Use of museum and artifact based fieldtrips in the teaching of ancient singapore

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Chapter 11
A Case Study on the Incorporation
of Museum and Artifact-Based Fieldtrips
in the Teaching of Ancient Singapore
History: Teacher Reflections and Student
Learning
Lloyd Yeo, Sazryna Lee Samsudin, Cherie Heng, Ezal bin Sani,
and Teddy Y.H. Sim
Abstract Although there is no large-scale and coherent survey available on teacher-
1
guided history fieldtrips in Singapore, recent exploratory case studies have emerged
2
on the use of museums in the teaching of premodern Singapore history. This chapter
3
seeks to locate the efforts of a group of history teachers in the context of collaboration
4
with academic and professional bodies as well as a Networked Learning Commu-
5
nity who systematically sought to incorporate museum-based learning and embed
6
such teaching resources in the teaching of ancient Singapore history. Using Activity
7
Theory (AT) as a learning theory to explore these networks of collaboration, the
8
learning networks that were established showed that such approaches could lead to a
9
more effective co-creation of knowledge outcome for practitioner inquiry and have
10
some positive outcomes for student learning. Data was collected from teacher reflec-
11
tions and surveys as a basic unit of analysis and from students to gauge how they
12
benefited from such learning approaches. The analysis of teacher responses showed
13
that there was increased teacher confidence in the teaching of ancient Singapore
14
history, and students derived direct and indirect benefits from a networked system
15
L. Yeo (B)
The Academy of Singapore Teachers, Singapore, Singapore
e-mail: Lloyd_Luc_YEO@moe.gov.sg
S. L. Samsudin
Fairfield Methodist School, Singapore, Singapore
C. Heng
Seng Kang Secondary School, Singapore, Singapore
E. Sani
CHIJ Secondary School, Singapore, Singapore
T. Y.H. Sim
National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
e-mail: yonghuei.sim@nie.edu.sg
© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2020
T. Sim et al. (eds.), Fieldwork in Humanities Education in Singapore,
Studies in Singapore Education: Research, Innovation & Practice,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-8233-2_11
221
473006_1_En_11_Chapter TYPESET DISK LE CP Disp.:16/11/2020 Pages: 245 Layout: T1-Standard

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222 L. Yeo et al.
of learning. From the perspective of AT, although the collaborative linkages estab-
16
lished between the different institutions (museums, academic institutions, schools,
17
and Ministry of Education) were not bound by any fixed rules, the committed efforts
18
of the Master Teacher and teachers played an important role in setting up norms
19
of collaboration among the different institutions to impact student learning about
20
ancient Singapore.
21
11.1 Introduction
22
There is an abundance of research in the Western context on the value of conducting
23
fieldtrips to engage learners. However, such research mainly advocates how fieldtrips
24
can be conducted for general pedagogical use, such as their ability to enrich and
25
expand the curriculum or their importance in immersing students in sensory activities
26
(Nabors et al., 2009). In the Singapore context, a comprehensive or uniform survey
27
on the use of fieldtrips in schools is not available for the full range of humanities
28
subjects (Chew, 2008). E. Chew argued that in geography education in Singapore, the
29
intensity level of school fieldtrips varied based on the teacher’s training background
30
and the curriculum’s emphasis on fieldwork. J.D. Stoddard (2018) observed outdoor
31
history education in Singapore carried out by teacher trainees and noted that a fieldtrip
32
through a World War II heritage site (Labrador Park) facilitated a “more balanced
33
perspective of the historical event (of the fall of Singapore).” However, he also
34
questioned the degree to which trainees were able to comprehend the full historical
35
significance of the event just by taking selfies of themselves with statues of the
36
main protagonists (for example, the commander of the Japanese invasion force in
37
Southeast Asia, General Yamashita) and advocated for deeper research in this area
38
(Stoddard, 2018).
39
Since 2010, more studies have emerged on the use of fieldtrips to teach about
40
the ancient period of Singapore using archaeology and sherd resources. Oh (2018)
41
developed an archaeological “guide” in consultation with Associate Professor Goh
42
Geok Yian, and he utilized his own drawing and writing skills to have students
43
demonstrate their understanding of historical evidence and interpretation. However,
44
museum-based lessons are disadvantaged by the need for teachers to be able to
45
gather sufficient sample sherd sets for students to work on. The National Museum
46
of Singapore has developed museum education packages such as the “Investigating
47
History: Singapura Before 1819” resource to teach the topic; but while useful, these
48
resources are limited to students working with a limited and artificial set of simulated
49
artifacts. Sim’s chapter advocates for the adoption of a more diverse set of teaching
50
resources for studying the premodern history of Singapore (Sim, 2015).
51
Increasingly, museums are being seen as an important resource for teaching and
52
learning in Singapore schools. As such, it is necessary to further explore how schools
53
and museums can collaborate to extend learning for students and the kind of profes-
54
sional development programs that can be put in place to impact student learning.
55
According to M.F. Chee (2003), such professional development programs can help
56

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11 A Case Study on the Incorporation of Museum and Artifact-Based … 223
determine the role that teachers play in the museum experience, which shapes the
57
quality of the experience for students.
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This study seeks to locate the efforts of a group of history teachers in the context
59
of collaboration with academic and professional bodies as well as a Networked
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Learning Community (NLC) who systematically sought to incorporate museum-
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based learning and embed such teaching resources in the teaching of ancient Singa-
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pore history. Analysis of the museum-based lessons was performed through the
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paradigm of Activity Theory (AT), looking at students’ performance as an indicator
64
of the effectiveness of the program and collaboration.
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Using AT as a learning theory to explore these networks of collaboration, this
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case study uses AT terms to focus on teachers and students as “subjects” within the
67
main activity of teaching about ancient Singapore (AT is discussed further in the
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“Methodology” section). It briefly explains the linkages between schools, academic
69
institutions, and museums and discusses the effect (or “outcome” in AT) on teachers
70
and students through an analysis of teacher reflections, in situ museum-based lesson
71
observations, and analyses of student worksheet-based answers and surveys. Data
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was collected to explore four questions:
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A. How can museum education be incorporated into a larger inquiry-based peda-
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gogical approach to design learning experiences for the teaching of ancient
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Singapore history?
