Role-Playing in the Classroom: Gender Differences in Reactions of Bahraini Students

Faculty at Bahrain Teachers’ College were concerned that their students lacked the ability to succeed in educational contexts designed to promote deep, or active, student-centered, learning. Deep learning is an educational approach that involves critical analysis, the linking of ideas and concepts, creative problem solving, and application. The researcher introduced role-playing to encourage more active learning among the students and to assess gender differences in their reactions to a method that requires a great deal of open-mindedness and risk-taking. Results indicated a high satisfaction rate and few gender differences in reactions towards role-playing, with uniquely interesting implications for both educational institutions and gender studies.