Rimi Parvin Khan
Department of Communications and New Media,
Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS), NUS
Khan, R. P. (2024). Cultivating student wellbeing and skills: The role of arts and cultural participation in student development [Paper presentation]. In Higher Education Conference in Singapore (HECS) 2024, 3 December, National University of Singapore. https://blog.nus.edu.sg/hecs/hecs2024-rimikhan/
SUB-THEME
Opportunities from Wellbeing
KEYWORDS
Co-curricular activities, arts and cultural participation, skills, wellbeing
CATEGORY
Paper Presentation
EXTENDED ABSTRACT
Institutional conversations about student wellbeing are leading to a greater emphasis on co-curricular activities. There is growing recognition of the multi-dimensionality of student wellbeing, including the need for students’ ‘self-actualisation’ as part of their university experience (Baik & Larcombe, 2023). This paper explores the particular role that cultural participation plays within these practices of self-actualisation.
‘Culture’ is a broad and ambiguous term that is used to describe both ‘art’ (Arnold, 1869) and ‘ordinary’ practices of identity- and meaning-making (Williams, 1958; Ang, 1993). In both the Singapore and international policy contexts, ‘cultural participation’ encompasses activities ranging from music, literature, audio-visual and new media, as well as sports and other leisure activities. For several decades, cultural studies scholars and policymakers have been debating the impact of cultural participation, and whether these can, or should, be tied to a range of creative, cultural, or economic objectives (Galloway, 2006; Miles & Gibson, 2016; Yue & Khan, 2014). Over this period, economic justifications for arts and cultural participation have come to the fore, emphasising the importance of creative industries in contributing to national economies.
It is in this context that my research, which is part of a larger collaborative project funded by the Australian Research Council (ARC LP200301027), explores the role of arts and cultural participation in contributing to transferable skill development for the future economy.
The paper discusses NUS co-curricular activities (CCAs) as both facilitating student wellbeing and contributing to transferable skill development, highlighting the potential tensions that arise between these goals. It draws on qualitative research with students involved in NUS Centre for the Arts’ CCA programmes. University-based student clubs supporting a range of arts and creative activities have long been part of the student experience in Singapore. These clubs, ranging from music ensembles to theatre and performing arts groups, provide students with opportunities to engage in creative expression and collaboration outside the formal academic curriculum. This paper examines the role of these CCAs in the cultivation of skills such as critical thinking, social and cultural awareness, problem-solving, and collaboration, aligning with the World Economic Forum’s 21st Century Skills Framework and the Singaporean government’s ‘SkillsFuture’ policy, both of which directly inform curriculum and labour market planning. The research asks: 1) How do young people acquire 21st-century skills through arts participation?; 2) Why do young people participate in CCA arts activities?; and 3) What are the longer-term vocational outcomes and career pathways for young people who participate in these activities?
The data suggests that creative participation does lead to such skills and contributes not only to students’ ‘lifelong’ but also to ‘lifewide’ learning (Barnett, 2011), emphasising individuals’ holistic development. However, students do not necessarily see the value of their CCA participation in these terms and are more ambivalent about the contribution of these activities to their longer-term employment trajectories. The paper asks whether activities that promote wellbeing should be tied to economic and educational outcomes, or whether they should offer a space for personal development that exists outside these objectives. Is such a space possible given the competitive structures of educational and career attainment that students participate in? Given these questions and tensions, how might we best advocate for students’ cultural participation and the continuing value of CCAs?
REFERENCES
Arnold, M. (1994). Culture and anarchy. 1869. Ed. Samuel Lipman. Yale UP, 1, 164.
Baik, C., & Larcombe, W. (2023). Student wellbeing and students’ experiences in higher education. In Research Handbook on the Student Experience in Higher Education. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Barnett, R. (2011). Lifewide education: A new and transformative concept for higher education. Learning for a Complex World: A Lifewide Concept of Learning, Education and Personal Development, 22-38.
Williams, R. (2011). Culture is ordinary (1958). Cultural theory: An anthology, 5359.
Ang, I. (1993). To be or not to be Chinese: Diaspora, culture and postmodern ethnicity. Asian Journal of Social Science, 21(1), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1163/030382493X00017
Galloway, S. (2006). Cultural participation and individual quality of life: A review of research findings. Applied Research in Quality of Life, 1, 323-342. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11482-007-9024-4
Miles, A., & Gibson, L. (2016). Everyday participation and cultural value. Cultural Trends, 25(3), 151-157. https://doi.org/10.1080/09548963.2016.1204043
Yue, A., & Khan, R. (2014). Accounting for multiculturalism: the utility of cultural indicators and the politics of diversity and participation. Conjunctions, 1(1), 1-28. https://doi.org/10.7146/tjcp.v1i1.18600