The importance of classroom climate in fostering student creativity in Design & Technology lessons.

D&T educators have pointed to a ‘crisis’ in creativity within the subject. Research has indicated that organisational climate, defined as ‘the recurring patterns of behaviour, attitudes and feelings that characterise life in the organisation’, can help or hinder creativity. Hence ‘climate’ is a potential explanatory factor for the lack of creativity documented in student outcomes. This paper, therefore, explores whether the classroom climate experienced by secondary students (aged 11-16 years) in D&T lessons is conducive for creativity. Data are drawn from a number of sources including student (N=126) and teacher (N=14) interviews and student (N=4996) and teacher (N=69) questionnaires gathered across a total of 15 schools, as part of an ongoing Gatsbyfunded research and intervention project. Coded data and survey questions relating to the nine climate dimensions outlined in Ekvall and Isaksen’s climate model were identified. The paper focuses on two of these dimensions; challenge and freedom. The analysis revealed that students felt much of the work they do lacks challenge and freedom, hence they do not perceive the climate in their classrooms as conducive for creativity. Teachers’ perceptions differed somewhat and this is discussed with reference to the performativity culture in which they are located. Whilst acknowledging the difficulties this poses it is argued that, as the literature indicates climate is ‘in the hands of the manager’, teachers can change their practice to enable creativity to flourish. Tentative suggestions for ways forward are suggested

Technicians’ support: a crucial dimension for implementing creative change in D&T classrooms.

In the context of an ongoing research and intervention project ‘Subject Leadership in Creativity in Design and Technology’ funded by the Gatsby Foundation certain factors were identified as either supportive or hindering to the realisation of the main aim of the project which is introducing changes in teaching practices that help develop students’ creativity. To better understand these factors, participating teachers were interviewed regularly to discuss the progress made in their schools. In these interviews, teachers indicate the importance of the support of the technician in the D&T department and highlight the impact of this support on teachers’ adoption of the teaching practices which the project recommends for enhancing the possibility of students engaging in creative designs for the subject projects. It became clear that technicians needed to redefine their roles to be supportive to teachers during the process of change, yet this would only take place if technicians were involved in the change process from its outset. If these two conditions were met, the result was that technicians supported and facilitated students’ creativity. Hence, the paper highlights the importance of engaging the technician from the outset of change to ensure his/her support to the teachers and outlines possible ways for developing this kind of engagement

sj-docx-1-jbd-10.1177_01650254231202444 – Supplemental material for The role of parent–child interactions in the association between mental health and prosocial behavior: Evidence from early childhood to late adolescence

Supplemental material, sj-docx-1-jbd-10.1177_01650254231202444 for The role of parent–child interactions in the association between mental health and prosocial behavior: Evidence from early childhood to late adolescence by Ioannis Katsantonis and Ros McLellan in International Journal of Behavioral Development</p

The contribution of product analysis to fixation in students’ design and technology work

Design and technology (D&T) educators have pointed to a ‘crisis’ in creativity within the subject. Creative cognition literature suggests lack of creativity in design work is at least partly the result of ‘fixation’ (difficulty in generating novel ideas due to imagination being ‘structured’ by pre-existing knowledge). This paper applies these ideas in the context of current practice in D&T to shed light on how students generate design ideas and how a particular teaching approach, product analysis, influences these processes. Data are reported from the six schools involved in the preliminary phase of a Gatsby-funded ongoing research and intervention project1. A number of methods including interviews with D&T teachers (N=14) and focus groups of students (N=126), lesson observations (N=10) and an analysis of documents and student work were utilised to address the question: ‘How does the use of product analysis contribute to fixation in secondary school students’ design work?’ Product analysis was found to be frequently used by teachers at different points in design and make projects, particularly during initial research work prior to the generation of design ideas and as a starting point for the generation of ideas during an idea generation lesson. Example of these different uses of product analysis are outlined, however the impact each has on students’ generation of design ideas was similar: current practice leads to fixation as thinking is constrained down a particular path. Implications for practice are noted

“We don’t know enough”: Environmental education and pro-environmental behaviour perceptions

<div><p></p><p>This study sought to understand environmental knowledge and attitudes among young people to explain the relationship between environmental education (EE) and reported pro-environmental behaviours (PEB). A mixed-methods design was employed: 88 university students in the UK and Nigeria were surveyed and 6 were subsequently interviewed. The findings indicate that the participants believe humans are abusing the earth and are very concerned about the consequences but do not know enough about environmental problems, especially global warming. Also, those who had more environmental knowledge reported more PEB. Generally, participants want more EE content to be taught in schools and in more engaging ways such as field trips. These findings offer important insights for both theory and practice related to the use of education to develop PEB for a healthier environment.</p></div

The role of teachers in educational reform in Kazakhstan: teacher enquiry as a vehicle for change

In reforming education in Kazakhstan, the government has placed the professional development of teachers centre-stage by introducing a number of professional development programmes including Centres of Excellence and the Integrated Programme of Development. This paper builds directly on Paper 1, as the findings reported there directly informed the approach taken within the Integrated Programme of Development which has been implemented in the current school year. Underpinning both professional development approaches is the belief that professional development is contingent on teachers undertaking enquiry in their own classrooms to improve practice. By drawing their colleagues into such enquiry-based approaches teachers are also able to contribute to the development of practice in their schools, thus becoming active agents in the reform process rather than merely the object of reform. This paper will present teacher perceptions on these professional development approaches based on interviews conducted in a range of schools in three different geographical regions involved in the Integrated Programme of Development and on data gathered during the Centres of Excellence training programme in Kazakhstan. The affordances and challenges presented by the two professional development programmes will be highlighted and implications for policy-makers and others involved in educational reform will be outlined

Powerful partnership in a schools-university research collaboration

Action research continues to see a growth in interest both internationally and across disciplines. This book demonstrates the diversity in settings and focus for action research and provides a guide to its core aspiration: to achieve principled change. Written by authors from a range of countries and range of disciplines (including education, health care, palliative care, social work and community development), this book answers these key questions: How can action research be used to achieve principled change? How has action research been applied in various disciplines and in different countries? What can be learnt about the conduct of action research from these diverse settings? By means of detailed case studies of successful projects and discussions that challenge and raise theoretical questions, this book explores some of the contemporary cutting edge applications and conceptualisations of action research. Action research paves the way for the empowerment of people involved in social action, and the examples of successful change processes that are the core of this book will prove inspirational and provide practical advice. Written by a range of leading international researchers in the field, this book will define the future for action research for years to come