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Jackie

Curriculum and Pedagogy

How to Help All Students with Evidence-based Reading and Writing During an Inquiry Activity

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Jackie

A Postmodern Analysis of a Primary 5 Social Studies Chapter

Author/s:

Brenda Ng

Brenda Ng (Rivervale Primary School, Singapore) Keywords Social Studies Primary School Curriculum Postmodern theory helps us examine how and why particular pasts are constructed, legitimated and disseminated (Segall, 2006). Postmodern theory includes deconstructionism, whereby meaning and values are constructed using binary oppositions that represent certain ideologies and the role of power in the society to privilege […]

Brenda Ng (Rivervale Primary School, Singapore)

Keywords
Social Studies
Primary School
Curriculum

Postmodern theory helps us examine how and why particular pasts are constructed, legitimated and disseminated (Segall, 2006). Postmodern theory includes deconstructionism, whereby meaning and values are constructed using binary oppositions that represent certain ideologies and the role of power in the society to privilege certain terms over others (Khezerloo, 2010). In this article, I use postmodern theory to analyze the Primary 5 Social Studies chapter, “Singapore’s Journey to Self-Government.” I focus on the binary opposites presented in the text, the relevant political and social contexts, and the language used to persuade readers.

The chapter discusses David Marshall’s government, its lack of full control over Singapore’s internal affairs, and the problems it faced due to the lack of support from the British powers and the Communist challenge. In particular, the chapter features the Hock Lee Bus Riots in order to highlight the seriousness of the problems caused by the Communists. The chapter goes on to talk about David Marshall’s quest to gain full internal self-government from Britain through the Merdeka talks. The next section of the chapter highlights Lim Yew Hock succeeding Marshall as Singapore’s Second Chief Minister and the strict measures he took against Communist-led organizations. His tough stand against the Communists pleased the British who granted full internal self-government to Singapore in the 1959 election. Subsequently, the PAP under Lee Kuan Yew emerged victorious with the most votes and formed the new government. The chapter then concludes by explaining the areas of responsibility of the Elected Government and the British Government.

Binary Opposites in the Chapter
A few binary opposites can be identified in the chapter, such as colonialism and communism, the British government and the Singapore government, the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) and other political parties, and lastly, an active government and its passive people. In this section, I focus on two binary opposites: (1) the idea of an active government and a passive people; and (2) the PAP and other political parties.

Active government versus passive people
Hong and Huang (2008) state that Singapore’s history is narrowly focused on leadership struggles that emphasize the triumph of the morally upright PAP over the communists. Focusing on Singapore’s struggle for government, the text presents the government’s perspective and highlights the actions taken at the bureaucratic level to achieve full internal self-government. It neglects the people’s voices and portrays voting as their only passive means of participation in the journey of self-government. The chapter, however, leaves out the issue of how self-government can affect and benefit its people. Notably, despite the absence of the peoples’ voices, a question appears on page 29 asking pupils to discuss how they think the people of Singapore felt during the election rallies in 1959. Given the omission of sources representing different perspectives, it is unlike that primary school pupils would be able to relate to the 1959 experience simply via the official perspective and conduct a meaningful discussion of this issue.

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A Space for Social Justice in Geography Education?

Author/s:

Seng Lee Lee

Seng Lee Lee (Dunman High School, Singapore) Keywords Geography Secondary School Curriculum The push for more attention on social justice in geography education has gained a stronger sense of urgency and greater coherence in recent decades. This has occurred in tandem with increasing attention paid by geographers to what this discipline, perceived by some as inherently […]

Seng Lee Lee (Dunman High School, Singapore)

Keywords
Geography
Secondary School
Curriculum

The push for more attention on social justice in geography education has gained a stronger sense of urgency and greater coherence in recent decades. This has occurred in tandem with increasing attention paid by geographers to what this discipline, perceived by some as inherently concerned with injustice and disparity (Smith, 1994; Merrett, 2000), can do to contribute to a more equitable world. This push for what Kirman (2003) termed as “transformative geography” (p. 93) in education calls for teachers to introduce students to the geographical aspects of social justice and focus on how these issues are located at a number of interconnected geographic scales (local, regional, state and international). This will allow students to practice the “discipline of geography for the well-being of people and the environment in order to improve the world” (p. 93).

