From Script to Social Action: Theatre and Storytelling for Human Rights and Democratic Education
Introduction
How can theatre inspire democratic thinking and social change? This course empowers educators to transform storytelling and performance into tools for human rights education, fostering empathy, dialogue, and active citizenship in diverse learning environments.
Description
This course explores the pedagogical potential of theatre and storytelling as transformative tools for human rights and democratic education. Grounded in principles of applied theatre and experiential learning, it equips educators with practical strategies to foster critical thinking, empathy, and civic engagement. Participants will engage in drama-based methodologies, including storytelling, improvisation, scriptwriting, and Forum Theatre, to address themes such as inclusion, equity, and participation. The course emphasises the role of creative expression in promoting democratic values and amplifying diverse voices within the classroom. Through collaborative processes, reflective practice, and project-based learning, participants will design and implement socially engaged learning activities. The programme supports the development of inclusive, participatory, and learner-centred approaches aligned with Erasmus+ priorities on active citizenship, social inclusion, and cultural awareness.
Learning Objectives
By the end of the course, participants will be able to:
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Understand key concepts of human rights education and democratic participation
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Apply theatre-based methodologies to explore social and civic issues
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Facilitate storytelling activities that promote empathy and intercultural dialogue
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Develop short scripts and performances addressing real-world challenges
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Use Forum Theatre techniques to encourage active participation and critical reflection
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Design inclusive learning environments that value diverse perspectives
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Integrate drama and storytelling into cross-curricular teaching practices
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Develop action-oriented projects linking classroom learning with community engagement
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Reflect critically on their pedagogical approaches and learner impact
Methodology and Assessment
The course adopts an experiential, learner-centred methodology combining applied theatre techniques, collaborative learning, and reflective practice. Activities include improvisation, storytelling, group creation, and performance. Assessment is continuous and formative, based on active participation, peer feedback, reflective journals, and the development of a final group project.
Materials, Digital Tools & Other Learning Resources
Participants will use scripts, storytelling prompts, and drama facilitation guides. Additional resources include case studies, human rights education toolkits, and multimedia materials supporting creative and reflective learning.
Preparation
After registration participants will receive pre-course questionnaire which will be used by the trainer to learn about participants’ teaching backgrounds and to assess their exact needs. Before the beginning of the course a basic reading list will be suggested to participants to prepare for the training. Participants will also be asked to prepare a presentation about themselves, their professional context and their culture which will be presented during the course. Participants will receive information about the country they are going to visit in order to prepare them for their cultural experience.
Follow up
After the course participants will be asked to share what they have learned with the rest of the staff in their schools. Further books and articles to deepen the topic and contacts with some other practitioners all over Europe and in the world will be suggested by the trainer. The methods shared and explored and the bibliography given will allow the participants to complete and improve their educational path.
Certificate
Each participant will get a course attendance certificate and on request we will complete the Europass Mobility Document.
Accommodation
We do not directly offer accommodation and subsistence and participants are responsible for organizing it by themselves.
Paperwork
We also provide all the support with paperwork you might need for your Erasmus+ project documentation such as mobility agreement and registration letter.
Fee: 560 €
Cancelation policy
Free cancellation up to 30 days before the start. After that, the reservation is not refundable. Changes in name and profile of the participant are possible any time before the start of the course (replacement participants from the same school/org are accepted at any time). In case the school/org doesn't find a replacement, we will still offer a place at any of our confirmed courses later in the year without any additional costs but we can not guarantee that every course session will be confirmed and the school/org will only be offered to choose from already confirmed course sessions. In case it will not be possible for the participant to attend the course or for us to organize the course due to extraordinary circumstances (classified as such by the European Commission) which present themselves in the period of less than 30 days before the start of the course and we don’t manage to find an alternative solution, we will keep 50 % of the payment and refund the remaining balance of 50% to the payer’s bank account.
Draft Programme - 35 didactic hours
Day 1
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Welcome and introduction
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Outline of the programme
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Cultural exchange
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Warm ups and icebreakers
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Course expectations and needs analysis, setting up a collaborative learning environment and creating an educational contract
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Introduction to human rights & democratic education
Day 2
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Introduction to applied theatre and Theatre of the Oppressed principles
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Image Theatre: representing inequality, power, and justice
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Transforming images into narratives
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Embodied understanding of social issues
Day 3
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Exploring identity, diversity, and bias through storytelling circles
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Personal storytelling
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Structuring narratives
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From personal to collective stories
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Dialogue, multiple perspectives, critical questioning
Day 4
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Introduction to Forum Theatre
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Scriptwriting for social themes
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Developing short scripts based on real issues
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Creative transformation of ideas into performance
Day 5
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Rehearsing Forum Theatre scenes
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Performance of scenes with audience intervention
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Whole group reflection
Day 6
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Theatre for advocacy: linking classroom to community
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Designing educational/drama-based interventions for schools
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Planning a mini social action project
Day 7
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Design of personal plan for implementation of theatre and storytelling for human rights and democratic education
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Presentation of outputs(personal implementation plans)
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Group reflection, feedback and discussion
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Dissemination strategy and European dimension
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Validation of the learning outcomes
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Evaluation of the course
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Closing session