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B. What problems do teachers face in teaching about ancient Singapore, and what
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role can museum-based professional development play in teaching this topic?
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C. What have students learned from their museum experience?
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D. What implications can be drawn from this case study for incorporating museum-
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based fieldtrips in teaching about ancient Singapore?
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This essay is divided into four parts:
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A. The use of AT to describe the development of museum-based lessons and
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teachers’ professional development training in the context of an NLC;
84
B. What teachers have learned from their fieldtrips;
85
C. Student learning about ancient Singapore;
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D. Implications of incorporating museum fieldtrips and applying the AT paradigm
87
in the teaching of ancient Singapore history.
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11.2 Application of Methodology and AT: From Master
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Class to NLC on Museum-Based Inquiry Lessons
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Collaborations across institutions are complex and require time to develop, and as
91
such, they are difficult to investigate. However, theories of contextual development
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insituatedpractice,particularlyAT,canbedeployedtostudythisphenomenon(Enge-
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strom, 1987; 2001; Vygotsky, 1987; Engestrom et al., 2003). AT originated from the
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works of Russian psychologists such as L. Vygotsky, A. Leont’ev, and S. Rubinstein,
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224 L. Yeo et al.
who pioneered their approaches by relating them to cultural-historical psychology
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developed between the 1930s and 1950s. However, by the 1980s a separate strand
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of AT had developed that was more concerned with neuropsychology. This evolved
98
into the western Scandinavian approach, which has become closely associated with
99
Y. Engestrom; he went on to refine and systematize the works of the earlier Russian
100
theorists.
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AT of the 1980s sought to “understand human activities from the point of view
102
of systemic studies and studies of social phenomena and go beyond the paradigm of
103
classical conditioning and behaviourism” (Engestrom et al., 1999). AT is “more of a
104
descriptive meta- rather than predictive theory.” One of its strengths is that it “bridges
105
the gap between the individual subject(s) and the social ecosystem examining the
106
mediating activities.”
107
In figure 11.1 of the appendices, the unit of analysis in AT depicts the “concept
108
of object-oriented, collective and culturally-mediated human activity or ‘activity
109
system’” (Engestrom, 1999). This system includes “the object (or objective), subject,
110
mediating artifacts (signs and tools), rules, community and division of labour” (Enge-
111
strom, 2001). Since AT is not solely focused on the individual unit, the key element in
112
its application lies in exploring how the mediated linkages can be harnessed (syner-
113
gistically) or the challenges ameliorated to enhance the performance of the individual
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Fig. 11.1 Activity Theory for museum-based learning for teachers and students (*indicates shared
common boundary between MTT, researcher, teachers in NLC, curators, and academic as research
area)

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units (in this case, teachers), leading eventually to a more effective learning outcome
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for the subjects (students) (Bertelsen and Bødker, 2003).
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In this project, three secondary school history educators—Chris, Sally, and Eddie
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(for their profiles, refer to table 11.2 in the appendices)—worked with a Master
118
Teacher (MT) from the Academy of Singapore Teachers to develop an NLC to work
119
together with museum staff as well as academics and researchers from the National
120
University of Singapore and National Institute of Education (NIE). The NLC sought
121
to investigate how archaeology could be embedded in museum-based experiences to
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engage students in learning about the ancient history of Singapore as an inquiry-based
123
approach between 2017 and 2018.
124
Professional development activities involving collaboration and a networked
125
community carried out in the NLC provided background on how teachers enhanced
126
their abilities and confidence in conducting museum-based learning. To this end,
127
the museum-based inquiry lessons were developed across four different professional
128
development phases of the NLC to impact student learning, shown in figure 11.2 in
129
the appendices.
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During phase 1, a two-day master class was conducted for teachers (n=24) with
131
Professor John Miksic and Dr. Michael Flecker providing new information, artifact
132
analysis, hands-on experience with sherds, and discussions on new historical inquiry
133
questions on Singapore’s ancient history. The main purpose of the master class was
134
to provide teachers with a deeper understanding of how academics use different data
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Fig. 11.2 Professional development for teacher participants from 2016 to 2019

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226 L. Yeo et al.
sets (primary sources, archaeology, accounts, cultural studies, and scientific analysis)
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to develop new historical interpretations of ancient Singapore.
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In phases 2 and 3, an NLC was formed between August 2017 and October 2018
138
to use the new knowledge acquired from the master class to design museum-based
139
inquiry lessons for Secondary 1 students. In the NLC, teachers worked and learned
140
collaboratively to examine and reflect on their practices (Jackson and Temperley,
141
2007; MOE, 2017). In this context, the NLC was an important professional develop-
142
ment platform that allowed the Master Teacher, teachers, museum staff, academics,
143
and researchers to come together to develop resources that teachers could adapt and
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use in the history classroom.
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The activities from phases 2 and 3 included the following:
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• Discussion and development of a common purpose for shared student activities;
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• Use of academic and pedagogical literature in designing museum-based inquiry
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lessons;
149
• Visits to the NUS Museum by teachers to develop a coherent narrative experience
150
and design museum-based inquiry activities (refer to table 11.3 as well as Lesson
151
Sheets 1 and 2 in the appendices);
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• Modification of museum-based learning to meet school-based history curriculum
153
needs and cater to different student profiles;
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• Observation of other teachers’ fieldtrips for cycles of improvement and adaptation.
155
By the start of 2018, the NLC had developed three museum-based learning expe-
156
riences for students with clear lesson objectives and concepts that were interrelated
157
and linked to each other in a coherent manner. Later the same year, NLC participants
158
took their students to the museum and conducted museum-based lessons. Teacher
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learning experiences were discussed through cycles of discussion and reflection at
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NLC meetings to improve lesson designs and meet local school needs. (A summary of
161
the museum-based learning and activities involving collaboration within and outside
162
the NLC is provided in table 11.1 to illustrate the variety of inputs that came from
163
various quarters to make the lesson successful.)
