Fostering Creativity in the Classroom for High Ability Students: Context Does Matter

Liang Tan,Elizabeth Koh,Keith Tan,Shu Lee,Letchmi Ponnusamy

doi:10.3390/educsci6040036

Liang Tan, Elizabeth Koh + Show 3 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci6040036

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Journal: Education sciences	Publication Date: Nov 9, 2016
Citations: 20	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: Nanyang Technological University

Abstract

Researchers have argued for the importance of the classroom context in developing students’ creative potential. However, the emphasis on a performative learning culture in the classroom does not favour creativity. Thus, how creative potential can be realised as one of the educational goals in the classrooms remains a key question. This study measured creativity across three secondary schools using the Wallach-Kogan Creative Thinking Test (WKCT). A total of 283 students enrolled in the Express programme and 290 students enrolled in the Integrated Programme (IP) volunteered in the study. The same cohort of students took the 38-item WKCT twice; once at the beginning of Secondary One and then at the end of Secondary Three. Four aspects of creativity, namely fluency, flexibility, unusualness, and uniqueness, were investigated. Our analyses showed that (i) IP students showed a greater increase in scores over time when compared to Express students; (ii) when Programme and PSLE (Primary School Leaving Examination) were used to predict creativity scores in a multiple regression, the predictive power of Programme increased from Secondary 1 to Secondary 3 while that of PSLE decreased; and (iii) flexibility scores were more resistant to change than fluency scores. These findings suggest that the classroom context matters and that the removal of high-stakes examination can provide room for the development of creative potential.

Highlights

Creativity is one of the key desired educational outcomes in the 21st century as the world’s economic growth is increasingly innovation-driven [1]
Based on the above arguments, we expect that the differentiated curriculum and instruction, and the removal of the high-stakes programme in the Integrated Programme (IP) programme will facilitate the development of creative potential in IP students
(2009)’s [71] large effect size of the impact of the programme on creativity, we hypothesise that the predictive power of Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) score on creativity would decrease over time, while that of the programme increases over time

Summary

Introduction

Creativity is one of the key desired educational outcomes in the 21st century as the world’s economic growth is increasingly innovation-driven [1]. Since the end of 1990s, there has been growing recognition among educational policymakers that it is imperative to develop creative potential in schools in the UK [7,8] and Singapore. In Singapore, the importance of developing students’ creative potential can be seen through the national educational envisioning (e.g., Thinking School Learning Nation, Desired Outcomes of Education), and curriculum policies (e.g., Teach Less Learn More and the 21st Century Competencies). Almost 20 years have passed and there is limited research evidence of the outcomes of teaching for creativity in Singapore schools. These questions still remain: Can creativity be taught? These questions still remain: Can creativity be taught? Does creativity develop over time?

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Discussion

Conclusion