Table Of ContentADVANCING
YOUNG
PEOPLE’S
METHODOLOGIES:
ARTICULATING
CITIZENSHIP
DISCOURSES
WITHIN
“SAFE
SPACES”
THROUGH
THEATRE
Wong
Yingqi
Claudia
(B.
Soc
Sciences
(Hons.),
NUS)
A
THESIS
SUBMITTED
FOR
THE
DEGREE
OF
MASTER
OF
SOCIAL
SCIENCE
DEPARTMENT
OF
GEOGRAPHY
NATIONAL
UNIVERSITY
OF
SINGAPORE
2014
Declaration
I
hereby
declare
that
this
thesis
is
my
original
work
and
it
has
been
written
by
me
in
its
entirety.
I
have
duly
acknowledged
all
the
sources
of
information
which
have
been
used
in
the
thesis.
This
thesis
has
also
not
been
submitted
for
any
degree
in
any
university
previously.
__________________________________
Wong
Yingqi
Claudia
22
August
2014
v
Acknowledgements
This
thesis
is
dedicated
to
the
participants
and
facilitators
whose
support
and
enthusiasm
really
made
this
work
truly
magical.
Those
were
still
one
of
the
best
times
I
had
throughout
the
course
of
my
masters.
Thank
you
for
letting
me
into
your
world.
I
would
like
to
also
extend
my
deepest
gratitude
to
Associate
Professor
Tracey
Skelton
for
her
sharp
eye
for
detail
and
strong
support
for
this
project
from
conceptualisation
till
the
end.
Thank
you
for
showing
me
the
ropes
of
doing
research
with
young
people
throughout
my
masters
as
well
as
providing
many
wonderful
opportunities.
This
study
also
benefitted
greatly
from
the
National
Arts
Council
Research
and
Development
Fund
and
the
Geography
Department’s
Graduate
Research
Student
Support
Scheme.
The
support
given
from
the
staff
at
the
National
Arts
Council
has
been
impeccable,
for
which
I
am
also
grateful.
I
would
also
want
to
acknowledge
the
generous
support
of
the
various
theatre
practitioners,
especially
the
Singapore
Drama
Educators
Association
2013
Conference
organising
committee
for
allowing
me
to
observe
the
various
theatre
sessions.
They
have
given
me
much
needed
exposure
for
me
to
understand
the
intricate
workings
within
theatre.
I
am
grateful
for
the
patience,
understanding
and
concern
of
my
loved
ones
and
friends.
Needless
to
say,
they
have
been
my
pillars
of
support
and
of
course,
much
needed
lightness.
To
the
actors
and
production
crew
of
NUS
Stage
–
I
owe
it
all
to
you
guys
for
the
opportunity
to
immerse
myself
fully
in
theatre.
You
have
all
been
so
forgiving
and
kind
to
my
inexperience.
Thank
you
all,
for
your
encouragements
to
me
when
I
was
a
director,
assistant
stage
manager
and
one-‐time
“sai
gang1
warrior.”
Lastly,
I
would
like
to
give
a
shout-‐out
to
Serene
Ng,
Rachel
Bok
and
Rachel
Oh
for
patiently
listening
to
my
research
struggles
and
for
being
such
supportive
(drinking)
friends
and
colleagues
in
graduate
school.
1
Sai
gang
(屎工):
Singlish
expression
that
originates
from
the
Hokkien
colloquial
expression
of
adhoc,
menial,
and
sometimes
demeaning
labour.
Its
literal
meaning
is
“shit
work.”
