Creativity in pre-school education

www.creativityinpreschool.eufacebook.com/creanetEUTwitter.com/CreanetEU

Why CREANET

Always more attention paid at EU level on early childhood education

Scarce partecipation of actors dealing with children aged from 0-6 in the LLP Comenius action

Background

Since 2007 to 2012

261 Comenius projects approved by the central agency EACEA (in Bruxelles)

Only 12 of them were focused on education in early childhood

CREANET is a Comenius network aimed at developing a european forum for discussion research and exchange of best practices on

creativity in preschool education from a multidisciplinary and cross-institutional

perspective.

Project length

October2010

36 months

September2013

Scandiano

MunicipalityItaly

Verteneglio

MunicipalityCroazia

University of

Modena and

Reggio EmiliaItaly

EnzkreisGermany

University of

Jyvaskyla

Finland

Norrköping

MunicipalitySweden

University College

Lillebaelt, Odense Denmark

Instituto

Politecnico de

BejaPortugal

University of

KlaipedaLithuania

University of

MurciaSpain

University of

LiepajaLatvia

SERN

Italy

Associated Partners

(E.G.)

Parma province Forlì municipality

MUBA – Milano

Scuola statale dell’Infanzia dell’Abate Scandiano

Scuola statale dell’Infanzia Don Borghi - RE

41 Associated partners

Obiettivi di CREANET

1. To create a european forum for discussion among practitioners and academics;

2. To identify, compare and exchange methodologies, approaches and experiences that promote creativity

3. To improve the quality of the educational offer and improve the competences/skills of the teaching staff

4. To use creativity as a means to boost the educational and social inclusion of the children and families belonging to minorities and/or disedvanteged groups

5. To strengthen the european dimension of lifelong learning and to stimulate creativity at the early stages of childhood

Network Strategy

1. Research activities aimed at developing a european approach toward creativity in pre-school through litterature reviews fieldwork and action-research

2. Exchange of best practices structured in two working groups dealing respectively with creativity and “contexts” and “expressive languages”;

3. Annual conferences aimed at exchanging best practices and at developing new projects based on the results of the research

Research activity

→ European literature review on creativity in pre-school education;

National literature review

International thematic literature review Creativity and technologies, creativity and science, creativity

and art, creativity and teacher’s role, creativity and materials, creativity in children and adults

→ To identify the perspective of the teachers on creativity;

→ Sharing best practices;

Research

TEACHERS’ POINT OF

VIEW ON CREATIVITY

TEACHERS’ POINT OF VIEW

AdoptedMethodologies

Focus Groups Questionnaires Interviews

AIM OF THE QUESTIONNAIRE

To identify the teachers’ point of view on creativity through a questionnaire.

In particular, to understand what are the elements and activities that help or hinder creativity in children

THE RESEARCH SAMPLE

Respondents: 425 kindergarden and nursery school teachers from 8 countries

Croatia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Portugal, Spain, Sweden.

THE RESEARCH SAMPLE 2

Profile: Women (95% of the sample), with more than 10 years of teaching experience (70% of the sample)

The respondents participated in some training activity on creativity.

ELEMENTS THAT INFLUENCECREATIVITY

1. Appropriate pedagogical behavior of teachers

2. Availability of materials

3. Attractiveness of indoor/outdoor

environment

4. Adequate organizational structure of the

school

PRACTICES THAT FOSTER CREATIVITY

Practices

ArtisticExpression

LogicChallenges

Narrative

Projects

WHAT HINDERS CREATIVITY

Practices/activitiesthat hindercreativity

Attivities with a (pre)defined

pattern to follow

Authoritarianteaching styles

Lack of time, space and materials

Annual conferences

Prima Creanet conference – Beja (PT), 5-7 may 2011Presentation of the results of investigation

Set up of wrking groups

Contact seminar for project development

Second Creanet conference – Lithuania, 23-25 may 2012Presentation of the work carried out in the working groups

Presentation of findings of comparative research carried out duting the second year of activities

Contact seminar for project development of new Comenius projects

Third Creanet conference – Italy, september 2013Presentation of the final results of the research

Presentation of the best practices identified

Presentation of a draft document addressed to policy makers

Presentation of the research results

2011 Conference

National Literature

Review

2012 Conference

Transnational thematic

analysis

2013 Conference

Presentation of the

results/outputs of the

research

Development of New Projects

Specific sessions in each conference were dedicated to the development of Comenius projects among preschools

LLP

Comenius

Networks

MultilateralProjects

Partnerships

http://www.programmallp.it/home.php?id_cnt=11

Project Proposals

Working groups

Woring Groups’ themes

CONTEXTS EXPRESSIVE LANGUAGES

Spaces and materials;

Constructiveness;

Technology and media;

Relations;

Language learning;

Play;

Exploration of the nature;

Outdoor environment;

Narrative;

Body;

Arts: art, music, dance e theatre

Graphic-expressive and manipulative

Structure and methodology of the

groups

Exchange of best practices

Testing of pilotactions

Development ofnew projects

ContextsExpressiveLanguages

Approach

Analysis of the daily practices in preschools through a common interpretative key..

Novelty

Elements for identifying creativity in daily

practices

Indipendence

Self-esteem

Self-expression

Risk

Curiosity

Inventiveness

Suggestions about the

experiences presented in

the working groups

SWEDEN

SWEDEN

F

I

N

L

A

N

D

FINLAND

LITHUANIA

ITALY

P

O

R

T

U

G

A

L

How to follow CREANET

Visit the website www.creativityinpreschool.eu and follow usof the social network:facebook.com/creanetEUtwitter.com/CreanetEU

Participate to the annual CREANET dissemination seminars

Participate to the CREANET annual conferences

Valorize the results of the project by testing the results of research, methodologies and best practices of the network in your organization