Exploring the use of negotiation skills through creative drama for young learners: A case study

This descriptive case study aims to explore the contribution of creative drama for young learners in terms of the use of negotiation skills in an English as a foreign language classroom in a state primary school. This case study was conducted with 24 participants who were 4th-grade students in a state primary school. To collect data, an observation checklist, field note, and student journals were used. Observation checklists were used to find out the contribution of creative drama for young learners to use negotiation skills. Additionally, field notes were used to report participants' learning experiences concerning the contribution of creative drama in terms of the use of negotiation skills during the conversations. Furthermore, student journals were used to reveal participants' feelings about creative drama activities. Descriptive analysis was fulfilled to analyze the quantitative data and qualitative data. The results obtained from the observation checklists indicated that the negotiation skills were used heavily through creative drama. Moreover, field notes demonstrated the contribution of creative drama in terms of participants' use of negotiation skills. Furthermore, student journals also provided shreds of evidence for the positive contribution of creative drama in terms of the use of negotiation skills. To conclude, data results obtained from this study revealed that creative drama contributed to participants' negotiating meaning and managing interaction in communication in a foreign language classroom.