The Impact of Creative Movement in the Academic Classroom
Creative movement is a common term for dance classes, but has recently been applied within the academic classroom. There has been complications with implementing creativity and kinesthetic movement in academic classes due to the heavy focus on standardized testing scores. Incorporation of creative movement is imperative because it allows teachers to promote and foster individual growth. The use of creativity and kinesthetic movement in academics also teaches students to learn with the brain in mind and develop awareness of bodily movements.
Statement of the Research Question
The problem of this study was to determine the impact of creative movement within the academic classroom. Two
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Kinesthetic refers to the combination of sensory input and motor output in balance. Artistic expression refers to the responsibility of individuals to develop their creative imagination.
Review of Literature
The literature review in this study focused on two areas: how creative movement differs with interpretation based on gender and achievement and how level of education affects inclusion of creative movement.
Gender
Scholes and Nagel (2012) conducted a mixed methods study (survey and grounded theory) to determine how a curriculum can engage and enhance learning for all students, but mainly boys who are at risk of failing. The chosen design is appropriate since it provides a clear understanding of research based on attitudes and learning significance. There were 297 participants who were from seven different schools, in which age ranged from eight to 10 years old. A follow-up interview was completed by 34 students. The instrumentation for this study was the Likert Scale (which tested students’ responses based on individual attitudes), the survey, and the semi-structured interviews. The statistical significance from the study was the determination that socioeconomic background heavily affects how masculinities is formed by different groups of boys. The practical significance is to implement human creativity within the classroom to engage the students who are most
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Another key definition was gender studies, which was defined as an area of study that focuses on gender, identity of the students, and diversity within the classroom. A strength from this study was the acknowledgement of limitation with students’ socioeconomic categories, which eliminated the potential internal threat. A weakness from this study was the researcher’s use of outdated references.
An internal threat to validity was data collector bias since both researchers work closely with gender, creativity, and neuropsychological studies within the education system. This was seen as a potential threat because the researchers could design their study a specific way to receive the outcomes they expected. An external threat to validity was population generalizability because the researchers developed a generalized understanding from the follow-up interview. The 34 students represented the whole student body with personal opinion, which presents a potential
Shaughnessy, M. F., & Wakefield, J. F. (2003). Creativity: Assessment. In N. Piotrowski & T. Irons-Georges (Eds.), Magill's encyclopedia of social science:Psychology (pp. 459-463). Pasadena, CA: Salem Press.
Shaughnessy, M. F., & Wakefield, J. F. (2003). Creativity: Assessment. In N. Piotrowski & T. Irons-Georges (Eds.), Magill's encyclopedia of social science:Psychology (pp. 459-463). Pasadena, CA: Salem Press. Van Hoose, W.H. (1980).
Sadker, Myra, David Sadker, and Susan Klein. "The Issue of Gender in Elementary and Secondary Education." Review of Research in Education 17 (1991): 269. JSTOR. Web. 14 Mar. 2012.
The reading "What is Gender Studies?" is an in depth description of what Gender s tudies is and the different aspects of life that it involves. "Gender Studies is a field of study that looks at the world from the perspective of gender" (What is Gender Studies 2). looking at the world this way reveals that the study of gender in the world encompasses nearly every aspect of life. Gender Studies look at the patterns and behaviors that are related to masculinity and femininity.
Education was sex segregated for hundreds of years. Men and women went to different schools or were physically and academically separated into “coeducational” schools. Males and females had separate classrooms, separate entrances, separate academic subjects, and separate expectations. Women were only taught the social graces and morals, and teaching women academic subjects was considered a waste of time.
Gender studies is a discipline that “investigates the actual (physical and biological) gender differences between women and men,” but is critical in analyzing “what these differences mean in a socio-cultural context” (“What Is Gender Studies?” P1).... ... middle of paper ... ... The Web.
Sending a child to a gender based school, is a very big decision to make. The decision is so big, that looking at what research has to say about the topic could alter one’s decision to send their child to a gender based school. “Educators must apply different approaches in teaching make, and female students” (Gurian). This is said by Gurian, because he also believes that boys and girls learn differently. “Social pressures can be gentler and your child can learn at his own pace” (Kennedy).
