The effect of the drama method on skills: A meta-mixed method study

Abstract

In this study, the size of the effect of the drama method on skills was analyzed with meta-analysis and the meta-synthesis method. A literature review was conducted on national studies. Postgraduate thesis, doctoral thesis and articles written between 1990-2020 were scanned in Turkish and English from national and international databases to include with the meta-analysis method. After a literature review, it was found that 34 studies conducted at the national level met the inclusion criteria. The Comprehensive Meta-Analysis v2.0 (CMA) Statistical Package Program was used in data analysis, MetaWin program was preferred to calculate the normality distrubition graphs. The Cohen's d effect level was calculated separately for each study, and then general effect levels and significance values were found. The classification of Cohen et al. (2007) was used to evaluate the effect size. According to the data obtained from the analysis, it was concluded that the drama method had a moderate (Cohen's d=0.950) effect on skills. No publication bias was found according to the Funnel plot, Rosenthal Safe N, Duval, and Tweedie test results in the studies included in the analysis analyzed. The publication year, publication type, education level, number of samples, geographical region, application week, application hour, and subject area that might have an effect on the effect size were determined and analyzed as moderator variables. It was concluded that the size of the effect of the drama method on skills differed according to the application week, application hour, and subject area moderators, and that it does not change according to the publication year, publication type, education level, number of samples, and geographical region moderators. In the meta-synthesis data, it was determined that drama give students a many skills, especially speaking, writing, and communication skills. In addition, it can be said that the data obtained from both meta-analysis and metasynthesis are compatible with and support each other. The results of the study show that the drama method is effective at enhancing the skills at the basic education level and suggested for the teachers and researchers to use this method in gaining and developing skills.