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In phase 4, after reflecting on their museum-based inquiry lessons, members of
165
the NLC decided to use their learning experiences and resources to conduct their own
166
workshop for other history educators (n= 22) at the NUS Museum. Their goal was
167
to work with other teachers who sought to embed museum-based lessons into their
168
own historical inquiry classroom projects (see table 11.3 on museum-based learning
169
and activities designed by the NLC in the appendices).
170
During phases 2 and 3, data collection took the form of semi-structured interviews
171
conducted with teachers and an analysis of teacher-written reflections as a primary
172
data source. Purposeful criterion sampling was used to identify teacher participants
173
for the research study. First, participants had to have had three or more years of
174
teaching so that a relatively rich teaching experience could be tapped into for discus-
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sions on teaching the topic. Second, they had to be part of an NLC in order for
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interviews, discussions, and museum-based lesson observations to be carried out.
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Table
11.1
“Units
of
analysis,”
linkages
and
their
input
into
objective
and
activity
system
Units
of
analysis/subject(s)
How
teachers
benefited
Direct
transference
of
benefit
to
students
How
students
benefited
Challenges
in
collaborative
efforts
1A.
Academy
of
Singapore
Teachers
Master
Teacher
1D.
NLC
network
(MOE)
Academy
formed
to
facilitate
professional
development
of
teachers.
Master
Teacher
(MT)
from
here
initiated
and
coordinated
with
various
parties.
Other
than
coordinative
aspects,
MT
also
provided
resource
and
lesson
design
support
which
facilitated
students’
learning
in
a
direct
way.
Since
MT
acted
as
a
key
coordinative
point
for
all
collaborative
parties,
autobiographical
evidence
and
reflection
(on
challenges)
are
collected
from
this
perspective
on
this
round.
Schools
1B.
Teachers
Attended
training
on
artifacts
and
archaeology
by
(3A)
and
sharing
on
NLC
platform.
Students
benefited
from
expanded
and
deepened
knowledge
of
teachers
in
subject
matter
Demonstrate
to
the
teachers
the
advantages
of
joining
the
project:
i)
a
comprehensive,
innovative,
and
pragmatic
curricular
lesson
package
involving
session
at
the
museum
was
available
for
teachers
to
subscribe
to;
ii)
the
NLC
was
a
user-friendly
as
well
as
valuable
network
that
could
assist
teachers
in
sharing
and
updating
content
and
experiences
among
themselves.
(continued)

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Table
11.1
(continued)
Units
of
analysis/subject(s)
How
teachers
benefited
Direct
transference
of
benefit
to
students
How
students
benefited
Challenges
in
collaborative
efforts
1C.
Students
2.
Museum
collaborators
(officer,
curator)
1D.
NLC
network
(possible
access
and
link
of
external
bodies
to
this)
Offered
use
of
sherds
(key
learning
resource)
to
be
used
as
sample
material
evidence
for
students’
training.
Other
than
providing
the
use
of
sherds,
museum
officer
also
provided
tips
and
guidance
during
lesson
in
the
sherds
handling
sessions.
Museum
collaborators
were
able
to
facilitate
the
approval
for
use
of
sherd
samples
in
students’
learning.
Relatively
smooth
process
not
to
be
taken
for
granted.
Academics
3A.
NUS
and
ISEAS
archaeology
and
content
Offered
specialized
training
on
artifacts
and
aspects
of
archaeology
to
teachers.
Expanded
and
deepened
information
on
artifacts
and
aspects
of
archaeology
presented
in
a
digestible
way
for
teachers
(in
turn
facilitated
transfer
to
students).
i)
“Master
class”
on
early
modern
Singapore,
archaeology
and
sherd
handling
facilitated
smoothly
at
NUS
because
of
the
rapport
built
(Professor
from
Dept
of
SEA
studies
and
researcher
from
ISEAS).
ii)
Advice
to
assist
in
the
accurate
assembly
of
photo
evidence
and
sherd
samples.
(continued)

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Table
11.1
(continued)
Units
of
analysis/subject(s)
How
teachers
benefited
Direct
transference
of
benefit
to
students
How
students
benefited
Challenges
in
collaborative
efforts
3B.
NIE
education
research
Consulted
in
aspects
of
collection
of
data
for
documentation
of
program
process
leading
up
to
the
writing
of
academic
education
paper
(for
analysis
of
outcome
of
students’
learning).
Academic
paper
could
be
fed
back
into
the
“system
loop
(or
control)”
along
on-going
NLC
discussions
to
refine,
standardize,
and
expand
the
program.
MT,
mutual-teacher,
and
NIE
researcher’s
observations
of
lessons
assisted
with
in-process
adjustment
of
teachers’
teaching
approaches
on
NLC
platform.
Mutual
understanding
and
discussion
had
to
take
place
as
there
could
be
different
focus
in
the
presentation
of
findings.

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Table 11.2 Description of participants
Participant Age Gender Education experience in teaching
ancient Singapore
No. of years in teaching
Sally XX female Eg. XX years teaching Lower Sec
history. Lower Sec Coordinator.
22 years
Chris XX female Eg. XX years teaching Lower Sec
History. LJ Coordinator
10 years
Eddie XX male Eg. XX years teaching Lower Sec
History.
4 years
Table 11.3 Museum-based learning and activities designed by NLC
Museum Activity Objective Topic of study
1 Gallery tour of ceramics
collection of the Lee Kong
Chian collection
Understand why people collect
material artifacts like in history
Understand how material,
design, and technology has
changed across time
Material Culture
2 Gallery tour of
Archaeology Library
Observe the kinds of
archaeological artifacts
collected from different parts
of Singapore
Understand the significance of
three objects found at the
museum
Porcelain pillow
Chinese porcelain compass
Glass beads and globules
Archaeology—place and
patterns
3 Map Activity Seed and attempt to answer
historical inquiry questions
about who lived in different
parts of Temasek in the
fourteenth century and the
kinds of activity they engaged
in.
