Leading change for creativity in schools: mobilizing creative risk-taking and productive failure

ABSTRACT

Emerging research points to the importance of developing the capacities of teachers to help their students to be creative risk takers and to learn from productive failure. Facilitating this creative risk taking in learners has been shown to require expertise and a degree of risk taking on the part of both teachers and educational leaders. This article explores perspectives about leadership for creativity and risk taking, using Kurt Lewin’s theory of change, especially his idea of ‘unfreezing’. It is based on a case study of a school principal and six year 8 teachers at a private school in Melbourne, Australia. Using qualitative interview data, the principal’s perspective about change is explored and compared to how teacher participants enacted change in their practice as reported in a focus group. Examples from classrooms are reported from the perspective of teachers. The findings suggest that enacting creative risk and productive failure as pedagogical principles is a complex area of change, embedded with tensions between the realization and idealization of a leadership vision and critically involves the disposition of students. Meaningful enactment requires support from leadership and a willingness from teachers to be open to such ideas in the multidimensional space of classrooms.

KEYWORDS:

• Leadership
• creativity
• risk-taking
• productive failure
• Lewin’s change theory
• educational change

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Edwin Creely

Edwin Creely is a lecturer in the Faculty of Education at Monash University. His research focuses on creativity, poetry, literacy, digital pedagogy, and technology and learning. He has extensive experience as an educator. Edwin is especially interested in innovation and creative practices and bringing new models and perspectives to educational research. He has published in a range of journals and is a regular contributor to research and practice in creativity and technology.

Michael Henderson

Michael Henderson is Professor of Digital Futures in the Faculty of Education at Monash University. He is internationally recognised for his research in critical studies of technology and instructional design, including assessment feedback. His work spans early childhood through to tertiary and workplace settings.

Danah Henriksen

Henriksen Danah is an Associate Professor of Educational Leadership & Innovation at Arizona State University. Her research focuses on creativity and transdisciplinary thinking in education with a particular interest in technology-rich environments. She publishes in a range of peer-reviewed journals, as well as practitioner focused venues, and is author/co-author of several books related to creativity and technology.

Renee Crawford

Renée Crawford is an international leader in the field of authenticlearning contexts and digital technology for music teaching and learning. As a mixed-methodresearcher, her research focuses on teacher-led research practice and the development ofprofessional learning; blended learning and online education contexts; creative and criticalthinking; the development of teaching and learning models; inclusive practice and pedagogyand curriculum development that is informed by both current and historical perspectives.