Searching for an Alternate Way to Identify Young Creative Minds: A Classroom-Based Observation Approach

Abstract

Creative ability in young children has traditionally been assessed through the use of standardized tests of divergent thinking. This study investigated an alternate way of identifying creative ability. The concurrent validity of a more developmentally appropriate and authentic, behavior-based observation approach was examined on a sample of 45 kindergarten children from an urban elementary school. Significant, but relatively weak correlations were found between the Nebraska Starry Night Observation Protocol (NSNO) and the originality and elaboration scores of the concurrent measure, the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking (TTCT). Implications of using the NSNO to identify young creative children are discussed.Creativity is a much desired and respected talent (Scmukler, 1988) and a vital component of giftedness (e.

The vicious circle of stereotypes: Teachers’ awareness of and responses to students’ gender-stereotypical behaviour

“…Six lessons were observed in each class (three mathematics lessons and three Polish language lessons), which gave a total of 204 observed lessons. Such a number of hours of observation for each class was aimed at familiarising students and teachers with the researchers and limiting the impact of the presence of the researcher on the functioning of the teacher and students [ 65 ]. Moreover, in order to ensure the objectivity of the study, each lesson was observed by two researchers trained by the first author of the article with regard to the study’s subject.…”

Experiencing Folk Music in Children

“…They also evolve spontaneously out of an inner need to express oneself. Many studies (Biber, 2016;Chronopoulou & Riga, 2012;Frid et al, 2016;Han et al, 2003;Howard-Jones et al, 2002;Kiehn, 2003Kiehn, , 2007MacDonald et al, 2006;Morin, 2001;Niland, 2009;Russ et al, 1999;Soley & Spelke, 2016;Sternberg, 2006;Tarnowski, 1999) prove that such a creative approach in children occurs automatically, and, in particular, highlight the positive influence on the common or individual improvisational motivation within the concept of flow in play. All these characteristics -together with improvisation and composition -are pursued by the Slovene curriculum for music education in primary school (Učni načrt za glasbeno vzgojo v osnovni šoli, 2011), which establishes educational objectives in the sense of holistic teaching and defines music as a "cultural phenomenon" (ib., p. 39) and as "an individual's need for an organised acoustic environment, sound-based communication and creativity" (ib.).…”