Map activity—historical
evidence and interpretation
4 Sherd handling experience Experience one aspect of the
archaeological
process—sorting and
classification
Archaeology—classification
Third, access to student worksheets for analysis was an important source of informa-
178
tion on student learning. Three field observations were also carried out as a secondary
179
approach to triangulate data yielded from teacher interviews and reflections.
180
In the area of student learning, 116 student surveys and post-fieldtrip work (see
181
Lesson Sheets 1 and 2 in the appendices) were collected and analyzed to ascertain
182
students’ learning in terms of their prior knowledge on the topic and what they had
183
learned on their museum trip. As part of the survey, after the museum experience
184

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students were also required to fill out a worksheet designed to test their knowledge
185
of sherds from the fourteenth century.
186
Finally, reflections from the MT were also used as a form of reflective data collec-
187
tion to analyze how the various institutions in the activity system were linked up
188
for collaborative work and how the challenges to collaboration had been overcome.
189
These reflections were then discussed with an education consultant researcher from
190
NIE to provide a glimpse of how the different institutions in the AT came together
191
to support museum-based lessons in schools. Cross-referencing table 11.1 (appen-
192
dices), this will be elaborated and discussed under the subsection “Collaboration
193
Among Institutions” in the next section on “Teacher Learning.”
194
11.3 Discussion
195
11.3.1 Teacher Learning
196
The teacher community represented the unit of analysis that was closest to the object
197
(studentlearning)oftheactivitysystemandplayedanimportantroleinunderstanding
198
how archaeological knowledge and museum experience were put together to enhance
199
effective learning outcomes for students in a museum-based learning experience.
200
Hence, teachers’ motivation, their confidence, and actualization of their teaching
201
experiences in the museum had a direct consequence on learning as well as their
202
interaction with students.
203
During interviews, teachers shared their perspectives on teaching ancient Singa-
204
pore history; they viewed the content as “generally boring,” “dry,” “antiquated,” and
205
as such difficult to teach. Some of them expressed their lack of in-depth knowl-
206
edge about the history of the period and contextual knowledge of artifacts, accounts,
207
and other resources as impediments to effectively teaching the topic. In the surveys,
208
some teachers shared that they also lacked awareness of how material science, artifact
209
analysis, narrative structures, and geographical mapping of artifacts could be used to
210
engage students in meaningful historical inquiry. There was also a concern that the
211
topic of ancient Singapore history lacked age-appropriate resources for 13-year-olds
212
to explore as a historical inquiry project.
213
In order to change perceptions, the Academy of Singapore Teachers held a master
214
class and sessions conducted by NUS academics and NUS Museum staff in addi-
215
tion to setting up an NLC to help teachers uncover both the substantive content
216
and syntactic structures for the topic. This enabled teachers to design meaningful
217
historical inquiry projects for their students at the museum, as will be discussed
218
below.
219
Teacher Motivation, Museum Experience, and School-Based Needs. From
220
teacher interviews and reflections, it was evident that teachers in the NLC developed
221
a strong motivation and interest in incorporating museum-based education in the
222
teaching of ancient Singapore history through the professional development program.
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However, sessions by NUS academics and museum staff need to be incorporated in
224
local schools in order to be viewed as practical for teacher use.
225
In her reflections, Chris was keen on using the museum experience to complement
226
existing school experiences. Her students had simulated archaeological digs as part
227
of their history lessons, and she sought to promote archaeological evidence as a
228
way to tell the story of ancient Singapore “through a process of logical inquiry and
229
argumentation.”
230
Like Chris, Sally wanted her students to better understand the discipline of
231
archaeology and sought to embed museum experiences within her school’s history
232
curriculum, which brought students to the Asian Civilisations Museum. She was
233
keen to use the NUS Museum fieldtrip to enrich her students’ learning by giving them
234
hands-on experience handling artifacts, as well as utilizing evidence from material
235
culture as a way to engage learners to “support their construction of knowledge about
236
Singapore’s early past.”
237
Eddie wanted to use “a different lens” to tell the story of ancient Singapore beyond
238
theuseof textbookresources as anenrichment activity. Hewas interestedinproviding
239
students with “sufficient and balanced” information in order for them to develop their
240
own historical interpretation of ancient Singapore.
241
The motivations of the teachers in the NLC may be summarized as follows:
242
11.4 Map of shipwrecks
243
A strong desire to embed museum-based experiences to complement the school-
244
based history curriculum;
245
• A belief that “experiential learning beyond the classroom” can be meaningful if
246
it incorporates hands-on, tactile experiences at museums to engage learners;
247
• Developing a common vision to conduct museum-based learning as a systematic,
248
well-designed “regular” experience for all students, with the aim of engaged
249
learning.
250
In sum, teachers’ beliefs on how they valued the importance of museum-based
251
lesson designs as a way to deeply engage students on the topic of ancient Singapore
252
formed the common purpose for designing NLC museum-based lesson experiences.
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Connected to the AT paradigm, it is worth noting that while external parties might
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not have the same priorities in lesson design as teachers, there were a variety of
255
reasons to bring all the different parties together as units of analysis for collaboration.
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These reasons included the following:
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• A desire to promote among students a wider awareness of ancient Singapore as
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shared by Miksic;
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• A desire to promote collaboration with schools and use of museum resources
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through museum-based outreach sessions by the NUS Museum;
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• A desire for the NIE consultant to probe into the dynamics of how students learned
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about ancient Singapore.
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Learning through Master Classes and NLCs: Teacher Confidence. Teacher
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interviews and reflections revealed that new learning through the master class and
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NLC provided rich and sustained professional experience for teachers. For example,
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Chris and Eddie reported that they were able to pick up “specialist and interesting
267
information about archaeology and artifacts” from the sessions, which led them to
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seek further knowledge on the topic by “reading up and developing their content
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knowledge” before carrying out museum-based fieldtrips and other history lessons.
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Eddie noted that the NLC helped him develop a deeper understanding of the relation-
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ship between technology and the different types of pottery sherds found in the four-
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teenth century, which in turn fostered a deeper appreciation for “the role that spatial
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distribution of artifacts played in understanding the nature of Temasek society.” Sally
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did not attend the master class but felt that the NLC-based discussions provided rich
275
opportunities for her own learning, which convinced her that there was “value in plan-
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ning and conducting experiential learning journeys at museums” to engage students
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in historical inquiry.
