The effect of drama on understanding artistic work in 6th grade students

In this study, the effect of the drama method in understanding art works in 6th grade students was investigated. For this purpose, a total of four works of art, including certain periods, were selected by receving expert opinions. The study consisted of a total of 32 students in Adana in the 6th grade whose ages were between 11and 12. The design of the study was weak experimental. Composed of one experimental and control groups. In the study, whether the responses of the two groups regarding art criticism differed significantly was investigated. Thirteen sessions were conducted in total, seven in the experimental group and six in the control group. In these thirteen sessions, topics were handled in accordance with the curriculum achievements. The subjects were given the drama method for the experiment group and the traditional method for the control group. The data collection tool of the research was "Art Criticism Leaflet" and descriptive analysis was used in the analysis of the data. The results of the study were based on the results of art criticism given in the last four sessions of both groups. As a result of the research; When compared to the control group, the responses of the experimental group to the open-ended question categories in the description, analysis, interpretation and judgment steps of the art critic according to the control group were found to be more detailed in terms of content richness. It was also found that the experimental group had a significant difference in the response rates of closed-ended question categories compared to the control group. The most important task of the art educators in understanding and conceptualizing art works is the method they use in approaching the work of art. From this point of view, when the drama method is used in art criticism, the experience of the students about the works remains alive and they are made more effective by making and living their works. Keywords: Drama, art education, art work, art criticism