STUDENT ENGAGEMENT IN ELA CHOICE-BASED CORE CURRICULUM: A CASE STUDY OF THE DRAMATIC WRITING FOR FILM, TELEVISION, AND THEATER COURSE

This paper describes a case study examining student feelings towards engagement in choice-based core ELA courses and teacher feelings towards student engagement specifically within the Dramatic Writing for Film, Television, and Theater course offered in the state of Georgia. The context of this study focuses on the impact that student agency, choice, and voice have on student engagement from their own perspective and how Invitational Education Theory connects to this impact and the course itself. The case study examines the course, its students, and teachers in two schools in a large, suburban metro Atlanta school district. Through interviews and observations, the study found that students enrolled in the course experienced higher levels of engagement when compared to previous, non-choice courses. This study is the first to examine the impact of the Dramatic Writing course since its inception.