Playwright Haresh Sharma calls for more transparency in NUS’ hiring of adjuncts
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Cultural Medallion recipient and playwright Haresh Sharma's playwriting course at the National University of Singapore was dropped five days before the semester started on Aug 12.
ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
SINGAPORE – Cultural Medallion recipient Haresh Sharma, who had his course dropped by the National University of Singapore (NUS)
Sharma, 59, responded to NUS’ reason for dropping his playwriting module in an Instagram post dated Aug 16: “They never told me directly and clearly that my class was cancelled because it lacked ‘sizeable numbers’.”
An NUS spokesperson said in a statement on Aug 15 that it takes into account enrolment numbers and the broader curriculum in running its courses and appointing external instructors to teach selected ones.
Sharma told ST: “If enrolment numbers were the issue, why couldn’t they tell me so? Why must I find out about it from The Straits Times?”
He is one of three artists whose class was cancelled by NUS at the last minute before the start of the Aug 12 semester. The other two are theatre actress Noorlinah Mohamed, creative producer of National Day Parade 2024, and another artist who spoke to ST on condition of anonymity.
Sharma told ST that the class size for the previous times he taught at NUS had averaged 10 students. ST could not confirm the number of students enrolled for Sharma’s cancelled playwriting module.
Sharma, who has been resident playwright of The Necessary Stage since 1990, said that the incident is not just about himself but about all artists who are engaged by tertiary institutions on a part-time basis.
In his post, he raised these questions: “What are the processes involved in engaging these artists? Are there systems in place to protect these artists/educators so that their livelihoods are not affected?”
He also asked if there is a clear timeline for the hiring process as well as for informing artists promptly in the event of cancellation of a module.
He continued: “Are hiring decisions made by the specific faculty of the university? Or the HR of the university? Or some external source? There seems to be a lack of transparency in this matter, which to me is crucial in resolving this.”
Noorlinah told ST: “I wasn’t told that the course would be taught by a full-time staff member.
“The e-mail I received in July stated that it was ‘unfortunate news... informed by HR that NUS will not be approving the appointment. An appeal has been made but the decision remains the same’ and that the ‘university’s decision is unrelated to issues of qualification or teaching abilities’. No other reason was presented in the e-mail.”
NUS had offered the reason in its Aug 15 response to ST’s queries.
She echoed Haresh’s call for more transparency: “A shame that NUS offered this updated reason when pressed for an explanation. It could have just said it as is. Why the lack of transparency?”
NUS has declined further comment.
Commenting on this turn of events, Arts Nominated MP Usha Chandradas told ST that more factors beyond enrolment number should be taken into consideration before cancelling a course. “If, as some have pointed out, small numbers are to be expected from the course as a whole because it’s a niche subject, then enrolment numbers should not necessarily be an issue, as long as the school takes the view that the course is worth offering.”
She added, however: “But we cannot run away from the fact that universities also need to account for their own costs and run their operations in a sustainable way.”
Ms Chandradas suggested that partnerships between University of the Arts Singapore (UAS) and other local universities could be a solution moving forward. “For example, if there isn’t enough demand for an arts course in, say, NUS and NUS feels that the enrolment numbers are important, could we one day have a situation where students would have the option of taking the classes in UAS instead?”
Since Sharma took to Instagram to recount the incident, he has received an outpouring of support from the arts community – of which a significant number take up adjunct teaching positions – including comments calling for more transparent hiring processes and timelines.
