Interactive roles in a virtual drama classroom in a Malaysian Higher Education Institution: the social constructivist and visible thinking approach

The evolving educational landscape has seen a significant shift from traditional, teacher-centred approaches to learner-centred pedagogies, reflecting the principles of constructivism that view learning as an active, social process. In line with this, the Malaysian Education Blueprint (2013-2025) emphasises developing autonomous, critical, and creative learners, equipped for 21st-century challenges. However, despite these policy directions, there remains a gap in understanding the interactive roles within drama classrooms, particularly in virtual settings, where maintaining meaningful student engagement and collaboration can be challenging. This study addresses this gap by investigating the interactive roles of students and lecturers in the drama classroom, focusing on the impact of virtual interactions and the applicability of Vygotsky’s Social Constructivist Theory (SCT) and Ritchhart’s Visible Thinking (VT) approach. Adopting a qualitative case study design, this research gathered data through focus group discussions, semi-structured interviews, and classroom observations involving 19 undergraduates and three lecturers of a drama course in a Malaysian public university. Students were divided into experimental and control groups to explore the impact of applying VT routines with and without explicit instructions. The findings revealed that structured thinking routines like the Ladder of Feedback (LoF) and Think-Pair-Share (TPS) significantly enhanced interactive roles of both students and lecturers, categorised into Engagement and Key Attributes. These routines promoted clarity, cohesion, critical thinking, and metacognitive awareness, aligning closely with SCT principles. However, the findings also highlighted challenges, including connectivity, technical constraints, and varied student engagement, especially in the control groups, where the absence of explicit LoF application led to less structured, less cohesive interactions. Despite these challenges, the study demonstrated the feasibility and effectiveness of integrating SCT and VT routines in the Malaysian tertiary drama classroom, promoting a more interactive and student-centred learning environment. These findings contribute to the growing body of research on drama education, offering insights into the practical application of SCT and VT in developing critical, creative, and collaborative learners. The study also provides valuable recommendations for curriculum design, suggesting that a more structured approach to integrating VT routines can enhance drama pedagogy in both online and physical settings, supporting the goals of the Malaysian Education Blueprint and broader educational reforms.