Liminality in education: generating a creative space of encounter and dialogue between teachers and students within educational structures

ABSTRACT

The dominant results-driven/performance-oriented culture and the pressures of performativity in education have meant that the promotion of creativity has been narrow in scope and the translation into practice less apparent than the rhetoric would suggest. Creativity can survive even in times of standardisation, but it is more likely to be confined to interstitial zones. Interstitial zones are in-between social spaces outside the formal teaching zones in which creativity may give voice to those students whose voice is not always heard in the formal teaching context.

Often, creativity is equated exclusively to substantial creative outputs and, as a result, teachers who are not sensitised to creativity in a broader sense may underestimate their own creative ability and the positive impact this might have on the relationship with their students. A shift in teacher education that results in a more meaningful appreciation of both the nature of creativity and its benefits is therefore required. A developmental approach which starts with teacher cultivation of creative sensibility is essential to achieve greater infusion of creativity. The paper posits that  teachers who resist rigid social structures and engage in critical pedagogy are also more likely to be receptive to creativity and its the pastoral potential in education.

KEYWORDS:

• Liminal
• interstitial creativity
• creativity self-efficacy
• dialogue

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank our students who, over the years, have inspired the reflections that have led to writing this article.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

The authors did not avail of any funding for the preparation of this article.