Primary School Science Teachers’ Creativity and Practice in Malaysia

Abstract

Creative pedagogy has been explored extensively, and previous research suggests that there is a gap between the level and practice of creativity of science teachers, and that it varies by school location. The aim of this study was to determine the levels of creativity, and creativity practice of primary school science teachers, and differences in the levels of creativity and creativity practice of primary school science teachers based on school location. The Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking (TTCT) were used to acquire qualitative data from 20 participants, and a questionnaire of creativity practice in science teaching was used to collect quantitative data from 409 participants. The qualitative data were analyzed according to the TTCT scoring technique and the quantitative data were analyzed descriptively using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences 26. This study found that, that while overall teacher creativity was low, the teachers perceived that they employed highly creative practices. No difference was found in relation to environment, teaching aids, skills and science process skills of teachers in urban and rural areas. However, teachers in rural areas were more knowledgeable about creativity, while teachers in urban areas were better at practising it. This research provides baseline evidence on current practices in creative pedagogy of science teachers nationwide.