However this endeavor has been met with ambivalence and hostility in some quarters due to worries about the devaluation and displacement of what is perceived to be core geographical knowledge in favor of other kinds of content more closely linked to active citizenship and social justice outcomes. This worry that Geography will be “emptied of content rooted in the conceptual frameworks of the subject” or “be regarded as a convenient ‘vehicle’ for broader general competences such as ‘thinking skills’” (Huckle, 1983) has fed suspicion of the push for attention on social justice. The purpose of this paper, therefore, is to explore spaces of possibilities in the incoming Geography Ordinary ‘O’ Level Syllabus 2014 for teachers to engage students with social justice, to examine teachers’ perspectives on the viability of this endeavor, and to how a balance may be reached to address this simmering issue. This balance, however, may not be able to replace the need for a fundamental resolution, at least in the Singapore context, on the direction(s) that Geography education needs to take in order to retain its relevance in a changing world (Chang, 2011).

This paper is divided in four main parts and begins with a brief review and discussion of pertinent literature on the discussion of the utility of geography in furthering the aims of social justice. The next section provides a discussion on the incoming ‘O’ Level Geography syllabus (2014) with regard to spaces (whether consciously created or indirectly opened up) in the document for geography teachers to engage or even promote social justice from syllabus themes and suggested resources. The third component augments the second section and focuses on findings from interviews about teachers’ perspectives on the efficacy of Geography for the social justice agenda and relevant pedagogical approaches. The key findings show that teachers feel a sense of insecurity with regard to the limits of advocacy for social justice. There is also tension between urging for more prominence for social justice and being labelled as moralistic. This paper concludes with a call for a more flexible curriculum supported by the Ministry of Education and for greater teacher agency and autonomy to incorporate social justice in their practice and spark students’ curiosity and engagement with the wider community.

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Using Film in Historical Inquiry: As Medium, as Evidence, for Empathy

Author/s:

Jeremy Stoddard

Jeremy Stoddard (College of William & Mary, USA) Keywords History Junior College Inquiry Concept Film Prespectives Though often portrayed as a clichéd example of poor history pedagogy, there is now ample research and numerous models of best practice to support the use of film in an inquiry-based history curriculum. In this article I present best practice […]

Jeremy Stoddard (College of William & Mary, USA)

Keywords
History
Junior College
Inquiry
Concept
Film
Prespectives

Though often portrayed as a clichéd example of poor history pedagogy, there is now ample research and numerous models of best practice to support the use of film in an inquiry-based history curriculum. In this article I present best practice models and practical examples of using film as a medium to engage students in inquiry. In doing so, I will attempt to answer the following questions:

What happens when film portrays history, and especially controversial events?
What are some effective goals and models for teaching with film?
How does film act as a historical text or as historical evidence?
How should I select films and structure film-based lessons?

History on Film
History is always shaped by the context in which it was recorded and constrained by the perspectives and evidence it contains. Similarly, any time a film is made to represent historical events, issues or peoples, whether it is a documentary or fictitious, it should be viewed as containing “perspective laden-narratives” (Hess, 2007). This is because films are: 1) made by people with particular views and within a particular context, 2) often based on written accounts that are compressed or adapted using dramatic liberty due to the need to fit the narrative and time constraints of film, and 3) usually driven with profit in mind – and thus need to attract an audience.

Further, because of the need to represent narratives that extend over long periods of time, great distances, or multiple perspectives, films also rely on genre conventions to help the audience follow the narrative and keep track of what is going on. This is why war movies often include stock characters such as the tough sergeant, or rely on cinematic effects such as lighting and music to help the audience identify the hero and villain easily. These conventions can be limited to particular audiences, such as those from the particular language, national, or cultural group for whom the film is intended, and may be interpreted very differently by audience members from outside of this intended audience. Regardless of whether or not a person is a member of an intended audience, however, every individual may interpret or understand aspects of the film differently based on their own knowledge of the events or people being represented, their experience in viewing film, or as a matter of personal preference.