vi
Table
of
Contents
DECLARATION
V
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
VI
ABSTRACT
IX
LIST
OF
FIGURES,
TABLES
AND
ABBREVIATIONS
X
CHAPTER
ONE:
INTRODUCTION
1.1
OVERVIEW
1
1.2
DOING
INTERDISCIPLINARY
STUDIES
WITHIN
CHILDREN
AND
YOUNG
PEOPLE’S
GEOGRAPHIES
1
1.3
SITE
OF
STUDY:
SINGAPORE’S
YOUNG
PEOPLE
3
1.4
RESEARCH
OBJECTIVES
AND
ARGUMENTS
6
1.5
CONCEPTUAL
FRAMEWORK
7
1.6
THESIS
ORGANISATION
8
CHAPTER
TWO:
A
STATE
THAT
WAYANGS
OVER
BOPIAN
SINGAPOREANS
2.1
INTRODUCTION
10
2.2
THE
INFANT
CITIZEN
AND
THE
PATERNAL
STATE
10
2.3
A
MULTIFARIOUS
CIVIC
LANDSCAPE
AND
THE
(MISSING)
VOICES
OF
YOUNG
PEOPLE
22
CHAPTER
THREE:
LITERATURE
REVIEW
3.1
INTRODUCTION
25
3.2
TRANSITIONS
IN
CITIZENSHIP:
THE
POLITICS
OF
AGE
27
3.3
CIVIC
FRIENDSHIP
AND
GEOGRAPHY
40
3.4
CHILDREN’S
AND
YOUNG
PEOPLE’S
GEOGRAPHIES,
PARTICIPATORY
ACTION
RESEARCH
AND
THEATRE
45
3.5
SUMMARY
50
CHAPTER
FOUR:
METHODOLOGY
4.1
INTRODUCTION
52
4.2
METHODOLOGICAL
FRAMEWORKS:
PAYING
ATTENTION
TO
SAFE
RESEARCH
SPACES
AND
CREATING
SAFE
SPACES
OF
RESEARCH
52
4.3
OUTLINE
OF
METHODS
AND
CONSIDERATIONS
56
4.4
EVALUATION
OF
THEATRE
METHODS
IN
GEOGRAPHY
67
4.5
SUMMARY
78
CHAPTER
FIVE:
YOUNG
PEOPLE’S
UNDERSTANDINGS
OF
CITIZENSHIP
5.1
INTRODUCTION
79
5.2
EVIDENCE
OF
RESULTS
FROM
A
MORAL-‐CITIZENSHIP
CURRICULUM
79
5.3
YOUNG
PEOPLE’S
UNDERSTANDING
OF
FORMAL
POLITICAL
PROCESSES
87
5.4
“THREATS”
TO
CITIZENSHIP
92
5.5
SUMMARY
98
CHAPTER
SIX:
STORIES
OF
CITIZENSHIP
99
6.1
INTRODUCTION
99
vii
6.2
GOOD
BEHAVIOUR,
CONDITIONAL
CITIZENSHIPS
100
6.3
GENERATING
DISEMPOWERED
BOPIAN
CITIZENS
110
6.4
DRAWING
UPON
SOCIAL
CAPITAL:
FRIENDSHIP
IN
CITIZENSHIP
114
6.5
SUMMARY
121
CHAPTER
SEVEN:
CONCLUSION
7.1
INTRODUCTION
123
7.2
SUMMATIVE
REVIEW
123
7.3
SUGGESTED
AREAS
FOR
FUTURE
RESEARCH
127
BIBLIOGRAPHY
130
APPENDICES
APPENDIX
A.
DESCRIPTION
OF
THEATRE
METHODS
AND
OUTLINE
OF
SESSION
140
APPENDIX
B.
JUMPING
FAITH
144
APPENDIX
C.
NOTITLE
155
APPENDIX
D.
BOXES
170
APPENDIX
E.
THE
MENERA
183
APPENDIX
F.
SECTION
5:
AGGREGATE
COMPUTATION
&
SUBJECT
DESCRIPTIONS
195
viii
Abstract
Geographical
research
with
young
people
has
been
one
of
the
most
innovative
of
the
sub-‐disciplines
in
terms
of
methodological
experimentation.
These
innovations
are
designed
to
challenge
the
inevitable
power
relations
that
exist
between
adult
researchers
and
young
people
as
research
participants.
This
thesis
aims
to
push
these
developments
further
by
exploring
the
use
of
theatre
as
a
medium
for
young
people
to
articulate
their
citizenship
politics
through
participatory
action
research
within
social
and
cultural
geography.
It
highlights
the
importance
of
using
creative
methods
to
understand
young
people’s
citizenry
politics
in
Singapore.
These
methods
create
a
“safe
space”
outside
of
formal
institutions
for
them
to
articulate
their
views
and
bypass
issues
of
self-‐censorship
in
a
punitive
political
climate.
This
was
executed
through
a
theatre
workshop
with
a
small
group
of
young
people
(ages
14-‐19
years
old)
that
comprised
improvised
games,
script
writing
and
acting/director
activities.
Using
these
creative
methods,
this
thesis
I)
explores
the
ways
in
which
young
Singaporeans
understand
and
negotiate
the
values
taught
in
mainstream
citizenship
education
and
ii)
illustrates
the
citizenship
issues
that
are
of
importance
to
young
people
today.
ix
List
of
Figures
Page
4
–
Figure
1.
Education
Pathway
from
MOE
Education
Digest
2013
Page
38
–
Figure
2.
Infocomm
Development
Authority
of
Singapore
Page
59
–
Figure
3.
Warm
up
before
Chamber
Reading
Page
69
–
Figure
4.
Script
Reading
Session
Page
70
–
Figure
5.
Forum
Theatre
Session
Page
101
–
Figure
6.
Cheryl
is
reprimanding
Bryan
Page
107
–
Figure
7.
John
and
Audrey
List
of
Tables
Page
57-‐58
–
Table
1.
Participants’
Profile
and
Roles
Page
61
–
Table
2.
Profile
of
Facilitators
Page
84-‐85
–
Table
3.
Responses
towards
Social
Studies
Page
91-‐92
–
Table
4.
