting, and a genre that they had to use to create their

improvised story. So, each group was given something like: “e

revenge of the green cow” that had to be developed at grandma’s

house and whose genre was science ction. Each group carried

out this process two times, presenting a dierent story each time.

In the end, the students talked about the experience and provided

recommendations.

Final projects

e course also requested students to present two nal group

projects. One was the virtual presentation of a scene from one of

the plays they read during the semester. e other one was the

development of a radio theater project. In the case of the presenta-

tion of the scene, students were divided into pairs and one group

of three, they chose a scene and the teacher helped them to analyze

it and adapt it to a virtual presentation, they had to present it live

on Zoom. For the radio theater project, the class was divided into

two and each group had to write an original short play to portray it

using the radio theater technique. ey had to mind the use of the

voice, sound eects, and music while presenting the assignment, it

was also live on Zoom.

Instrument

To evaluate, in a general way, the course. Participants were sent

a digital instrument at the end of the semester. e instrument was

an anonymous questionnaire (see annex 1) created using Google

Forms and sent to the students via e-mail. It was divided into four

dierent parts. e rst part was about participant’s personal in-

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

formation such as name, sex, and age. e second part is intend-

ed to get information regarding general aspects of the course. e

third part dealt with the perception participants might have on

the teacher’s job and the last part consisted of questions inquiring

information about the activities and techniques developed in the

course.

Results

e results to be presented are divided into three sections: the

rst part refers to the general perspective students have on the

course and the job the instructor did to adapt it to the virtual en-

vironment during the rst semester of 2020. e second section

refers to the opinion the participants have related to the challenges

virtual education brought them, specically in the development

of this course. e last part presents their perceptions about the

activities developed in the course.

About the virtual course

is was the rst time all the participants took the course. In

terms of the level of diculty, 70% consider it was moderate while

20 % of them found it easy and 10% think it was dicult. All of

the participants consider that if the course would not have been

virtual, the level of diculty would have changed, 50% consider

the course would have been more dicult while the remaining

50% say it would have been easier. ose who consider the course

would have been harder in a face-to-face context think that the

evaluations would have been more complex, some others say that

they are not good at performing in front of others and that virtual

classes made that part a lot easier since they felt protected by the

screen. e ones who point out the course would have been easier

to mention that in a face-to-face class, interaction is easier. Also,

many activities and strategies could have been developed with

fewer problems.

Regarding students’ expectations, all of the participants consid-

er that the course fullled the expectations they had. ey found it

fun and practical. One of them says that the course was very well

structured and that was benecial for them. Also, some of them

say that the course gave them dierent teaching tools (using the

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

techniques studied) that they could apply in the future as language

teachers. Some of them also point out the importance of reading

and studying dierent plays since they gave them additional in-

formation and helped them talk about dierent social and educa-

tional issues.

When asked about the part or the aspects that they enjoyed the

most in the course, 36,3% of them mention that they enjoyed the

plays they read as well as the analysis and the discussions made in

class when talking about them. Some other students mention that

they enjoyed the elaboration of puppets, the acting activities. One

of them mentions that he enjoyed the development of the class

and another one enjoyed the use of the drama techniques studied

and developed during the course. On the other hand, when stu-

dents are asked about the aspect or aspects that they enjoyed less

in the course, 54, 5% of them consider that they did not enjoy the

amount of reading they had during the semester since some of

them consider that is was time-consuming. Some others, mention

that they didn’t enjoy the acting and performing part that much.

One of the students mentions that she didn’t like the class sched-

ule. 80% of the participants consider that in general terms, they

learned a lot of new information and techniques that can be useful

in their future job, the other 20% in general terms, consider they

didn’t learn much but at least the activities were interesting and

they might use them in the future.

