Zacharias Katsakos
Poet, Performer, Writer, Literary Critic
He studied Modern Greek Philology at the University of Crete and Educational Sciences at the Universities of Athens and Ioannina. He holds D.E.A in Modern Greek Philology and MA in Creative Writing. His scientific and research interests concern the Theory and Teaching of Literature. He collaborates with print and electronic literary magazines, publishing poetry, prose and literary criticism.
PRESENTATION / SPEECH
"From Text to a Learning Event: Performance in Literature and Cross-Currical Teaching at the Upper Secondary Level"
Language: Greek
Abstract
This paper explores the theoretical foundations and pedagogical potential of performance in secondary education, with particular emphasis on the upper secondary level. It is grounded in the premise that learning extends beyond the transmission and reproduction of knowledge and can take shape as a dynamic, embodied, and collective experience through students’ active participation, creative interaction, and the interplay of diverse expressive media.
Drawing on theoretical perspectives from performativity, performance studies, embodied learning, and experiential pedagogy, the paper examines how performative practices can enhance the creative, interpretative, and reflective dimensions of classroom learning.
The paper is structured around two complementary strands. The first focuses on literature teaching, investigating how poetry and prose can be approached performatively through voice, the body, movement, spatial organisation, and interartistic composition. Literary reading is understood as a creative act of interpretation in which the text is not displaced but acquires new possibilities for reception and meaning-making.
The second strand examines performance as a broader cross-curricular pedagogical practice, exploring opportunities for creatively integrating History, Modern Greek Language, the Social and Natural Sciences, Philosophy, and Computer Science through shared learning questions and collaborative performative activities. Particular emphasis is placed on interartistic approaches, the integration of digital technologies, collaborative creation, and the development of critical thinking.
The paper also addresses the prerequisites and limitations of performative approaches, with particular attention to inclusion, alignment with learning objectives, and the assessment of teaching and learning processes.
Its central argument is that performance, when embedded in a coherent pedagogical framework, constitutes more than an alternative teaching technique: it offers an opportunity to reconsider the relationship between students, knowledge, and creative action. From this perspective, learning shifts from passive reception towards the participatory construction of meaning, transforming the classroom into a dynamic space for experience, collaboration, and critical reflection.
Keywords: Performance, performativity, upper secondary education, literature teaching, embodied learning, interartistic practices, cross-curricular teaching, digital technologies.