Studying Shakespeare may become compulsory for Year 12 and 13. Photo: 123RF
Senior secondary school students may soon be delving into one of Shakespeare's plays, when a new curriculum is enforced in term 1 next year.
If the Ministry of Education's draft curriculum, currently out for public consultation, goes ahead, studying Shakespeare would become compulsory in both years 12 and 13.
RNZ asked recent high school graduates at the University of Auckland and Auckland University of Technology what they thought of making Shakespeare mandatory.
Some students, like Leah Kampkes, welcomed Shakespeare becoming a required part of NCEA English.
"When I was in high school, at least in the junior levels, I really enjoyed studying Shakespeare," she said. "We did a play a year and it was definitely my highlight."
"I'm pro! [compulsory Shakespeare]," Sofia Roger Williams said. "I think it's valuable for students to learn about and to be able to critique it from a modern perspective."
Tajaney Purea thought Shakespeare would not excite some students, but that it was in their best interest.
"Not everyone is into reading Shakespeare nowadays, but it's a good learning experience."
English student Nicholas Lindstrom agreed learning Shakespeare would benefit students.
"Shakespeare is important," she said. "It allows you to understand a lot of references and allusions in other English texts.
"I think it's a good idea, it's just about how you execute it and make it engaging for young people."
Another English student, Athena Li-Watts, added that high school might be the only time people were exposed to Shakespeare's works.
"I think it's good to get students into things they might not otherwise be interested in.
"I'm not huge into Shakespeare, but he's such a pillar in English literature and there is value in his work."
However, not all students fully supported the move.
"I think it might turn some students away from taking English as a subject," Keira Mathura said. "It [Shakespeare] has a reputation of being quite hard."
Iris Wang took Shakespeare English in high school, but disagreed with making it compulsory.
"There are other texts that could better capture more relevant social issues today. It's not for everyone and it shouldn't have to be."
Some students, like Ben Jamison, had mixed feelings.
"I think it [Shakespeare] has important themes, but you can get those from a lot of texts." he said.
"It's good exposure for students to want to study theatre and drama, and the performing arts is losing cultural significance in New Zealand."
Levi Pruden said he didn't value Shakespeare over other literature he studied at school.
"I did it [Shakespeare] in high school and I enjoyed it, but you can gain the same stuff from most texts. What a teacher can teach well is probably the most relevant.
"It probably made me more verbose."
Jemma McGregor said her English class studied Hamlet in Year 12.
"It was a little boring, but he was one of the best writers of that time and we still use his work today."
The Ministry of Education's draft curriculum is open for public consultation until 28 April 2025.
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