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During field observations of the teachers conducting museum-based lessons, the
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teachers were observed to be well acquainted with detailed information on various
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artifacts and displays featured at the NUS Museum. They skillfully incorporated
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this information into museum-based lessons as part of a coherent historical inquiry
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experience. Sally, Chris, and Eddie presented students with a chronological narra-
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tive of human civilizations by describing the functional and aesthetic aspects of
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pottery across time in a detailed and convincing manner. Their increased levels of
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historical understanding and confidence were evident also when they conducted their
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own workshop in 2019, which received positive reviews from other history teachers
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attending the session.
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Teacher Challenges in Museum-Based Learning. The NLC teachers faced both
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logistical and local-based issues that were often beyond their control. One challenge
290
involved space constraints within the museum, which limited teachers to bringing
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just one class at a time for the field-based museum experience.
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Time constraints and Internet connectivity issues were among the other chal-
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lenges. Sally’s and Chris’s classes were able to spend only about two hours at
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the museum instead of the longer duration laid out in their lesson plans. Chris
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noted that attempts to use ICT-based (information and communications technology)
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lessons to conduct the map activity were hampered by poor Internet connectivity.
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Sally shared that at her school, common tests and other school activities prevented
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her from designing consolidative lessons that would have enabled her students to
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discuss, share, and present their rich learning with students who had not had the
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museum-based experience.
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Another field observation was variance in teacher preparedness and ability to
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conduct museum-based learning, particularly in situations where students were split
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into two groups (roughly 12 to 15 in each group) led by different teachers. In
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one observation, while one teacher was able to confidently take students through
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the activities and artifact explanations in the museum, another less experienced
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teacher demonstrated lower confidence in dealing with students’ questions on various
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artifacts from ancient Singapore.
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Collaboration among Institutions. From the perspective of AT, weaving collab-
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oration among the different schools in the NLC and among different institutions
310
to create a complex web of learning was an important aspect of facilitating direct
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and indirect transference of learning experiences from academics to teachers and
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students.
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This was evident in the MT reflection, when the Master Teacher shared that within
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the NLC he and the teachers had to work hard together to (i) promote the NLC as
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a platform to encourage teacher innovation in the classroom; (ii) demonstrate how
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museum-based learning lesson packages could be customized to meet teacher needs
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in developing a comprehensive, innovative, and pragmatic approach to teach ancient
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Singapore history; and (iii) develop the NLC as a professional and valuable network
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for sharing content and pedagogical knowledge in designing museum-based inquiry
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learning experiences for students.
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The MT shared that he had to work closely with other institutions to assemble
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the learning materials for teacher use in the NLC and to consciously document the
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implementation of museum-based lessons. For example, during phases 2 and 3 of the
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NLC, back-end work between the MT and Miksic played a critical role in providing
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accurate photo evidence of artifacts for classroom use. In assembling the sample of
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sherds for student use, museum staff, with Miksic’s advice, also worked closely with
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the MT to conceptualize how the sherd handling experience could proceed. This close
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collaboration and support revealed how mutual understanding, professional trust,
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and clarity on how resources could be used were critical in designing museum-based
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learning experiences for NLCs.
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As part of the NLC, the process of researching the pedagogical approaches used in
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designing museum-based learning experiences was equally important. The education
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researcher from NIE had to work collaboratively with the MT and teachers to develop
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mutual understanding, approaches, and discussions on how to scope, analyze, and
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review the ways in which research could be conducted and presented.
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11.5 Student Learning
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The previous section examined the museum experience and learning of teachers, as
338
well as the benefits of collaboration with different stakeholders in the context of an
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NLC. From the perspective of AT and referring to table 11.1, the biggest beneficiaries
340
of the collaboration among stakeholders were the students. This will be analyzed in
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terms of what students learned from the museum-based lessons vis-à-vis how much
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they knew about ancient Singapore before the lessons.
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Prior Knowledge on Ancient History of Singapore. Students come to the class-
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room with preconceptions about how the world works, and an important learning
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science principle is to design a learning environment that builds on their existing
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knowledge. K. Sawyer (2014) has argued that if teaching fails to engage students’
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prior knowledge, then the students learn just well enough to pass tests and that they
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revert to their misconceptions outside the classroom. Because of the central impor-
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tance of prior knowledge, a survey of students (n=116) was carried out to investigate
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their prior knowledge. The survey revealed that 73 percent of students had prior
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knowledge of ancient history that was largely limited to content knowledge, ranging
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from stories of Temasek (stories of Sang Nila Utama and the founding of Singapore)
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to the British founding of Singapore in 1819 and the latter’s subsequent development
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as a major port in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Their sources of knowl-
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edge were the primary school social studies curriculum as well as informal sources
356
of learning such as museum visits, stories told by parents and grandparents, and
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watching performances at the National Day parades.
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It is noteworthy that students’ preconceptions about ancient Singapore were
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based mostly on historical content (first-order concepts) rather than the analytical
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concepts (second-order concepts) that are critical for historical inquiry. Such second-
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order concepts are related to historical agency, causation, chronology, historical
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empathy, evidence, perspective, and significance (von Heyking, 2004; Seixas and
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Moreton, 2012). Several students also adopted schematic but anachronistic ways of
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understanding ancient Singapore history by using political, economic, and cultural
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paradigms as fixed approaches.
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What Students Learned. In the post-museum “test” (see the Survey Form in
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the appendices), which examined students’ understanding of their sherd handling
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experience, students were able to make a more subtle distinction among the different
369
types of artifacts compared to their prior knowledge on ceramics presented through
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textbookphotographs,perhapsbecauseoftheirsherdhandlingexperience.Theywere
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able to distinguish between blue-and-white sherds and, to some degree, earthenware
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and celadon with relatively accurate levels of differentiation.
