PD in College classes

[HV Psychodrama]

Dear Deborah,
Thanks for helping get the word out that psychodrama is not just a group of action techniques but part of a larger system including a  philosophy. It is so frustrating that people still are being 'taught' psychodrama as either a bunch of techniques or as a re enactment without warm-up, safety and containment. It gives what we do a very bad name.

The other thing I have encountered a lot are college students being asked to present psychodrama in their classes. "Everyone had to pick a topic and I picked psychodrama and now I want to do one in my class to show them...what would you suggest I do?" Often they will then attend an open session and then want to go into their classroom to demonstrate.

Recently I have been refusing to give them exercises to do in the class, saying talk about it, don't do it if you have no training. I have been encouraging them to have their profs contact me and I would be glad to send a trained person in to 'do it."

It is like someone reading about a medical procedure, possibly observing it once, and then saying, Oh I can do that procedure, without practice, without supervision cause I saw it done.

So thank you again. And depending on where you live, there might be a skilled psychodramatist quite willing to present to your social work class.

Rebecca Walters 



  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: dkarner 
  To: list at grouptalkweb.org 
  Sent: Tuesday, November 20, 2007 11:02 PM


  Hi,
  I wanted to share with the listserve readers that I have begun my contributions to our Moreanian-influenced world by speaking up in a class I have as I pursue a social work degree.  In this practicum class someone said they used psychodrama to facilitate their group of teens.  Psychodrama in this case was use of the empty chair technique and some sharing by group members.  Someone else acknowleged that he had seen it done and thought Psychodrama was a great "thing".  
  I asked the professor for permission to inform the class about psychodrama so that they would have a better idea of what it was because it was one part of an entire philosophy developed by JL Moreno and we, as social workers should know about this.  I started  by saying that Moreno's philosophy stated that:  "A  truly therapeutic procedure cannot have less an objective than the whole of mankind."
   went on to sociatry, Group Psychotherapy, sociodrama and psychodrama and of course sociometry.  Did the best I could trying not to overwhelm with passion or substance.  
  I have no idea if anyone who expressed interest will follow up but... I'm putting it out there.

  deborah karner 


------------------------------------------------------------------------------


  Grouptalk mailing list
  List at grouptalkweb.org
  http://grouptalkweb.org/mailman/listinfo/list_grouptalkweb.org
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://grouptalkweb.org/pipermail/list_grouptalkweb.org/attachments/20071121/13be96df/attachment.html