Using creative drama in teaching English to young learners: Effectiveness on vocabulary development and creative thinking

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate and compare the effectiveness of creative drama and traditional instruction on the vocabulary development and creative thinking skills of young learners of English. The participants were 45 young learners (grade 2, age 7-8) and 2 teachers engaged in the primary English program in a private k-12 school in Istanbul, Turkey. In this quasi-experimental study, data were collected from the experimental group (N=23) engaged in creative drama-based lessons and control group (N=22) exposed to traditional instruction. Data were gathered quantitatively from pre- and post- vocabulary tests, pre- and post- creative thinking skills tests and, qualitatively from teachers’ reflective journals. The findings revealed that creative drama-integrated instruction had a positive effect on the vocabulary development and creative thinking skills of young learners. Finally, the study provides pedagogical implications and recommendations on how to incorporate creative drama in elementary level English classrooms.