Pedagogy of paradox: Discovering the role of drama-facilitator in the secondary school classroom

ABSTRACT This article describes elements of research that were carried out in four secondary schools in Spain’s Basque Country – particularly concerning the role of facilitator in the study’s framework. This research studied the usefulness of theatre as a tool applied to promoting coexistence amongst secondary school students. As researcher, I designed and implemented a drama-based program in four secondary schools, and I facilitated the sessions. From my experiences I have extracted relevant elements that may be considered by others assuming the role of facilitator: creating structure building organizational consistency, and spaces guaranteeing trust and freedom; context management and facilitator´s self-regulation strategies by drawing boundaries and developing certain doses of tolerance to uncertainty.