Creativity or calamity : what does the future hold? : an examination of teacher's understandings of creativity in a sample of South African schools

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dc.contributor.advisorBakker, Nigelen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorFeather, Catherine Anneen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2014-09-08T09:55:23Z
dc.date.available2014-09-08T09:55:23Z
dc.date.issued2003en_ZA
dc.descriptionBibliography: leaves 91-101.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractTechnological progress, organisational change and intensified global competition have driven a shift from manual work to 'thinking' jobs that emphasise a whole new range of skills. It is no longer enough for students to show that they are capable of passing public examinations, for to thrive in an economy defined by the innovative application of knowledge they must be able to do more than absorb and feedback information. Learners and workers must draw on their entire spectrum of learning experiences and apply what they have learned in new and creative ways (Seltzer and Bentley 1999). To help equip our learners with the attitudes and abilities that will enable them to meet future problems creatively and inventively (Parnes 1970) we need a curriculum that acknowledges the importance of creativity, as well as teachers who are able to recognise and encourage creative behaviour in their classrooms. In the absence of any formal guidance in this regard, this thesis is an attempt to find out if teachers have the broad and accurate understanding of creativity necessary to do this successfully. To achieve this aim an open-ended questionnaire was compiled and distributed to a number of teachers in a range of teaching contexts. Responses were then analysed qualitatively using a method known as the Constant Comparative Method proposed by Glaser and Strauss (1976). An interactive model of creativity (and thus, one which took into consideration the creative product, the creative person, the creative process and the creative environment) was used to structure the questionnaire and to judge the responses. Using the literature as a yardstick it was determined that, at least on an individual basis, these teachers have an extremely narrow understanding of creativity. It was also evident that there were Significant differences in understanding across contexts. This is an issue that needs to be addressed with some urgency if we intend to be at all successful in our attempts to educate for creativity in this country. A shared understanding of this term needs to be ensured - not assumed - something that could be achieved through the provision of a broad and inclusive set of guidelines.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationFeather, C. A. (2003). <i>Creativity or calamity : what does the future hold? : an examination of teacher's understandings of creativity in a sample of South African schools</i>. (Thesis). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,School of Education. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/6963en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationFeather, Catherine Anne. <i>"Creativity or calamity : what does the future hold? : an examination of teacher's understandings of creativity in a sample of South African schools."</i> Thesis., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,School of Education, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/6963en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationFeather, C. 2003. Creativity or calamity : what does the future hold? : an examination of teacher's understandings of creativity in a sample of South African schools. University of Cape Town.en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Feather, Catherine Anne AB - Technological progress, organisational change and intensified global competition have driven a shift from manual work to 'thinking' jobs that emphasise a whole new range of skills. It is no longer enough for students to show that they are capable of passing public examinations, for to thrive in an economy defined by the innovative application of knowledge they must be able to do more than absorb and feedback information. Learners and workers must draw on their entire spectrum of learning experiences and apply what they have learned in new and creative ways (Seltzer and Bentley 1999). To help equip our learners with the attitudes and abilities that will enable them to meet future problems creatively and inventively (Parnes 1970) we need a curriculum that acknowledges the importance of creativity, as well as teachers who are able to recognise and encourage creative behaviour in their classrooms. In the absence of any formal guidance in this regard, this thesis is an attempt to find out if teachers have the broad and accurate understanding of creativity necessary to do this successfully. To achieve this aim an open-ended questionnaire was compiled and distributed to a number of teachers in a range of teaching contexts. Responses were then analysed qualitatively using a method known as the Constant Comparative Method proposed by Glaser and Strauss (1976). An interactive model of creativity (and thus, one which took into consideration the creative product, the creative person, the creative process and the creative environment) was used to structure the questionnaire and to judge the responses. Using the literature as a yardstick it was determined that, at least on an individual basis, these teachers have an extremely narrow understanding of creativity. It was also evident that there were Significant differences in understanding across contexts. This is an issue that needs to be addressed with some urgency if we intend to be at all successful in our attempts to educate for creativity in this country. A shared understanding of this term needs to be ensured - not assumed - something that could be achieved through the provision of a broad and inclusive set of guidelines. DA - 2003 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2003 T1 - Creativity or calamity : what does the future hold? : an examination of teacher's understandings of creativity in a sample of South African schools TI - Creativity or calamity : what does the future hold? : an examination of teacher's understandings of creativity in a sample of South African schools UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/6963 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/6963
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationFeather CA. Creativity or calamity : what does the future hold? : an examination of teacher's understandings of creativity in a sample of South African schools. [Thesis]. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,School of Education, 2003 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/6963en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentSchool of Educationen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Humanitiesen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.subject.otherEducationen_ZA
dc.titleCreativity or calamity : what does the future hold? : an examination of teacher's understandings of creativity in a sample of South African schoolsen_ZA
dc.typeMaster Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelMasters
dc.type.qualificationnameMPhilen_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceThesisen_ZA
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