Creativity in the Classroom

Creativity and Education

So, what is creativity in education?

Creativity is the combination of the physical and social learning environments, the attitudes and characteristics of both teachers and students, and a clear problem-solving process that results in a perceptible product (that can be an idea or a process as well as a tangible physical object) (Patston, 2021). Creativity is the creation of something new, relevant, and helpful to the individual who generated the product within their particular social environment (Patston, 2021).

The Creative Process

Creativity entails developing original and useful concepts or products. (Meusburger, 2009; Mumford, 2003).

Wallas (1926) identified the creative process into five stages:

  • Preparation: the dimensions of the problem are investigated;

  • Incubation: the problem is internalized, but there are no outward indications that it is being resolved;

  • Intimation: there is a sense that a resolution is on the way;

  • Illumination: the concept becomes evident;

  • Verification: the concept is developed, examined, and applied.

Four C model of Creativity

Kaufman and Beghetto (2009) stated a "four C" model of creativity:

  • Mini-c creativity: interpretations of experiences that are individually meaningful (e.g., learning to play the guitar)

  • Little-c creativity: everyday creative expression and problem-solving (e.g., writing a beautiful Haiku poem)

  • Pro-C creativity: professional acts of creativity (e.g., performing in a Jazz band at a regional festival)

  • Big-C creativity: in a certain field or genre, these types of creativity are regarded as significant or even legendary (e.g., the discovery of penicillin or the work of a classical composer like Mozart or Chopin).

What Does Creativity Look Like in the Classroom?

Numerous ways to learn, make sense of, and communicate ideas, thoughts, and emotions are offered by creative approaches to teaching and learning. A creative approach to learning can be seen as a conscious, open, flexible, critical, and experimental way of being that is applied to an activity. Additionally, creativity acts as a link between disciplines, potentially making combined investigations more effective than their individual components (Upitis, 2014).

Benefits and Importance of Creativity

Students can develop intellectually, emotionally, physically, socially, and spiritually through creative endeavours (Upitis, 2010). Students that engage in creative investigations gain experience with problems for which there is no known answer, where there are several possible solutions, where the tension of ambiguity is valued as fertile ground, and where imagination is valued above memorization (Eisner, 2002). According to Koopman (2005), cereative engagement is fundamentally important since it necessitates the persistent and complete involvement of the individual. Additionally, pupils from "high arts" schools were more cooperative, more willing to share their learning, and more inclined to believe that they were competent in other academic subjects; in other words, they were more creative (Burton et al., 1999).

Creativity and Learning Spaces

Space is an important stimulus for creativity. We get inspired by our environment. Our brain forms concepts and implements notions that we are exposed to in our surroundings, even if we don’t actively “think” about them.

Creativity in the classroom can happen in both physical, digital and informal learning spaces. We will talk more about physical, digital and informal spaces in relation to creativity in educational contexts on this website. We will discuss the importance of creativity in these learning spaces as well as the ways to foster creativity by providing practical examples and resources.

References

Burton, J. M., Horowitz, R., & Abeles, H. (1999). Learning in and through the arts: Curriculum implications. In E. Fisk (Ed.), Champions of change: The impact of the arts on learning (pp. 35-46). Washington, DC: The Arts Education Partnership and the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities.

Eisner, E. W. (2002). The state of the arts and the improvement of education. Art Education Journal, 1(1), 2–6.

Kaufman, J. C., & Beghetto, R. A. (2009). Beyond big and little: The Four C Model of Creativity. Review of General Psychology, 13, 1–12.

Koopman, C. (2005). The justification of education in the arts. Journal of Philosophy of Education, 39(1), 85–97.

Meusburger, P. (2009). Milieus of Creativity: The Role of Places, Environments and Spatial Contexts. In P. Meusburger, J., Funke, J. & E. Wunder, Milieus of creativity: an interdisciplinary approach to spatiality of creativity. Dordrecht, Netherlands: Springer.

Mumford, M. D. (2003). Where have we been, where are we going? Taking stock in creativity research. Creativity Research Journal, 15, 107–120.

Patston, T. (2021, March 17). What is creativity in education? THE EDUCATION HUB. https://theeducationhub.org.nz/what-is-creativity-in-education/

Upitis, R. (2010). Raising a school: Foundations for school architecture. Township of South Frontenac: Wintergreen Studios Press.

Upitis, R. (2014). Creativity: The state of the domain. In Measuring What Matters, People for Education.

Wallas, G. (1926). The art of thought. NY: Harcourt Brace.