GORILLA SOCIETY - AN EDUCATIONAL-TOOL TO PROMOTE THE DEVELOPMENT OF GROUP-DYNAMICS IN TEENAGERS

The Department of Conservation Education of the Jersey Wildlife Preser vation Trust was asked to devise a learning activity for a school year group of 14 year old students. The aim of the activity was to rebuild peer groups following the departure of many of the most able students to a specialist school for those intending to take ''A'' levels. The animal collection is the most effective teaching resource available to zoo educators and it provides the opportunity for exploration of a nu mber of curricular topic areas other than the obvious and traditional ''biology'' link. Using the family of western lowland gorillas at Jers ey Zoo as a model, a role play workshop was devised. Students were for med into groups, asked to adopt a specific gorilla role and invited to enact ''A day in the life of a gorilla''. The workshops were recorded on video, shown later to the students, and prizes awarded for the mos t creative and enthusiastic performances. The school later carried out an evaluation with students and with school staff who attended in a s upervisory capacity. The workshops were found to have been extremely s uccessful in assisting students through this transition period.