When asked about the diculties they had in the course due to

its virtual nature, 70% of the participants admit they had problems

while 30% of them mention they had no problems at all. e ones

that confess they had diculties mention aspects such as technical

problems due to an unstable internet connection which made it

harder for them to interact in class and the development of as-

signments and projects during the week. is was a situation that

aected not only this particular group of students but many oth-

ers. It’s not a secret that some areas of Costa Rica don’t count with

high-speed internet access and that many students depend on the

use of data from their phones to connect to classes and meetings.

ese students, as previously stated live in dierent areas of the

country. Particularly, there was a student who lives in a rural area

of Pérez Zeledón, in this place he didn’t have to chance to hire

high-speed internet, so he had many diculties during the semes-

ter, especially for the synchronous classes on Zoom.

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

About the teacher

e idea of this section is to talk about the perception students

have regarding the job made by the instructor of the course, espe-

cially in regards to the adaptation from a face-to-face course to a

virtual one. 100% of the participants consider that the teacher did

an excellent job in this course and all of them also agree on the fact

that the teacher did a great job adapting the course into a virtual

one. About this, students consider that the adaptation process was

not an easy task; however, they consider the teacher found many

ways to implement a dynamic course using all available resourc-

es eectively. One of the students comments that she thinks the

teacher did a good job since “he adapted the course without letting

the virtual modality stop the purpose. I mean, the fact of being

virtual was not a barrier for him to develop the activities and the

objectives of the course as if it was face to face”, another one thinks

that “the teacher knew how the theory works so he undoubtedly

knew how to adapt it to lead the students towards achieving goals”.

So, according to those comments, it is possible to say that the stu-

dents are satised with the adaptations and the job the teacher did.

Indeed, 100% of the participants consider that the teacher

helped to learn during the course. On the other hand, students

also oer some recommendations on how they think the teacher

could have improved the course. Some of the recommendations

were the fact that they consider that longer break periods would

have been better also being more exible in terms of the formative

assessment since they think that due to the pandemic, there was a

two weeks pause, so the contents could have been reduced a little.

Finally, about the problems that emerged during the semester

due to the virtual nature of the course, students consider that the

teacher handled them eectively. As presented above, most of the

problems in this course were provoked by an unstable internet

connection. When those problems happened, according to the

students, the teacher tried to talk with them to nd solutions and

adapt the activities so that everyone could participate and present

the activities. So, it was a collaboration process in which students

were taken into consideration which guaranteed that both, teacher

and students were satised with the solutions provided. Also, stu-

dents mention that “the teacher prepared extra options for those

who couldn’t connect to the class”. Also, one of them says that “the

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

teacher solved problems by establishing dierent means of com-

munication, such as WhatsApp audios for people that could not

connect or had connection problems”, he, according to the stu-

dents, was able to adapt to the problems each person had.

About the activities

is section aims to present the results obtained from the in-

strument about the perception the participants have of the dier-

ent activities developed during the course. is is a very relevant

part since one of the main objectives of the course is to provide

students with drama and theater-related activities that they can

use to teach English in the class as future teachers.

Aer the implementation of each activity during the semester,

there was a conversation with the participants so that they could

give their perception about them, the positive and the negative as-

pects that they had. e following chart summarizes those opin-

ions:

T 

P        

   

Name of the activity Positive aspects Negative aspects

1-Readers theater

technique

-It is a very easy technique to implement.

-It doesn’t require scenography, lights, or

costumes, so, it is cheap to implement.

-It promotes teamwork.

-It helps students to develop linguistic

aspects such as pronunciation, intonation,

uency, and vocabulary.

-It helps students to develop condence.

-It is time-consuming since it implies that

students need to rehearse the text before

presenting it. is rehearsal should be ideally

done in class so that the teacher can help the

students during the process.

-It is time-consuming for the teacher since

he/she has to look for, adapt or write suitable

plays that could correspond to the contents

being studied in the class.

2-Teaching through

puppets

-It motivates students because it’s

something interesting and dierent.

-It helps less condent students to speak

in class.

