Mātauranga Māori constitutes concepts and principles that are richly detailed, complex, and fundamental to Māoridom. It is important to remember that the practice of these are wider and more varied than their use within the proposed NCEA Achievement Standards and supporting documentation.

We also recognise that the cultures, languages, and identities of the Pacific Islands are diverse, varied, and unique. Therefore the Pacific concepts, contexts, and principles that have been incorporated within NCEA Achievement Standards may have wide-ranging understandings and applications across and within the diversity of Pacific communities. It is not our intention to define what these concepts mean but rather offer some ways that they could be understood and applied within different subjects that kaiako and students alike can explore.

The intent of the Achievement Standard

Drama transforms the tangible into the intangible. For this Achievement Standard, ākonga will need to identify choices made by the production team of a drama performance they have experienced as an audience member, or were involved in as a performer. They will explain the effect of these choices by constructing a personal response.

Ākonga will show understanding of the reciprocal relationship between audiences and performers. Their personal response will be from their perspective, as either an audience member, or performer. They will also understand how the wairua of a performance is channeled through the performers, and how the use of drama components can influence how effectively it is projected onto the audience.

The wairua of the performance is experienced as the intangible energetic and emotive qualities that carry the spirit and intention of the play. How the wairua is expressed by the performers provokes a response from the audience and allows them to reflect on the ideas and themes of the play based on their own life experiences and perspectives.

There will be opportunity for ākonga to develop understanding of ihi, wehi, and wana by reflecting on how the performers express the work (ihi), the personal reaction of the audience to this expression of the work (wehi), and how this reciprocal interaction between performers and audiences shapes the experience of the performance as a whole (wana).

In particular, ihi and wehi help ākonga to understand the meaning-making process of drama by highlighting the reciprocal relationship between performer and audience. This demonstrates the depth and profundity of this connection in how the wairua of the performance is channelled and experienced. Ihi and wehi speak to the personal gut response that is felt through effective storytelling, communication, and expression. It is the 'in the moment' reaction that performers and audiences experience that immerse them in the performance.

This provides a vantage point for ākonga to understand how personal responses differ between audience members, as the wairua of the performance may be experienced through an audience member's own personal backgrounds, beliefs, perceptions, and worldviews. Therefore, as part of the teaching and learning programme, ākonga should have the opportunity to learn about the key message, drama components, and wairua of performance, and how to use these as a framework for responding to drama performances in different contexts.

Learning for this Achievement Standard can occur in a 'hands-on', teacher-directed fashion until ākonga are ready to be assessed. Ākonga can collect examples throughout the year as appropriate to provide naturally occurring 'hands-off' evidence. This could include a mix of written, verbal, or recorded physical drama work accompanied by explanation, which is then combined by ākonga to create a portfolio of evidence that reflects their ongoing learning and development.

This Achievement Standard supports ākonga in developing their understanding of drama performance throughout the teaching and learning programme. Alongside ‘hands-on’, teacher-directed learning, there should be opportunities for ākonga to gather naturally occurring, ‘hands off’ evidence. This could include a mix of written, verbal, or recorded physical drama work accompanied by explanation.

Making reliable judgements

Ākonga will be assessed on their ability to make personal connections and critically respond to a drama performance they have experienced as an audience member, or were involved in as a performer. As personal connections are subjective, it will be how ākonga identify and reflect on these connections in their response that will define this part of the assessment.

A drama performance is a dramatic work that is performed in front of an audience. The performance may be experienced live or through a video recording. Any viewed performances, whether live or recorded, should provide opportunities for ākonga to meet the requirement of the Achievement Standard at all grade levels.

Ākonga must demonstrate understanding of the intangible essence and impact of drama and make their own connections to the wairua of a performance as an audience member. Their personal response must include exploration of the wairua of a performance and how the essence and intention of a dramatic work is channelled through the performers, such as the techniques they used, their stage presence, and so on. They must also demonstrate their literacy in drama components and their understanding of how they can affect the wairua of a performance.

Drama components include:

• elements such as role, time, place, situation, action, tension, mood, focus, and symbol
• conventions such as freeze frame, spoken thought
• techniques such as body, space, movement, and voice
• technologies such as lighting, sound, props, and costume.

An understanding of ihi, wehi, and wana allows for deep and robust comprehension of the wairua of the performance and the intangible effects of a drama performance. In the context of this Achievement Standard, wana extends to the student’s personal response. The personal response is therefore part of the wairua of the performance, as it documents how meaning has been made from what ākonga have felt and what lasting impression they may carry with them after the performance has ended.

Factors influencing how the wairua of the performance is understood include:

• the environment (ie space and place) of the performance
• the backgrounds and perspectives of the audience members
• the different approaches of the performers and directors and how they interact with each other
• the entertainment technologies used and how they are applied to achieve certain effects.

These combined factors create the mauri of a performance, with which the creators and performers attempt to realise the intention of a play and strive to achieve a shared vision. Mauri is the motion and physicality of the role that carries the wairua of the performance.

Ākonga will demonstrate their understanding of the relationship between aspects of the performance and audience response, including the effect that drama components have on an audience. This will inform their summary of how well the key message is being communicated through the performance in their personal response.

Demonstrating deeper knowledge in this assessment requires ākonga to be able to support and reinforce their personal response, by providing specific examples of how and why the performance prompted certain reactions or gave rise to thoughts or feelings.

High-level thinking requires ākonga to analyse their reaction to a performance and provide an informed personal response, by making connections between the drama components used, the context of the drama, and the wairua of the performance. This is where ākonga must explain the impact or implications of how these aspects of drama have been combined and applied to a performance. Ākonga will show investigation of the place of these drama aspects in the performance as individual pieces, how they operate together to make meaning in the performance as a whole, and how successfully the desired effect is achieved.

Collecting evidence

Refer to the External Assessment Specifications for further information.

Possible contexts

This Achievement Standard provides opportunities for ākonga to use any drama performance they have viewed as a member of the audience, or a drama performance they have participated in, as a context for their personal response. The performance may be experienced live or through a video recording of the performance intended for a live audience. There is also the option for Aotearoa New Zealand contexts to be used to further ākonga experience of mātauranga Māori and theatre Aotearoa.

Ākonga may also have the opportunity to use one of their own performances during the year to respond to as an actor. Or they may use one of their peer's performances to respond to as an audience member.

Standard Exclusions

This Standard has one or more exclusions, or Standards that assess the same or similar learning. These Standards are excluded against one another to prevent assessing the same learning twice. You can only use credits gained from one of these standards towards your NCEA qualification.

Find out more about the NCEA Level 1 Exclusions List.