This thesis comprises an enquiry into the perceptions of secondary drama teachers in New Zealand regarding the effect of the introduction of the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) on teaching and learning in the secondary drama classroom. One of the central sites of tension in the implementation of NCEA in drama appears to lie in the variance between the requirements of the assessment process and the creative focus of drama pedagogy. At the same time, within drama itself, it is evident that there are competing discourses in drama which educators are working to resolve. To maintain the student-centred and explorative nature of drama education, while retaining its position as a mainstream secondary subject, requires a creative synthesis of these competing discourses.