Teachers’ Implicit Beliefs about Creativity: A Review of their Content, Influences and Impact on Classroom Practice (Poster 5)

• In Event: A Global Perspective of the Landscape of Research on Teachers’ Beliefs

Abstract

Aim
While several structural factors, such as restrictive curricula, high-stakes testing, and unsupportive school environments may contribute to the challenges of promoting creativity in K-12 education, teachers' implicit beliefs about creativity play a significant role (e.g., Rubenstein et al., 2018). Implicit beliefs are personal, subjective views often shaped by personal experiences, cultural customs, traditions, and values, rather than explicit scholarly knowledge (Paletz & Peng, 2008; Nespor, 1987). Our aim in this presentation is to review the existing literature on K-12 teachers' implicit beliefs about creativity and to explore how these beliefs may influence classroom practice.

Method of Inquiry
We conducted an umbrella review (Aromataris et al., 2015) of existing literature reviews and primary research on K-12 teachers’ beliefs about creativity, identifying studies from via Proquest, ERIC, and PsychInfo, along with hand searches. We applied thematic coding to analyze 80 studies published between 1991 and 2023.

Findings
Our analysis revealed several key findings. First, teachers across various contexts and cultures value creativity (e.g., Kasirer & Shnitzer-Merovich, 2021). However, their implicit beliefs about the meaning (Runco & Jaeger, 2012), domain-specificity (Plucker & Beghetto, 2005), and assessment of creativity (Author, 2021), as well as what constitutes creative behavior in students (Karwowski et al., 2020), often diverge from research-based conceptualizations.

Common misalignments identified across studies include an emphasis on originality over appropriateness and a product-focused rather than process-oriented view of creativity (Author, 2021). Additionally, teachers may hold varied beliefs about the relationship between domain knowledge and creativity across subject areas and grade levels, often finding it challenging to connect creativity development with domain knowledge acquisition (e.g., Meyer & Lederman, 2013). Furthermore, beliefs about the assessment of creativity are often inconsistent with research, with teachers often finding creativity difficult or even impossible to assess (Author, 2021). Such beliefs may lead to inconsistent and limited classroom practices which do not optimally serve students’ creative development.
The review also highlighted several teachers' biases related to classroom experiences (e.g., social desirability; Andiliou & Murphy, 2016) and other culturally ingrained beliefs (e.g., gender; Taylor et al., 2023) affect their perceptions of creativity in students. Creativity beliefs can be changed through professional development courses (Azmalah & Kang, 2023), however, evidence on how other types of targeted interventions or contextual changes may affect implicit beliefs is limited.

Significance
The review has significant implications for policy, teacher education, and practice. Policies should comprehensively address creativity assessment, ensuring alignment with research-based conceptualizations to support identifying and nurturing creativity in students effectively. Teacher education and professional development programs should focus on increasing teachers' knowledge about creativity. These programs should provide teachers with the skills to translate theoretical insights into practical classroom practices and develop self-awareness regarding implicit beliefs and biases. The review also highlights several future research directions. Comprehensive analysis of teachers' implicit beliefs, connecting them to classroom practices and other educational objectives, is necessary. Experimental studies on interventions to positively influence teachers' implicit beliefs are also needed.

Authors

• Enikő Orsolya Bereczki, Eötvös Loránd University - Budapest

• Yixin Zhang, Eötvös Loránd University - Budapest