Date of Completion

4-22-2019

Embargo Period

4-22-2019

Keywords

creativity, gifted education, teachers

Major Advisor

Sally Reis

Associate Advisor

Joseph Renzulli

Associate Advisor

Ronald Beghetto

Field of Study

Educational Psychology

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy

Open Access

Open Access

Abstract

This mixed-methods study examined teachers’ responses on the Imagination, Creativity, and Innovation (ICI) Index instrument’s confirmatory data set (n=220). ICI Index scores represented teachers’ predictions of how students would rate their school’s support for student creativity, which was assumed to represent the teachers’ perspective of the actual support for student creativity at the school. Teachers of grades 6-8 (n=55) had significantly lower ICI Index scores than teachers of grades 3-5 (n=155; pn=151) did not differ significantly from gifted and talented teachers (n=49) on their ICI scores. Qualitative analysis found that, when asked to give examples of products, performances, and services produced by students that were points of pride, most teachers discussed their own creative teaching practices rather than student-initiated projects. Most major content areas were represented in these points of pride, and about one-quarter of responses were interdisciplinary. The most common audience for these points of pride was the school community. Time was often discussed as a support for creativity by respondents, and special periods, including Enrichment Clusters and Genius Hour, were common periods of time that teachers reserved for student creativity. Teachers with high ICI Index scores usually discussed how the entire school community provided opportunities for all students to be creative, whereas teachers with low ICI Index scores reported that support for student creativity was absent or limited to specific groups, such as gifted students or the school chorus. Implications for practice and future research are offered in the conclusion of this study.

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