-It promotes students’ creativity and

teamwork.

-It helps students to develop linguistic

aspects such as pronunciation, intonation,

uency, and vocabulary.

-If students write the dialogues, it can

also help them to improve aspects such as

grammar and syntax.

-It is time-consuming for the students, in

the case they might need to create their own

puppets from scratch.

-If students are asked to buy the puppets it

could be an expensive activity.

-It requires students to invest time rehearsing

and preparing the presentation.

-It could produce anxiety in the shiest

students.

3-Storytelling in the

English class

-It helps students develop speaking skills.

-It helps students enhance linguistic

aspects such as pronunciation, intonation,

uency, grammar, and vocabulary.

-It is easy to adapt to dierent topics,

time, and linguistics levels.

-It helps students to improve public

speaking and condence.

-It doesn’t promote teamwork and

collaboration unless it’s developed as a group

project which, based on its characteristics is

not advisable.

-Shier students might not feel condent when

standing in front of the class telling a story.

-It might be dicult to use it with true

beginner students.

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

4-eater and songs

in the English class

-It’s something creative and motivating

since students usually enjoy music.

-It helps students to develop reading

comprehension and vocabulary.

-It helps students to improve condence

when standing in front of the class.

-It improves students’ body language.

-It promotes teamwork and collaboration

when implemented in groups.

-It’s challenging for shy students.

-It’s time-consuming for the students since

they have to invest time preparing and

rehearsing the presentation.

-It can cause problems if the teacher allows

students to choose any song since they might

choose songs with inappropriate messages.

5-Teaching English

through movies and

short lms

-It’s an interesting and innovative

technique.

-Most students enjoy movies.

-It helps students develop grammar,

syntax, vocabulary, pronunciation, and

intonation.

-It helps students improve listening,

writing, and speaking skills.

-It promotes teamwork and collaboration.

-It can be adapted to dierent topics

and levels.

-Some students might have problems with the

use of technology.

-Not all educational institutions have

technological resources such as speakers and

overhead projectors that are necessary for the

implementation of the activity.

-Not all students have computers or internet

access to have access to movie scenes.

-It’s not a good idea to use it with very young

learners.

-Teachers have to be careful with the scenes

the students select since they might choose

inappropriate ones.

-It is time-consuming for the students.

6-Impromptu

theater technique in

the English class

-It’s entertaining.

-It’s easy to adapt to dierent topics.

-It doesn’t consume much time.

-It helps students develop their speaking

skills.

-It promotes teamwork and collaboration.

-It doesn’t require scenography or

costumes.

-It is not recommendable for true beginner

students.

-Shy students might have problems when

participating in it.

7-Radio theater

-It’s entertaining.

-It’s easy to adapt to dierent levels and

topics.

-It promotes teamwork and condence.

-It helps students develop oral and writing

skills (in case they write the scrips).

-It’s time-consuming for the students.

-Some students might have problems since

some of them don’t have a stable internet

connection and the devices they need to put

into practice.

For it to be amazing it requires a certain level

of expertise in terms of audio editing.

8-Prepared Scenes

presentation

-ey are very easy to prepare since it’s

like putting on a role play.

-It helps students develop oral skills and

increases their vocabulary.

-Some plays could be adapted to any level

and topic.

-It motivates teamwork and creativity in

the students.

-It’s time-consuming for the students since it

requires a lot of rehearsing.

-It’s challenging for shy students.

-It might require students to invest money in

scenography and costumes.

Source: Own elaboration based on participants comments and opinions.

At the end of the semester, when provided a questionnaire,

students gave their general opinion about the activities developed

during the course. When asked about their favorite activity, 40%

chose the radio theater, 30% preferred the prepared scene presen-

tation while activities such as the use of puppets, Readers theater,

and storytelling were selected by 10% of the students. On the other

hand, when asked about their less favorite activities, 40% chose im-

promptu acting, 20% chose the prepared scene presentation, 20%

mentioned acting songs, and readers theater, as well as storytelling,

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

were selected by 10% of the participants. is is a matter of what

they found more appealing or interesting. It is really interesting to

see how divided opinions were, some like some activities while oth-

ers dislike them, such is the case of the prepared scene presentation,

reader theater, and storytelling.