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With reference to tables 11.4 and 11.5 in the appendices, even though 94 percent of
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students were able to clearly identify blue-and-white ceramics, they had less success
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in identifying green celadon wares and earthenware. One interesting finding worth
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deeper investigation is that in school B, 66.7 percent (n=16/24) of students were able
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to accurately identify celadon but were unable to identify glazing as an important
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characteristic of celadon (n=16/24), which could perhaps relate to the resource table
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that students used for their categorization task.
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Table 11.4 Students’ recognition of ceramics
School A (n=22) School B
(n = 24)
School C (n=70) %
Blue-and-White sherd 97.1%
Glazed/unglazed 20 24 66 94.8%
Typology 21 24 69 98.3%
Use 21 24 69 93.3%

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Table 11.5 Students’ recognition of ceramics II
School A (n=22) School B
(n = 24)
School C (n=70) %
Blue-and-white jar 90.8%
Typology 22 24 60 91.4%
Use 20 22 64 91.4%
Celadon 64.1%
Typology 15 16 4 63.8%
Use 15 15 42 62.1%
Earthenware 81%
Glazed/unglazed 17 22 63 88%
Typology 17 21 62 86.2%
Use 17 17 46 69%
Across the schools, students also had some difficulty differentiating between
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stoneware and porcelain, as evidenced from field observations and students’ answers
382
in the post-test. They also had difficulty determining the functional categorization of
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the different wares (i.e., whether something was a pot or a jar), with only 65.6 percent
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able to do so. However, with regard to students’ inability to distinguish between jars
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and pots, the NIE researcher felt that such issues were minor misconceptions in
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understanding ancient Singapore.
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Survey findings showed that in the area of conceptual understanding, students
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were generally able to establish connections between how trade, lifestyle, culture,
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and societal structures on the one hand and artifacts displayed in the museum were
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interrelated as abstract-concrete approaches to understanding the period. At the anec-
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dotal level, one student shared, “Observing the artifacts gave me insights on early
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Singapore. The designs showed the culture and taste of what people in the past had
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and what they were like.” Another student felt that her visit to the NUS Museum
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helped her “understand why artifacts are made for people in the past” and “understand
395
Temasek better through their cultures.”
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Some students were able to make specific inferences about the societal structure
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of ancient Singapore from the map work activity by viewing high-grade ceramics as
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being linked to the high social status of people (e.g., royalty) living on the hill (Fort
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Canning). Others were able to link the slag and glass blobs found on Fort Canning
400
to the possible handicraft trades, such as glassmaking, that existed on the hill. Some
401
of the students were able to use the fishing hooks, slag, and other ceramics found
402
near Singapore River as evidence of the past to infer that fishing activities, trade, and
403
blacksmithing were conducted near the Singapore River area.
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In terms of the syntactic nature of understanding ancient Singapore as a topic,
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some students demonstrated a deeper appreciation for the work that archaeologists do
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in uncovering evidence for the historical interpretation of this period of Singapore’s
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history. One student shared, “The artifacts are very important, and archaeologists
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spend a lot of time examining artifacts.”
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Another felt that she had “learned to differentiate the materials and texture of the
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sherds from a different time/century … and how to tell what type of material was
411
used during the early centuries.”
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Some students who may have been overwhelmed by the information shared on
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ceramics were also beginning to see Singapore’s history as intertwined with larger
414
regional trade links. One such student shared candidly, “I still do not really under-
415
stand Temasek better, but I now understand China’s development better in terms of its
416
pottery culture and the connections between Temasek and other countries.” Yet other
417
students, notably from School B, sought to connect the artifacts of the Belitung ship-
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wreck, which they had seen at the Asian Civilisations Museum, with items displayed
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at the NUS Museum. They raised interesting questions for further discussion, such
420
as why Singapore traded mostly with China and what trade processes were like in
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the Temasek period.
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From the experiential angle, all students in the study relished the multisensory
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experience of observing, touching, feeling, and even smelling sherds as a means of
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understanding historical artifacts and their link to ancient Singapore. Such object-
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based approaches have been shown to increase empathy, interest, and engagement
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among students in relation to classroom topics studied in different subjects (Smith,
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2007). In retrospect, the archaeological and hands-on experiences embedded in
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museum-based inquiry lessons enlivened and helped create a vivid and memorable
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experience for students. The experience focused on the use of historical evidence and
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interpretation, material culture, and archaeology serving as foundational concepts
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to teach ancient Singapore history. The museum-based activities came together to
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inform students on the culture, consumption habits, and societal makeup of ancient
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Singapore. Beyond the scope of this article, teachers also likely followed up on
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the museum learning with some form of discursive or consolidative activity in a
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direct (face-to-face) classroom activity or indirect online discussion to consolidate
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the museum-based learning experience. This shows that the apprehensions, barriers,
437
and obstacles to conducting museum lessons in schools were—to some degree—
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overcome through the collaborative approaches among the different institutions via
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the master class and NLC-based activities designed for teacher learning.
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11.6 Implications for Teaching and Learning
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There is a rich body of research on museum-based learning, and it is difficult to
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adopt any one single framework to discuss its implications on teaching and learning,
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because museum sites and approaches used to engage students are highly contextual
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and varied. Nonetheless, general guideposts may be formed on how the specific topic
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of ancient Singapore can be taught to engage students in a museum-based learning
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experience.
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First, this exploratory case study highlights the importance of teacher motiva-
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tion and interest in designing interesting learning experiences for museum-based
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learning. This case study demonstrates that there are enthusiastic teachers who are
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interested in teaching ancient Singapore history in an experiential and engaging
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manner by incorporating diverse sets of historical evidence for student engagement.
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Master classes, sessions conducted by university academics and museums, NLCs,
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and teacher-designed experiences need to be intertwined as an ecosystem to design
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meaningful experiences for students. These experiences may be modified over recur-
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sive cycles of teacher learning to provide authentic and meaningful ways for teachers
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to collaborate with academics, researchers, curators, and other teachers for engaged
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student learning. One approach is to encourage such forms of learning among lower
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secondary history educators in order to help them design classroom lessons. Such
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lessons, based on specialized knowledge about museum-based learning, could be
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part of the embedded NLC-based professional development setup.
