Connoisseurship and Creativity: Monitoring Creative Thinking Abilities in Primary School Children in England

Abstract

Abstract This article summarizes a research study that sets the connoisseurship and criticism model of qualitative evaluation within a traditional research design. Together, the methodologies aim to monitor and illuminate the development of creative thinking abilities in children. The creative thinking abilities of children in six classes, which worked according to two styles of curriculum and classroom organization, were pretested and posttested, and statistical analysis was used to ascertain whether any difference exists between pre- and posttreatment scores. All work was based on the children's first-hand experiences from visits to an environmental education center. Researchers wrote criticisms to illuminate the complex processes and interrelationships within the classrooms of the sample schools. Used alongside each other, the methodologies confirmed research hypotheses, illuminated many of the complexities contributing to these outcomes, and identified other phenomena that warrant further investigation. Their combined use appears to have tremendous potential for deepening the understanding of classroom processes and making informed recommendations about approaches to teaching and learning in environmental education.