Participants also provided their perception of the teaching po-

tential they think the activities have. According to them, the ones

that have more teaching potential (that is, the ones that they con-

sider could help students to learn more) are the prepared scene

presentation (30%), storytelling (30%), impromptu acting (10%),

Radio theater (10%), Movie scene dubbing (10%) and the use of

puppets (10%). Something interesting in this case is the fact that

even though some students confessed not to like activities such

as impromptu acting, the prepared scene presentation, and sto-

rytelling, they see teaching potential in them. On the other hand,

acting songs (20%), movie scene dubbing (20%), impromptu act-

ing (20%), readers theater (20%), the use of puppets (10%), and

storytelling (10%), were selected as the activities with less teach-

ing potential. is is also interesting since activities like the use

of puppets, storytelling, and readers theater are part of students’

favorite activities. en, it could be said that opinions were very

contrasting but it’s evident that there’s a high degree of objectivity

since even though participants manifested they liked or disliked

certain activities, that opinion did not auence the perception

they have on the teaching potential of the activities. For instance,

an activity such as movie dubbing that was not mentioned as fa-

vorite or less favorite is mentioned as one of the ones they believe

has more teaching potential.

At the beginning of the semester, students were given the course

syllabus and were briey told about the activities to be developed

during the course. Back then, nobody would have thought that the

course had to be virtualized 100% some weeks later. When stu-

dents were asked if they ever thought that it was going to be pos-

sible to carry out all of the activities proposed in a virtual course.

60% of them say that they considered it was going to be possible

whereas 40% say they didn’t think it was going to happen. e ones

that thought it was not possible, say that at rst, they thought that

it was dicult due to the interactive nature of the course, many

activities were pretty much games and face-to-face interaction

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

was necessary. Also, someone says that nobody was ready since

this was the rst time for all of them and the teacher working in

a virtual environment. Among the ones that consider that it was

possible to develop the activities proposed in the syllabus despite

the circumstances say that they thought it was possible due to the

nature of the course, they think it’s an easy course to adapt.

When asking participants if the virtual nature of the course

complicated the execution of the activities, 60 % admit it did and

40 % consider it did not. is is interesting since in the previous

question 60% of the participants didn’t think that the virtual nature

of the course was going to aect the development of the activities

and 40% consider it was going to do it. e participants that con-

sider the virtual mode of the course did not aect the execution of

the activities say that it was possible since the teacher was able to

adapt them all since they were friendly to this type of education.

Also, they consider that the teacher was very well organized. On

the other hand, the ones that consider that the virtual nature of

the course complicated the execution of the activities during the

course confess that some of the activities needed more visual ma-

terials. Also, group assignments were dicult to carry out since

not everybody had the same access to a stable internet connection.

So, assignments such as the performances gave them problems.

Something relevant; however, is that 100% of the participants con-

sider that the course accomplished its objectives.

Finally, students were asked if they would use any of the activ-

ities developed in the course as future English teachers, 90% of

them say they would do it and one 10% wouldn’t use them. e

activities they mention are the use of puppets, they would use this

one since they think it’s very creative, funny, and interesting and it

helps students cover many aspects when learning a language since

it helps students put language into practice. So other participants

consider they would use dubbing movie scenes activity since it im-

plies summarizing an idea that would help learners understand

the matter easily. Some other participants mention they would

use storytelling, prepared scene presentations, and radio theater

due to their interactive and adaptable characteristics. Finally, one

of the participants would use the acting songs activity because he

considers that the body is also part of language expression and

students can use language through their bodies which might be

attractive for them.

