The opportunities and challenges of drama in education in Chinese kindergartens

With the introduction of drama in education and creative drama in China in the late twentieth century, drama in education has become a new practice and research hotspot in the field of education. However, children’s theatre performance and dramatic acting training have for a long time been the main form of Chinese preschool drama education and still have a noticeable impact. In this article, we explore how drama in education can improve and expand Chinese kindergarten teachers’ teaching repertoire and how it can contribute to children’s interpersonal development. This design-based study uses interventions in the form of drama in education workshops in a Chinese kindergarten. By undertaking these workshops, observing workshop participants and interviewing teachers and children, we have found that drama in education supports children’s language learning and helps develop their individual self-awareness. In addition, it also provides multiple new methods of teaching and thus promotes teachers’ individual growth as professionals in the kindergarten classroom. In terms of kindergarten curriculum reform, this study aims to contribute to the current developments and debates about teaching, learning and overall education.