School of Creative
Industries
T.Sangitha
Sangitha aspires to pursue a career in the education sector, specifically arts in education. She is interested in exploring and encouraging the infusion of different art forms in the teaching of core subjects in Singapore. Sangitha has always been intrigued by the realm of arts and its everlasting influence on one’s learning journey.
Her thesis 'Enhancing ‘Drama in Education’ in Singapore’s Primary Core Curriculum' demonstrates that drama in education can be enhanced in schools by providing teachers with ongoing school-based professional development that fosters collaborations between teachers and co-creation with students in a student-centred learning environment. Her research also discovered that drama in education can be enhanced by increasing its awareness through research and documentation.
Thesis abstract
Enhancing drama in education in Singapore primary schools through collaboration and co-creation: a case study of National Arts Council's Teaching Through the Arts programme
As Singapore looks towards cultivating 21st century learners, there has been increasing support for student-centred learning, through collaborations and co-creation in primary schools. To this end, primary teachers have been implementing unconventional and innovative teaching methods such as drama in education in classrooms, to an extent. While there is much potential for this approach to be enhanced in schools, teachers face several impediments to implementing drama in education in classrooms. From an arts management standpoint, how can this research encourage collaborations between the arts and education sectors in Singapore to better aid primary teachers in enhancing drama in education?
This research analyses the Teaching Through the Arts programme for teachers’ professional development to enhance teacher competencies, drama knowledge and efficacy, so as to effectively incorporate drama into their teaching practice. Literature reviews, interviews and a survey were employed as research methods to ensure a multi-pronged analysis of the research problem. The research findings recommend tangible approaches and ideas that can be actualised in schools to promote teaching through drama. This research can be used in the context of curriculum planning and development in the field of arts education and/or arts in education to further boost arts-based education in Singapore.