R.U.IN? – Drama methods’ innovation for inclusive youth communities Erasmus Project

Project Title

R.U.IN? – Drama methods’ innovation for inclusive youth communities

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for youth

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2016

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Inclusion – equity; International cooperation, international relations, development cooperation; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

Context:
The twenty-month long project was designed to raise awereness about bullying and the importance of prevention and intervention through applied drama and theatre tools. The research and the application + manual as organic parts of the R.U.In? showed that bullying and cyberbullying seem to be burning issues in young people’s communities, and their facilitators are very grateful when they meet non-formal learning tools to try to deal with the topic. Teachers, facilitators and different professionals showed interest toward the digital innovation of the project. Simulation and role play seem to be innovative tools regarding the issue. The application of theatre and drama proved to be effective to reveal hidden cases in the communities, to raise awareness of the phenomena and to empower young people and their facilitators to seek for solution methods, and start addressing the issue as a problem that needs further intervention.
The strategic partnership showed that the local support and possibilities are determining in terms of the success of an educational theatre project. The reception of our programmes were also different from the education field, in some countries it was easy to access school communities, in others it became the most challenging part. By the many opportunities to meet each other and exchange good practices, we could enrichen our working methods and approaches to bullying, which made the project colorful and inspiring. There were compromises we needed to make due to the mentioned local characteristics, which made our research methods to become diverse and of different depth. The digital innovation (Android App) we designed was and exciting element in the project.

Objectives: A) to prove the of drama based tools and to decrease bullying in order to create functional communities, B) to compare and improve drama and theatre in education practices between the participating countries, particularly focusing on bullying, B) to share and exchange working techniques on such topic, exploring the wide range of possibilities, C) to distribute the theatre in non-formal education methodology for a wider use of it, D) to widen the area of public TIE works with, E) to provide a digital tool together with a manual that reflects on bullying topic and can help facilitators in activity design, F) to start an open dialogue between professionals and people yet still interested in art-pedagogy methods.

Participating organisations:
Nyitott Kör Egyesület Hungary – NGO – coordinating
TheatrEtc – Cyprus – NGO
Sigma Art – Romania – NGO
Cedeum – Serbia – NGO

Undertaken main activities:
Exchange of good practices on transnational project meetings and via the project timeline online. Drama based activities preventing and intervening bullying in school communities undertaken throughout the whole project by all organizations. Training course providing the opportunity for the staff and collaborators of the 4 organisations to reflect on their approaches toward drama and theatre in education and bullying and initiation to design new activities focusing on cyberbullying. Impact assessment research of drama methods, development of android APP to simulate bullying, editing manual for the APP. Multiplying the outputs and result on events.

Results and impact:
35 drama based activities (20 of bullying, 15 of cyberbullying) measured with mixed methods, analyzed by researchers by each partner organization and the coordinator.
One new drama based activity focusing on cyberbullying by each partner and the coordinator.
Research publication of each organization, English report of the studies.
Design of an android APP to model social media and simulate cyberbullying and group dynamics, together with a manual to use the application.
Blog about the projects activities and about the topic of bullying: ruinproject.eu
Many institutions and professionals involved on the multiplier events to discuss bullying issue and get to know about the methodology and brainstorm about inclusive youth communities

Longer term benefits:
Many schools and student/youth communities (at least 35 from each partners local context) and their teachers became more aware of the bullying issue and are more likely to stop bullying situations or to step out from passive roles and recognize victim blaming behavior, and through this will become more sensitive and tolerant citizens. In many schools the teachers communities needed to face the existing issue of bullying and cyberbullying.
Drama and Theatre in Education as a methodology becomes more spread and recognized in the partner countries, and because of the availability of the Research report in 5 languages, including English, the method and its impact becomes more visible and more adaptable for other communities.
Professionals, youth workers, educators and facilitators that were directly reached in the frames of the project or read the research are more likely to include digital tools in their everyday pr

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 121355 Eur

Project Coordinator

NYITOTT KOR EGYESULET & Country: HU

Project Partners

• SIGMA-ART CULTURAL-ARTISTIC FOUNDATION
• THEATRO ktl
• Center for Drama in Education and Art CEDEUM