Responses
from
Image
Theatre
List
of
Abbreviations
AT:
Applied
Theatre
CYPG:
Children
and
Young
People’s
Geographies
ITE:
Institute
of
Technical
Education
MDA:
Media
and
Development
Authority
MOE:
Ministry
of
Education
NAC:
National
Arts
Council
NE:
National
Education
PAP:
People’s
Action
Party
PAR:
Participatory
Action
Research
WP:
Workers’
Party
YP:
Young
People
x
Chapter
One:
Introduction
1.1 Overview
This
thesis
undertakes
an
interdisciplinary
perspective
of
children’s
young
people’s
geographies
(henceforth
as
CYPG),
theatre
and
citizenship
to
argue
for
interdisciplinary
studies
that
extend
beyond
a
perspective
to
instead,
be
performed
in
practice.
It
critically
analyses
the
potential
for
theatre
as
a
method
in
doing
research
with
young
people
(henceforth
YP)
in
terms
of
creating
a
safe
space
for
young
Singaporeans’
political
participation
and
empowerment
within
research.
As
there
is
a
lot
of
ground
to
cover
in
this
thesis,
let
us
begin
by
first
situating
the
role
of
interdisciplinary
studies
in
CYPG.
1.2
Doing
Interdisciplinary
Studies
within
Children
and
Young
People’s
Geographies
Within
geography,
discussion
of
interdisciplinary
work
often
covers
climate
change
and
the
confluence
between
human
and
physical
geography
(see
Massey,
1999;
Thrift
2002;
Harrison
et
al.
2004).
Due
to
the
diverse
nature
of
interdisciplinary
work
within
geography,
Lau
and
Pasquini
(2008:559)
urge
geographers
to
remove
certain
preconceptions
of
interdisciplinary
work
as
“Jack
of
all
trades”
and
to
start
recognizing
ourselves
as
“master
of
several.”
Interdisciplinary
work
is
not
new
in
geography,
since
cross-‐pollination
to
some
extent
already
happens
within
social
sciences,
as
theories
are
being
discussed
and
explored
in
a
variety
of
ways.
However,
geographers
may
have
been
less
forthcoming
in
terms
of
expounding
the
ways
to
do
interdisciplinary
work.
1
Kallio
(2007)
tried
to
address
this
gap
by
urging
CYPG
to
conceptualise
YP’s
activities
and
tactics
through
a
performative
lens,
which
she
argues,
will
enable
the
crossing
of
disciplinary
borders
that
may
lead
to
new
theoretical
avenues
in
childhood
research.
Within
geography,
this
has
been
carried
out
by
adopting
creative
methodologies
to
work
with
YP
on
an
array
of
issues
to
push
for
research
that
is
as
empowering
as
it
is
enlightening
(some
examples
include
Mattingly,
2001;
Veale,
2005;
Weller,
2006a;
MacNaughton
et
al,
2007;
Barker
and
Smith
2012;
Robinson
and
Gillies,
2012).
Yet,
employing
creative
methodologies
in
interdisciplinary
work
raises
serious
considerations
for
researchers
and
participants.
For
instance,
questions
of
what
constitutes
‘creative
methodologies’
have
not
been
sufficiently
explored.
Mitchell
and
Elwood
(2012)
have
questioned
if
non-‐representational
theory’s
pre-‐
occupation
with
performativity
when
employing
‘creative’
methods,
can
have
potentially
depoliticizing
consequences
for
YP.
There
is
a
sense
of
urgency
within
CYPG
to
contend
with
alternative
ways
of
doing
interdisciplinary
work
that
engages
with
performativity,
as
well
as
formulating
and
conceptualising
creative
performative
methodologies
to
create
empowering
research
with
YP.
Instead
of
treating
performative
methodologies
as
an
exotic
other,
I
argue
that
such
questions
can
be
addressed
by
immersing
oneself
in
the
practice
of
both
disciplines
and
literally,
‘get
down
to
doing
(theatre)’
as
a
means
to
gain
an
emic
perspective.
2
1.3
Site
of
Study:
Singapore’s
Young
People
Interdisciplinary
research
can
be
highly
geographical
because
of
its
sensitivity
to
local
contexts.
Since
not
all
YP
are
the
same,
it
is
important
to
provide
a
brief
background
to
the
experiences
of
YP
in
Singapore.
I
demonstrate
this
by
illustrating
Singapore’s
education
system,
where
the
large
majority
of
Singaporeans
(and
my
participants
are
no
exception)
experience
formal
instruction
on
citizenship.
Most
young
Singaporeans
(91.6%) 2
enroll
in
government
or
government
aided
schools
where
almost
all
take
the
syllabus
drawn
up
by
the
Ministry
of
Education
and
Singapore
Examinations
and
Assessment
Board.
The
educational
pathways
that
the
majority
of
young
Singaporeans
follow
for
the
O’levels
are
shaded
in
the
figure
below.
2
Statistics
calculated
from
the
Ministry
of
Education’s
Education
Statistics
Digest
2013.
3
Description:studied how intergenerational relations were negotiated where friendship 75 A testimonial play devised by Alfian Sa'at who interviewed and.