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

Conclusions

e pandemic provoked by the COVID-19 forced us all to adapt

and innovate within the “new normal”. To keep the university

community safe, the administration had to make important

decisions that implied several changes, the UCR would have never

thought about the possibility to migrate 100% of its courses and

functions to a virtual environment.

Within these circumstances, Drama for English as a Second

Language course had to change but the contents and the quality

needed to remain the same. e adaptation process was complex

since every single aspect of the class was meant to be done face-to-

face. Even the materials (readings) were printed. So, starting from

digitalizing all the documents, creating a virtual environment, and

adapting all the activities to the new reality, it all implied time,

eort, and creativity not just for the teacher but for the students

as well. It was like everyone was used to operate in a certain way,

pretty much like robots, but suddenly, somebody changed every-

one’s “chip” and things had to be dierent and there was to time to

think about it.

What was dicult about migrating to a virtual environment to

teach the course? e most complicated aspect was to adapt the

drama and theater activities to teach English as a second language.

In terms of theory, play reading, and class discussion, the virtual

mode did not mean any diculty except for the students who did

not have a stable internet connection, in this course that was a

problem for 3 out of 11 students. However, not all three had prob-

lems all the time and at the same time, so it did not aect anyone

badly.

As presented in the results, students found the course useful

and they are satised with the job and adaptations made by the in-

structor. At the same time, they manifested that learning under the

circumstances they had to take the course was possible and that

they consider that all of the objectives of the course were accom-

plished. Students missed the physical interaction in the class and

indeed, this physical interaction would have probably increased

the benets students received even more. Learning wouldn’t have

been better but dierent, the experience would have been another

one. One aspect that could have been more benecial of a face-to-

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

face interaction would have been the fact that students would have

been challenged to, for instance, act in front of an audience and

that would have implied aspects such as body movement, voice

control, among others.

One of the main objectives of the course was to provide students

with a group of drama and theater activities that could be used in

the English classroom. So, a total of eight activities were presented,

applied, and discussed. Students had the chance to put them into

practice then, they were able to realize their teaching potential as

well as the positive and negative aspects in each of them. All of the

activities might provide English learners and teachers, that’s the

main conclusion that participants got.

Some of the activities might be more suitable for some ages,

levels, and topics than others. It’s the teacher’s job to know how

and when to adapt them accordingly. Adaptability is one of the

characteristics that participants valued the most in these activities

as well as the fact that they can stimulate the development of more

than one linguistic skill at a time which gives them an important

teaching potential.

e virtual mode of the course brought several challenges for

both the students and the teacher. However, the capacity to adapt

to the new circumstances was the one that made the process suc-

cessful. It’s important to mention that all students approved the

course with a very good grade and that’s, without a doubt, a prod-

uct of the eort they made.

Challenges will always come, especially in education, resilience

is fundamental if an obstacle needs to be overcome. is pandemic

proved that if there’s a good attitude and interest in learning, edu-

cational objectives can be accomplished.

References

Alfred, A. & Joe, S. (2018). Using popular songs to learn English.

International Journal of Educational Science and Research

(IJESR), 8(6), 73-78. https://www.academia.edu/38137472/

USING_POPULAR_SONGS_TO_LEARN_ENGLISH

Alluri, P. (2018). Enhancing English Language Teaching through

Films in General Foundation Programs. Arab World English

Journal (AWEJ) Proceedings of 1st MEC TESOL Conference

2018. 146-154. https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/MEC1.11

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

Alsoud, A. & Harasis, A. (2021). e impact of COVID-19 Pan-

demic on Student’s E-learning experience in Jordan. J. e-

or. Appl. Electron.Commer. Res, 16 (5), 1404-1414. doi.

org/10.3390/jtaer16050079

Blasco, P., Moreto, G., Blasco, M., Levites, M. & Januadis, M.

