Enhancing EFL Students’ English Competency Through Drama: A Case Study in a Primary School in China

Abstract

Drama courses are widely set up in K-12 education in Western countries, and drama in education promotes both language acquisition and drama acting in the West. Therefore, in the current K-12 education curriculum in China, the practice of offering English drama courses is in line with the needs of students’ core competencies development. Drawing on the participants’ interview narratives, classroom observations and journals, based upon the case in a foreign language primary school in Guangzhou, China, this study examines how the drama course is carried out and how the students’ English competency is enhanced through the drama course. The enquiry revealed that the drama course had helped promote both students’ language competency and drama acting capacity. These findings will be discussed with suggestions for making setting up drama courses in other schools and cities in China possible.