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Second, when it comes to designing such experiences, museum-based learning
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needs to be based on the design construct of situated learning, so that learning expe-
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riences at museums can be “naturally tied to authentic activity, context and culture”
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(Brown et al., 1989). The unique museum-based learning experiences in this case
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study were not limited to students interacting with objects but were shaped through
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constructivist approaches of students interacting with historical materials. This
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process engaged students through multidisciplinary learning experiences. Equally
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important in the design of such experiences is the role of the school-based curriculum
469
in supplementing, complementing, and augmenting school-based experiences with
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museum-based learning. This could involve teachers planning and implementing
471
other museum visits, explicit classroom instruction and videos, and tapping into
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students’ prior knowledge and experiences as myriad ways to engage students in
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pre-museum activities.
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Third, in the area of professional development in teaching ancient Singapore
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history, learning experiences in the museum could involve replicating the “authen-
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tic” work that historians and archaeologists engage in—namely, sherd handling as
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an authentic laboratory archaeological experience and map activity that replicates
478
the kind of historical inquiry questions, evidence, and interpretation that historians
479
engage in. Such sessions could involve artifact and archaeology training sessions by
480
academics such as Miksic, which were conducted as part of the master class and
481
aimed at deepening subject matter knowledge for teachers, yet were presented in a
482
coherent and useful way for teachers to design classroom experiences. The pre- and
483
post-master class readings and discussions at the NLC allowed teachers to follow
484
up on their learning in a concrete manner focused on designing lessons for students
485
in the museum. The expanded and deep knowledge that teachers acquired from
486
such a master class allowed teachers to skillfully link and extend the school history
487
curriculum at the Secondary 1 level to specialized content knowledge linked with
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the works of historians and curated museum collections.
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Fourth, at the research level, more work needs to be done on teachers’ and
490
students’ understanding of specific topics such as ancient Singapore, pedagogical
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approaches on museum-based learning, and the design and effectiveness of profes-
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sional development as an ecosystem for designing museum-based historical inquiry
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for students. The application of AT in this chapter sought to locate the efforts of a
494
group of schoolteachers in an NLC to systematically incorporate and embed artifact
495
resources in teaching about the ancient period of Singapore’s history, supported by
496
academic and museum institutions. The linkages between stakeholders and within the
497
teaching community (via NLC) led to enhanced teacher competencies and confidence
498
in designing positive learning experiences on the lesson topic, leading to favorable
499
student outcomes as discussed in this section.
500
Rather than classroom teaching, museum-based learning, and academic research
501
by historians being treated as distinct activity systems, closer levels of collaboration
502
need to be developed to impact museum-based and classroom-based learning expe-
503
riences for history students. Depending on the institutions involved, exploration can
504
also be carried out to develop age-appropriate resources for students through such
505
online tools as the National Heritage Board’s resources at roots.sg or NUS Press’s
506
Southeast Asian Archaeological Site Reports collections, which feature photographs
507
of other archaeological artifacts.
508
Given the positive response and outcomes among students, this case study
509
demonstrates that students’ learning about ancient Singapore or any other topic
510
in Singapore’s history can be collected, analyzed, discussed, and shared purpose-
511
fully at NLC meetings, workshops, and symposiums and as research write-ups for
512
museum-based learning and classroom design. Lastly, with regard to the minu-
513
tiae of teaching students the sherd-differentiating process, the surveys reveal that
514
even though students may find it challenging to distinguish between dull-colored
515
sherds/wares (i.e., celadon versus earthenware) or glossy sherds/wares (earthenware
516
versus stoneware), hands-on experience provides a tactile, interactive, and engaging
517
means of “doing history” on the topic of ancient Singapore. To this end, specific
518
improvements can be made in designing a clearer flowchart of criteria for students
519
to identify sherds and later use such relics of the past to develop interpretations of
520
the period.
521
Appendices
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Museum-Based Learning Program, Learning Intentions, and Inquiry Questions
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Inquiry question
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1. What can archaeological evidence tell us about the people living in Temasek and
525
the kind of activities they were engaged in, in the fourteenth century?
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Guiding questions:
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1. How does archaeology work? What is the archaeological process like?
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2. How has human material culture developed over time?
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3. What were the kinds of artifacts discovered in Singapore?
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4. What do these artifacts tell you about the people living in Temasek in the 14th
531
C?
532
5. What can you infer about the kind of activities that the people in Temasek were
533
doing in the 14th C?
534
Museum Learning Program
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1. To enable students to have a better understanding of the archaeological process
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and the work of archaeologists in supporting historians to construct knowledge
537
about Singapore’s early past.
538
2. To provide students with a broad understanding of the development of human
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material culture.
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3. To provide students with an opportunity for a hands-on experience in handling
541
and studying artifacts
542
Learning Intentions
543
Students will be able to
544
1. Classify and sort the sherds/ceramics according to their different types
545
2. Identify on the Singapore map where selected artifacts were discovered
546
3. Make inferences about the people living in Singapore and the kind of activities
547
that took place in Singapore in the fourteenth century, based on the artifacts
548
discovered and the additional contextual information provided
549
Student Activity Sheets. Activity 1: The Lost Bag of Sherds! Sort the Sherds!
550
Archaeology involves more than just excavation of sites to search for artifacts.
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It also involves laboratory work to clean, catalogue, and analyze artifacts. Refer
552
to the poster for a more complete understanding of the archaeological process.
553
The Lost Bag of Sherds.
554
Study the bag of sherds on the table
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Sort the sherds into different categories
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Use the table that describes the characteristics of the different types of pottery to
557
guide you
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Examine the following before sorting them
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• Texture
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• Color
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• Design
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Explain why you categorize the sherds in those ways
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Activity 2: Plot it On a Map
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The map shows you 3 major excavations sites in Singapore:
565
Fort Canning Hill
566
St Andrews’ Cathedral
567
River Area: Empress Place/ Parliament House Complex / Old Parliament House
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/ Padang
569
Archaeologists discovered various artifacts in these three areas and more is written
570
about them in the cards
571
Study the pictures of artifacts and the additional information given to you.