(2015). Education through Movies: Improving teaching skills

and fostering reection among students and teachers. Journal

for Learning through the Arts, 11(1), 1-16. https://les.eric.

ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1086983.pdf

Bresnahan, A. (2015). Improvisation in the Arts. Philosophy Fac-

ulty Publications, 7. https://ecommons.udayton.edu/phl_fac_

pub/7

Çağanağa, Ç. & Kalmış, A. (2015). e role of puppets in kinder-

garten education in Cyprus. Open Access Library Journal, 2:

e1647. http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/oalib.1101647

Chen, Y. (April 22

-24

, 2015). e application of English movies

in English teaching [conference presentation]. International

Conference on Arts, Design and Contemporary Education

(ICADCE). Moscow, Russia. 10.2991/icadce-15.2015.185

Degrave, P. (2019). Music in the Foreign Language Classroom:

How and Why? Journal of Language Teaching and Research,

10(3), 412-420. http://dx.doi.org/10.17507/jltr.1003.02

Dundar, S, (2013). Nine drama activities for foreign language

classrooms: Benets and challenges. Procedia - Social and

Behavioral Sciences, 70, 1424-1431. doi.org/10.1016/j.sb-

spro.2013.01.206

Dwidienawati, D. Abdinagoro, S. Tjahjana, D. & Gandasari. D.

(2020). E-learning implementation during e COVID-19

outbreak: e perspective of students and Lecturers. Journal

of the Social Sciences, 48(4), 1190-1201. https://www.research-

gate.net/publication/344723626_ELearning_Implementa-

tion_during_e_COVID-19_outbreake_Perspective_of_

Students_and_Lecturers

Farmer, D. (2012). 101 more drama games & activities. Drama Re-

source. www.dramaresource.com

Guliyeva, G. (May 05

-07

, 2011). e Role of Drama in Language

Teaching [conference presentation]. 1

International Confer-

ence on Foreign Language Teaching and Applied Linguis-

tics, Sarajevo. https://omeka.ibu.edu.ba/les/original/e2ee-

a074032077040a75d0e2caa4a334.pdf

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

Heng, K. & Sol, K. (2020). Online learning during COVID-19: Key

challenges and suggestions to enhance eectiveness. Cambo-

dian Education Forum. https://www.researchgate.net/publica-

tion/346719308_Online_learning_during_COVID-19_Key_

challenges_and_suggestions_to_enhance_eectiveness

Ikrammuddin, R. (2017). Using storytelling technique to improve

speaking ability [undergraduate thesis Ar. Raniry State Islamic

University]. https://repository.ar-raniry.ac.id/id/eprint/3241/

Insani, H. (November 22

-23

, 2017). e use of puppet in teach-

ing speaking to young learners [conference presentation].

e Tenth Conference on Applied Linguistics and e Sec-

ond English Language Teaching and Technology Conference

in collaboration with e First International Conference on

Language, Literature, Culture, and Education (CONAPLIN

and ICOLLITE 2017), Bandung, Paris van Java, Indonesia.

10.5220/0007173206830688

Khodabandeh, F. (2018). e impact of storytelling techniques

through virtual instruction on English students’ speaking

ability. Teaching English with Technology, 18(1), 24-36. https://

les.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1170637.pdf

Komulainen, K., Ruismäki, H. & Toivanen, T. (2011). Drama ed-

ucation and improvisation as a resource of teacher student’s

creativity. Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences, 12, 60-69.

