Brave Hearts, Bold Minds
The Scots College Research Office
  • About
    • Our story
    • Our team
    • Undertaking Research at Scots
  • News
    • Blog
    • Research Bites
  • Projects
    • Experiential Education
    • Action Research
    • Indigenous Education
    • Faith and Learning
    • Staff Research
  • Programs
    • ScotsIdeas
    • The Clark Lecture Series
    • Scots Conferences
    • Professional Learning Opportunities
  • Publications
    • Scots Research Papers
    • Scots Research Reports
    • The Scots Dictionary of Biography
    • Reading List
    • Links

Can you Create Creativity?

22/11/2013

0 Comments

 
Picture
'Think left and think right
and think low and think high.
Oh, the thinks you can think up
if only you try!'
Picture
Dr. Seuss’s ditty is not just a sage suggestion for the poet or the artist. Creativity – the ability to think laterally and imaginatively, to draw connections and explore possibilities – is increasingly regarded as the ‘X factor’ across a range of vocations. Employers want to hire it, economists want to quantify it, and educators want to teach it. But creativity seems inherently enigmatic, intuitive, irreducible. Is it caught or taught? Do students either 'have it' or not? How do boys with different learning styles become more creative? Can teachers unlock ingenuity in every student? In short, can you create creativity?

English teachers Cameron Atkinson and Amanda Lazar explored just such questions in a fascinating recent project amongst Year 7 boys at The Scots College, as part of their candidature in the Scots/Sydney University Masters of Educational Leadership program. Applying the philosophy of 'action learning' in the English classroom, they conducted a five-week multi-layered teaching and learning module in which boys and teachers reflected on their understandings of creativity and engaged in learning activities that sought to inspire inventiveness in the classroom. 

They made some intriguing findings. Creativity is risky business. It’s imaginative, it’s often fairly abstract, and it’s generally more about a complex process than a simple result. Consequently, boys can quickly disengage from activities labelled 'creative', fearing they might 'get it wrong' and jeopardize their grades. That said, teachers can still help boys be richly creative in their work, surpassing their own expectations. The key to encouraging student creativity across a range of learning outcomes is the cultivation of ‘a classroom environment where students feel valued and respected together with the programming of engaging and kinesthetic learning activities that allow students a degree of autonomy’.

Atkinson and Lazar found dramatic role plays to be one such activity which proved successful in unlocking creativity, students finding themselves free to take risks and express emotions. So were student-led inquiry projects. As students wielded the whiteboard marker themselves, moved around the classroom, discussed ideas, took risks and made decisions collaboratively, they seemed to both enjoy learning and take more from it. Teachers stepped back from providing detailed scaffolds and operated more as coaches, encouraging the students, in their words, ‘to think on our own, or work as a team’. Boys growing into fine men of confidence, teamwork and ingenuity through intentionally creative classrooms makes for Brave Hearts and Bold Minds with the creative resources to become world-changing thinkers. Dr. Seuss would be delighted.

For more on Atkinson and Lazar's research see the Scots Research Paper Series, no. 1.


0 Comments

IBSC invites applicants for 2014-15 Action Research on 'Boys as Makers'

15/11/2013

0 Comments

 
Picture
The International Boys' Schools Coalition (IBSC) has announced it is accepting applications for the 2014-15 Action Research program, with a focus on Boys as Makers. 
This program, which includes a two-day training workshop in Nashville, should be particularly relevant for staff in Science, Design and Technology, and Mathematics. 

For more information, see the email below from Brad Adams, Executive Director of the IBSC:

I am pleased to inform you that we are now ready to receive applications for the next round of IBSC Action Research in Boys' Schools.We hope that you will take a few moments to review this email, and that you will bring it the attention of teachers who might be a great fit for the topic and for the program.

For the 2014-15 round of research, the topic is Boys as Makers. Please consult the IBSC Action Research 2014-15 Information Sheet for full details about the topic. 

Selected applicants will begin on-line preparation and orientation in February, and will attend a two-day training workshop beginning June 27, 2014, prior to the IBSC annual conference in Nashville, TN, USA. Additional expectations and financial requirements are spelled out in the Information Sheet, which should be carefully reviewed.

Since its beginning eight years ago, the IBSC Action Research program has grown from strength to strength, and is a recognized leader in action research on boys’ education on a global scale. Many participants – both young and veteran teachers – have told us that the experience has been transformational for their professional growth and for their schools. Many have gone on to present at other conferences, to publish their findings in scholarly and professional journals, and to pursue more post-graduate work. The reports and posters of recent teams are available on the 2012–13 Action Research webpage.

Applicants are requested to complete and submit the Application Form by December 1, 2013. A Statement of Support from the applicant’s Head or designate is required to complete the application.Participants will be selected by December 15, 2013.

I would be happy to answer any questions that you or any prospective applicant might have about this exciting topic for IBSC Action Research.

Best Regards,

Brad Adams
Executive Director
International Boys' Schools Coalition
email: adams@theibsc.org  
web: www.theibsc.org  
Tel: +1 416 486 3967

0 Comments

    Recent News

    May 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    September 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    February 2021
    November 2020
    October 2020
    June 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    June 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    July 2018
    June 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    August 2017
    July 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    November 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    May 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    May 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    November 2013
    October 2013

    Categories

    All
    Arts And Design
    Boys' Education
    Character And Care
    Clark Lectures
    Experiential Education
    Faith And Learning
    Great Teachers
    History And Heritage
    IBSC
    Innovation
    Literacy
    Motivation And Engagement
    Pedagogy
    Professional Learning
    Pyschology
    Research
    Research Bite
    Research Centre
    ScotsIdeas
    Sports Science
    Staff Research
    Universities
    Wellbeing And Mental Health

    RSS Feed

Picture
Locked Bag 5001 
Bellevue Hill
NSW 2023, AUSTRALIA

research@tsc.nsw.edu.au
tsc.nsw.edu.au
+61 2 9391 7600
CRICOS Provider Code: 02287G
All rights reserved  
© The Scots College 2021