When you don’t belong: Using story drama to deepen the understanding of belonging among black international students at University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg

Abstract

The aim of this study was to highlight the potential of story tableau in enabling black international students at the University of Witwatersrand (Wits) to explore the meaning of belonging. Eight black international students who were current students at Wits were purposively recruited into the study and they provided the data for the study. To collect the data, participants were engaged in applied drama exercises and these resulted in the production of still images and a story-drama play. Additional data were collected by engaging the participants on what their participation in the dramatic exercises and the issue of belonging mean for them. The discussions were analysed thematically and the four themes that emerged were: you don’t give what you don’t have; a community that breaks your sense of communality; home will always be our countries and language as a form of exclusion. In addition, nine images relating to the issue of belonging also emerged from the study. In essence, the participants draw attention to the social and contextual factors that play a role in how they perceive themselves within the community of Wits. This study is limited in that, apart from the fact that only few participants participated; they were also engaged for only few hours and this means caution needs to be exercised when extrapolating the findings of the study. However, regardless of the limitations, the value of this research is that dramatic techniques have the potential of revealing taken for granted assumptions about issues such as belonging.