10.1016/j.sbspro.2011.02.010

Kröger, T. & Nupponen, A. (2019). Puppet as a pedagogical tool: a

literature review. International Electronic Journal of Elementa-

ry Education, 11(4), 393-401. 10.26822/iejee.2019450797

Kusumaningrum, M. (2015). Using English movie as an attrac-

tive strategy to teach senior high school students English as

a foreign language. LLT Journal, 18(1), 11-18. https://doi.

org/10.24071/llt.2015.180102

Lekwilai, P. (2014). Reader’s eater: An alternative tool to devel-

op reading uency among ai EFL learners. PASAA: Journal

of Language Teaching and Learning in ailand, 48, 89-111.

https://les.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1077897.pdf

Mõts, M. (2016). e use of pop songs in the English language teach-

ing: An analysis of the textbooks Key English 7 and English in

mind 2 and the creation of additional materials to the textbooks

[master thesis, University of Tartu]. https://dspace.ut.ee/han-

dle/10062/53282

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

Obeidat, A., Obeidat, R. & Al-Shalabi, M. (2020). e eectiveness

of adopting e-learning during COVID-19 at Hashemite Uni-

versity. (IJACSA) International Journal of Advanced Comput-

er Science and Applications, 11(12), 96-104. 10.14569/IJAC-

SA.2020.0111212

Ortlieb, E. & Young, C. (2018): Implementing Readers e-

ater in Secondary Classrooms. Reading Psychology.

10.1080/02702711.2018.1555364

Oviedo, C. (March 20

, 2020). La respuesta institucion-

al para atender la docencia virtual ha sido exponencial,

así como su demanda. UCR Noticias. https://www.ucr.

ac.cr/noticias/2020/04/20/la-respuesta-institucional-pa-

ra-atender-la-docencia-virtual-ha-sido-exponencial-asi-co-

mo-su-demanda.html

Rasinski, T., Stokes, F. & Young, C. (2017). e role of the teach-

er in reader’s theater instruction. Texas Journal of Literacy

Education, 5(2), 168-174. https://les.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/

EJ1162708.pdf

Remer1, R. & Tzuriel, D. (2015). “I teach better with the pup-

pet”-Use of puppet as a mediating tool in kindergarten educa-

tion-an evaluation. American Journal of Educational Research,

3 (3), 356-365. 10.12691/education-3-3-15

Rodríguez, R. (2014). El radioteatro como herramienta educativa

para promover el patrimonio inmaterial: hombres y mujeres

del mar en el sur de Chile. Cuadernos Info, 35, 29-38. 10.7764/

cdi.35.664

Salas, J. (2017). e use of theater and drama techniques to foster

speaking skills in the English class. Revista de Lenguas Moder-

nas, 26, 305-317. 10.15517/rlm.v0i26.29975

Satriani, I. (2019). Storytelling in teaching literacy: Benets and

challenges. English Review: Journal of English Education, 8(1),

113-120. 10.25134/erjee.v8i1.1924.

Seppänena, S. Tiippana, K. Jääskeläinen, I & Toivanena, T. (2018).

eater Improvisation Promoting Interpersonal Condence

of Student Teachers: A Controlled Intervention Study. e

European Journal of Social and Behavioral Sciences EJSBS, 14,

2770- 2788. https://dx.doi.org/10.15405/ejsbs.244

Surkhali, B. & Garbuja, C. (2020). Virtual Learning during

COVID-19 Pandemic: Pros and Cons. Journal of Lumbini

Medical College, 8(1). https://doi.org/10.22502/jlmc. v8i1.363

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

Ulldemolins, C. (2014). Use of drama techniques as a methodology

to teach English in infant education by teachers in Catalonia

[master thesis, Universitat de Vic]. http://repositori.uvic.cat/

bitstream/handle/10854/3411/trealu_a2014_ulldemolins_

carla_use_drama_techniques.pdf?sequence=1

Urrego, L. (2020). Radioteatro como estrategia didáctica para me-

jorar las habilidades comunicativas y la comunicación verbal

y no verbal [undergraduate thesis, Tecnológico de Antioquia,

Institución Universitaria]. https://dspace.tdea.edu.co/bit-

stream/handle/tdea/1150/Radioterapia.pdf?sequence=1&is-

Allowed=y

Uysal, N. D. & Yavuz, F. (2018). Language learning through drama.

