How to Write a Radio Serial Drama for Social Development- PDF

Chapter Two: Writing Begins: The Writer’s Brief 15
• Be motivated to discuss the ideas with family and community members;
• Know where to go to obtain further information; and
• Be willing and ready to adopt the behavior.
The audience is not expected to learn and recall specific technical details, as
they are in a technical knowledge series.
For example: A nontechnical radio drama produced in Indonesia was
designed to introduce the concept of a prosperous family and to
encourage listeners to take steps to overcome poverty. The program,
entitled Butir Butir Pasir Di Laut (Grains of Sand in the Sea), sought to:
2
• Help community members understand a new term: “the prosperous
family;”
• Encourage community members and midwives to use the term;
• Explain the main characteristics of “the prosperous family;”
• Encourage listeners to talk with local health workers about “the
prosperous family;”
• Instruct listeners in how to apply for government start-up loans so
they could become involved in small businesses of their own.
The only specific facts the audience was required to learn were where to go
for more information on making your family prosperous and how to apply
for a government loan.
Technical Knowledge Programs
Technical knowledge programs are designed to teach specific skills and new
practices to a chosen audience. They are frequently used for distance
education, with listeners expected to recall the information accurately and
use it correctly. Before preparing this type of program, researchers must
measure as precisely as possible the existing knowledge, attitudes, and
practices of a sample of the chosen audience. At the serial's end, the
audience's acquisition of new technical information is measured once again
for any change.
For example: The Bangladeshi radio magazine, Under the Green
Umbrella, included a serial drama designed to reinforce field workers'
skills. Other segments of the radio program gave field workers specific
training in working with community members, counseling couples on
child spacing, and assisting clients with difficulties they might experience
during contraceptive use. These skills were then demonstrated and
reinforced in the drama. Field workers who listened to the drama were
expected to learn and be able to use:
• Specific interpersonal communication skills;
• Detailed knowledge of how to help clients choose and use
contraceptive methods; and
• Particular steps to take to reach and work with community members
to encourage both personal and community development.