Educational Science Students’ Implicit Theories of Creativity

Abstract

This article presents the results of research into the implicit theories of creativity of Educational Science students preparing for the role of educational counsellors. Educational Science students will soon be working in educational institutions where they are expected to support creativity. Prospective (pre)school counsellors were asked about how they perceive and how they experience creativity in their own schooling by means of a questionnaire and focus group interview. Participants’ answers were analyzed using quantitative and qualitative content analyses. The data obtained from the questionnaire showed that the students mainly defined creativity as the characteristic of a person or process. They saw the major possibility for developing creativity during university studies in stimulating teaching activities and a supportive educational climate. The data from the focus group expanded the students’ definition of creativity through the domain of the expression and the valuation of creativity. In the discussion about the development of creativity during university studies, the role of the study program and the students’ individual characteristics were highlighted. The aspects of Educational Science education that need to be changed to increase the quality of the preparation of future educational counsellors are also considered.

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia (grants no. 47008, no. 179034, and no. 179060).

Notes

¹ Although the term pedagogy (in Serbian pedagogija) is more commonly used in the region, educational science was used to avoid misunderstanding in English. Pedagogy is considered a fundamental science that attempts to integrate theoretical knowledge with the practice of education (Skubic Ermenc et al., 2015).

² European Credit Transfer System (European Commission/EACEA/Eurydice, 2015).