Documentary films can be particularly problematic as they are often viewed as being objective accounts of the past because they include interviews with experts, film of actual events, and are most akin to written history. However, these films are still the result of thousands of decisions made by the film’s director and editor and are also reflective of particular genre conventions that shape the story being told. Historically, documentary style film has been a medium of propaganda used to influence audiences on political and social issues.

This does not mean that films are not useful as either historical accounts or as historical evidence. As films are shaped by people from particular contexts (e.g., time, place), and with particular views, they serve as a reflection or artifact documenting different time periods and societies. They serve as historical evidence of particular values, interpretations, and material culture. They also serve as a medium for historiography and for raising particular historical questions or controversial issues.

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“No One Icon”: Secondary Students’ Judgments of Significant Representations of Singapore

Author/s:

Syazwani Binte Amrun

Syazwani Binte Amrun (Raffles Girls’ School) Keywords History Junior College Singapore Representation Significance Concept This study was designed to explore how students in a secondary school make sense about the significance of different representations of Singapore, and to examine their ideas on what they conceived as icons of Singapore. The research was conducted in a premier […]

Syazwani Binte Amrun (Raffles Girls’ School)

Keywords
History
Junior College
Singapore Representation
Significance
Concept

This study was designed to explore how students in a secondary school make sense about the significance of different representations of Singapore, and to examine their ideas on what they conceived as icons of Singapore. The research was conducted in a premier all-girls’ school in Singapore. The data used in this study was derived from semi-structured interviews that included both a task requiring students to choose from among a set of thirty captioned images, and a set of questions designed to elicit their understanding of significant representations of Singapore. Twelve students, aged 14 to 15 years old, were interviewed in groups of either three or four per group.

The key question guiding this study was “What is the icon of Singapore today?” In order to address this question, students were expected to work with the concept of significance in history. Although the question did not specifically require students to refer to their knowledge of Singapore’s history or to have them make connections with representations of Singapore’s past, student responses may shed light on the way they think about the country’s past, and enable us to build a picture about how they perceive their identity and the country’s heritage. By identifying items they believed were iconic representations of Singapore, students’ responses appeared to reveal the kind of values they held about the country and the means by which they identified themselves as Singaporeans. The findings from this study will be useful for educators in planning programmes that would enhance our students’ understanding of specific icons and cultivate in them a deeper appreciation for Singapore.

Research Methods
Setting and Participants
This study involved interviews with twelve students from three different Year Three classes, with the age of participants ranging from 14 to 15 years old. These students were selected to participate in this study as they had all completed one year of studying Singapore’s history in Year Two. The decision to select Year Three students also was made with the assumption that participants would have a basic knowledge of Singapore’s history as their understanding of the milestones in Singapore’s history may affect their perception of what they conceived as iconic of Singapore. All the students involved in the study were Singapore citizens except for two who were Singapore Permanent Residents (PR). The students selected consisted of both high and average achievers within their history classes, and the selection also took into consideration the ethnic backgrounds of the participants. Students were interviewed in fours largely due to convenience as these interviews were conducted during breaks in their curriculum time. The first group of students consisted of two ethnic Chinese Singaporeans and two ethnic Indians (one of whom was a PR from India); the second group of students consisted of 4 ethnic Chinese Singaporeans; and the last group consisted of one ethnic Chinese Singaporean student and three ethnic Malay students (one of whom was a PR from Indonesia). For more information of the participants, refer to Appendix A.

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Historical Concepts and National Examinations: Have O-Level Structured-Essay Questions Encouraged the Teaching of Historical Concepts?

Author/s:

Jackie

HSSE Online

Index

Jackie

Authors List

Authors List

How to Help All Students with Evidence-based Reading and Writing During an Inquiry Activity

A Postmodern Analysis of a Primary 5 Social Studies Chapter

A Space for Social Justice in Geography Education?

Using Film in Historical Inquiry: As Medium, as Evidence, for Empathy

“No One Icon”: Secondary Students’ Judgments of Significant Representations of Singapore

Historical Concepts and National Examinations: Have O-Level Structured-Essay Questions Encouraged the Teaching of Historical Concepts?

HSSE Online

HSSE Online