International Journal of Learning and Teaching, 10(4), 376-380.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/329397528_Lan-

guage_Learning_rough_Drama

Vilč, S. (2017). Acting together: the art of collective improvisation

in theatre and politics. FILOZOFIJA I DRUŠTVO, 28(1), 32-

40. 10.2298/FID1701032V

Annex 1

Drama For ESL: e Virtual Experience.

is questionnaire aims to know about your perception of the

Drama For English Teaching course that you took during the First

Semester 2020. e idea is to know about the experience you lived

since this is the rst time this course is thought in a virtual way

which is something that one might consider very dicult due

to its practical nature. e information you provide here will be

anonymous and will be only used for this research.

I Part. Personal Information

1-Sex : __Female ___Male ____Prefer not to say

2-Age:___

3-Place of residence:____

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

II Part. General Aspects of the Course

1-Was this the rst time you take this course? ___Yes

No_____

2-How did you take the course? ____Virtual ____Face-to-

Face

3-How would you describe the level of diculty in this

course?

___Very Dicult

___Dicult

___Moderate

___Easy

___Very Easy

4-Do you think that if the course wouldn’t have been virtual

the level of diculty would have been dierent? ____ Yes

___No

5-Why? ____________________________________

6-Did the course fulll your expectations? ____Yes ____No

7-Why? __________________________________

8-Did you have any problems during this course due to its

virtual nature? ____Yes ___No (go to question 10)

9-What problems did you have?_______________________

____________

10-What did you enjoy the most about the cou

rse?_______________________________ 11-

What was the part that you didn’t like about the cour

se?_________________________

12-What phrase best describes your case in this course?

___I learned a lot of new information and techniques that

can be useful for my future job.

___I didn’t learn much but at least the activities were inter-

esting I might use them in the future.

___I didn’t learn anything and I think the course was a waste

of time.

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

JONATHAN SALAS | The virtual experience

III Part. About the teacher

1-e teacher’s job in this course was:

__Excellent

__Very Good

__Good

__Poor

2-Do you think the teacher did a good job adapting the course

to a virtual mode?

____Yes ___No

Why? ___________________________________________

3-Was the teacher able to help you learn in this course? ____

Yes ____No

4-What do you think the teacher could have done dierent to

help you more in the course? __________________________

___________________

5-How did the teacher solve the problems that occurred

during the course due to its virtual nature? _______________

______________________________

IV Part. About the activities and techniques developed in

the course

1-Which of these activities was your favorite during the

course?

___Reader’s theater

___e use of puppets.

___Story telling

___Acting songs

___Dubbing movie scenes

___Impromptu acting

___Prepared scenes presentation

____Radio eater

2-Which was your least favorite?

___Reader’s theater

___e use of puppets.

___Story telling

___Acting songs

InterSedes, ISSN 2215-2458, Volumen 22, Número 46,

Julio-Diciembre, 2021, pp. 49–86 (Artículo).

INTERSEDES |

___Dubbing movie scenes

___Impromptu acting

___Prepared scenes presentation

___Radio eater

3-Which do you think has more teaching potential?

___Reader’s theater

___e use of puppets.

___Story telling

___Acting songs

___Dubbing movie scenes

___Impromptu acting

___Prepared scenes presentation

___Radio eater

4-Which has less teaching potential?

___Reader’s theater

___e use of puppets.

___Story telling

___Acting songs

___Dubbing movie scenes

___Impromptu acting

___Prepared scenes presentation

___Radio eater

5-Did the virtual nature of the course complicate the execu-

tion of any of the activities?

____Yes ____No

Why? ___________________________________________

6-At rst, did you think that it would be possible to carry out

all those activities in a virtual course? ____Yes ___No

Why? ____________________________________________________

7-Did you consider that the course accomplish its objectives?

___Yes ____No

8-As a teacher, would you use any of the activities developed

during the course?

____Yes ____No

9-Which would you use and why?

_______________________________