572
Sort the artifacts according to where they were discovered in Singapore.
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Plot these artifacts on the map.
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Courtesy of the National Museum of Singapore, National Heritage Board.
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Look for two or three other artifacts that were discovered in Singapore from the
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Archaeology Library (not mentioned in the pictures) and then plot them on the map.
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• Map your activity and then answer the following questions
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• What was life like for people who lived in the different areas in Ancient Singapore?
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• What evidence supports your argument?
582
Sample survey: Survey on the learning of ancient Singapore and sherd handling
583
Write down five keywords about what you learned in chapters 1 and 2 on Temasek
584
Singapore.
585
586
Did you know about Temasek Singapore (Temasek) before you study it in school?
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Yes/No
588
What did you know about Temasek Singapore?
589
How did you know about Temasek Singapore then?
590
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What did you like about the trips to the museums?
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Write down 3–5 keywords about what you learned at the Asian Civilisations
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Museum (ACM)?
595
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How did going to the NUS Museum help you better understand Temasek
597
Singapore?
598
599
Can you make a suggestion to improve learning at the museums?
600
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Education in Singapore. HSSE Online, 6(2). Retrieved from https://www.hsseonline.edu.sg/jou
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rnal/volume-7-issue-2-2018/historical-evidence-archaeological-practice-pedagogical-tool on 11
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June 2019.
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Seixas, D. P., Morton, T. (2013). The Big Six Historical Thinking Concepts. Toronto: Nelson
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Education.
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Sim, Teddy. (2015). Exploring sources on pre-modern history of Singapore: Review essay of
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“Jacques de Coutre’s and Mantelieff’s Singapore and Johor”. HSSE Online, 4(2), 17–35.
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Stoddard, J. D. (2018). Learning history beyond school. In S. Metzger L. Harris (Eds.), The Wiley
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International Handbook of History Teaching and Learning (pp. 631–51). Hoboken: Wiley.
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Nabors, M. L., Edwards, L. C., Murray, R. K. (2009). Making the case for field trips: what
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research tells us and what site coordinators have to say. Education, 129(4), 661–667.
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National Museum (2017). National Museum resources, Retrieved from https://www.nationalm
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useum.sg/-/media/nms2017/documents/school-programmes/teachers-hi-resource-unit-1-precol
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onial.pdf
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Seixas,P.,Moreton,T.(2012).TheBigSix:Historicalthinkingconcepts.Toronto:NelsonCollege.
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Smith, M. M. (200). Sensing the Past: Seeing, Hearing, Smell, Tasting and Touching in History.
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California: University of California Press.
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Heyking, A. V. (2004). Historical Thinking in the Elementary Years: A Review of Current Research.
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Canadian Social Studies, 39(1). Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1073974.pdf.
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Rieber, R. W., Carton, A. S. (Eds). (1987). The collected works of L.S.Vygotsky, Vol 1: Problems
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of general psychology. New York: Plenum.
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Lloyd Yeo Tze Chiang is a Master Teacher at the Academy of Singapore Teachers (AST) in
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History. He graduated from the National University of Singapore (BA Hons) specializing in the
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American Civil War in 1996 and obtained his Master Of Education: Curriculum and Teachingin
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2013. He has taught in Singapore’s Gabrielite Schools for almost 20 years has authored and co-
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authored more than 12 publications and articles. His research interests include history education,
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pedagogy, literacies and curriculum design, teacher identity and narrative inquiry.
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Sazryna Lee Samsudin is a Senior Teacher (History) based in Singapore, teaching both History
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and Social Studies at Seng Kang Secondary School. She graduated from the National Univer-
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sity of Singapore with a BA in History and Sociology, and had also attained a Post-Graduate
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Diploma in Education (PGDE) at the National Institute of Education, Singapore. She has taught
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secondary school students for about 20 years and is always looking for ways to better engage the
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students in the learning of History, such as through Inquiry-based Learning, Experiential Learning
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and Differentiated Instruction. This has led her to collaborate with other like-minded Senior and
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Lead Teachers from other schools to form Networked Learning Communities (NLC), led by the
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Master Teachers from the AST, to design learning experiences and activities in these areas so as
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to develop students’ interest in and deepen their understanding of History. In 2017, she had co-
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presented with her NLC team on ‘Differentiated Instruction in the Humanities Classroom’ at the
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MOE Excelfest, while in 2019, she had co-conducted a Teacher-led Workshop with her NLC team
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on ‘Using Historical Evidence in Teaching Pre-Modern Singapore.’
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Cherie Heng is an educator who teaches History and Social Studies at Secondary level. She
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graduated from the National University of Singapore (BA Hons) specializing in Southeast Asian
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Studies and obtained her Master of Education (Education Psychology) from NIE/NTU. Her
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research interests include History pedagogy and curriculum design, Concept-based Learning as
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well as Educational Psychology. She is currently Senior Teacher at CHIJ Secondary School.
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Ezal Bin Sani is a Lead Teacher (History) based in Singapore, who teaches both History and
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Social studies at Fairfield Methodist School (Secondary). He is passionate about promoting active
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learners in the History classroom and is also a strong advocate of maximising ICT affordances in
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and out of the classroom. An MOE Teaching award recipient, he attained a BA in History and
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English Language at the National University of Singapore in and a Post Graduate Diploma in
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Education (PGDE) in Education at the National Institute of Education.
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Teddy Y. H. Sim (FRHistS) is currently lecturing at the Institute of Education in Nanyang Tech-
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nological University in Singapore. He has published on specific involvements of the Portuguese
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in the East. He is the author of Portuguese Enterprise in the East: Survival in the Years 1707-57
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and editor of Piracy and surreptitious activities in the Malay Archipelago and adjacent seas 1600-
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1840 and Maritime defence of China: Ming general Qi Jiguang and beyond. Teddy is passionate
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about fieldtrips in his history courses on South and Southeast Asia. His courses usually feature a
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local or overseas trip that facilitates as part of the overall study and exploration.
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