Evaluating Choice, Rhetoric, and Practices, author Amber Jones address the issues concerning the education of the African American and Latino male in the United States and explores the possibility single-sex charter school as a remedy to increase the graduation rate of minority male students. The author supports W.E.B. Du Bois premises that it is impossible for white America to educate the Negro man properly because white America lacks the ability to connect with the obstacles that minority men in crisis face from a cultural, social, emotional, psychological, and physical standpoint. African American and Latino males are more likely to be ostracized in the classroom due to discipline infractions and placed in special education classes more than any segment of the classroom population. The author believes loving teachers, a safe classroom climate, and high expectations, are essential elements that nurture knowledge and academic progression. Single gender charter schools emphasize cultural acceptance, rites of passage experiences, human development, healthy self-expression, and mentorship programs. However, the author believes educators in all learning institutions can embrace minority males by helping them discover their identity as a person and assist them in their quest to be the best that they can
It seems that single-sex education perpetuates gender stereotypes and promotes gender bias among students (Taylor). Gender-separate education requires schools and teachers to create gender-oriented courses, facilities, and learning environment. As a result, sing-sex schools exacerbate sexist attitudes and “feelings of superiority toward women” (Guarisco). It is fair to argue that the best way to achieve gender equality is to promote rather than eliminate interaction among girls and boys. However, girls in the sex-mixed class receive less attention from teachers than boys, which may lead to gender bias. More precisely, boys always have disciplinary issues, such as interruption; teachers have to pay more attention to boys’ behaviors in order to proceed the lecture more smoothly. Girls may feel less important and supportive in male-dominated classes; boys may think that males are smarter and far superior than females. Single-sex schools can address both girls’ and boys’ issues of gender stereotypes directly and accordingly. Male students may be freer to engage in some activities they have not considered before in mixed schools. For example, boys feel pressure to follow some non-macho interests when girls stay around them; however, the all-boys schools eliminate their pressure toward gender stereotyping to pursue music, dance, and drawing. Single-sex schools would help boys explore and develop themselves. Also, girls in sex-separate schools show more confidence and power (Guarisco). They could receive full attention from teachers and express their opinions in science classes without worrying about the boys’ banter. They may realize that they are as important as boys. Hence, both girls and boys can be free from gender stereotypes and benefit from a same-sex learning
NACCCE definition of creativity: ‘Imaginative activity fashioned so as to produce outcomes that are both original and of value’(NACCCE, 1999:94).Creativity can motivate children to learn new information through a creative outlook. One of the biggest issues teachers have is between teaching required content and integrating creativity into the daily sessions. The National Curriculum and state standard often create boundaries towards the teacher’s ability to develop the lesson, as the intention of including creativity sometimes resorts in a teacher centred learning environment. The teacher’s role should be to generate lessons and create activities that encourage students to be more open to their creative side. This is vital as it exposes children with varying learning styles to different ways of learning.
Same sex classes make it possible for teachers to cater to student needs in a more efficient way. In general boys benefit from hands on learning, but girls benefit from calm discussions (Mullins 3). Girls tend to doubt themselves while boys think they can do anything. Boys need to be brought down from the clouds while girls need to be dug out of a hole (Mullins 3). David Chadwell says, "Structure and connection are two key concepts when examining gender in the classroom. All students certainly need both, but it seems that teachers need to consider the issue of structure more with boys and the issue of connection more with girls" (7), and Kristen Stanberry’s research has shown, "Some research indicates that girls learn better when classroom temperature is warm, while boys perform better in cooler classrooms. If that's true, then the temperature in a single-sex classroom could be set to optimize the learning of either male or female students" (1). These observations further support the idea that same sex classrooms can cater to student’s...
This time I work with PK students who display shyness and little less enthusiasm compared to my last class. This assignment became more difficult compared to the first as I tried to solve moments of dead silence by improvising. This was actually a good skill to develop because sometimes when your plan does not work out, having the skill to come with a quick solution is invaluable. Connecting to my OT class, it almost felt like I was showing signs of spontaneous creativity because I was coming up with solutions in the process. Since the students in my class were much younger, we incorporate more movement in our lesson plans: acting, dancing, painting, making beats, etc. The lesson plans were more deviated from crafts, but it still emphasize creativity as the main
There are many people who believe and consider that creativity is affected by culture, the way that ideas, how concepts are introduced, and developed into a reality. In today’s market, creativity is linked to innovation, which is an appreciated and sought after skill to have in todays changing world. I agree with this statement and declaration with four reasons. The first reason is if we did not let people think of ways to be improve items, then we would not be currently in a place in society with the advancement of technology and new ideas that come out everyday from the people of the world. Secondly, the believed notion that “More Energy is equaled to Better Moods”, which is appropriately true about how creativity is affected by culture. Another reason why creativity is affected by culture is allowing the possibilities and opportunities created by creative minds of our culture. The final reason why creativity is affected by culture is one learns persistence and dedication from the journey they take to be unique and creative; while they create and find new answers that they never knew before using creativity to
Vincent, B., 2013. Top Reasons Why Schools Kill Creativity In Students - All Voices. [Online]
Creative Arts in early childhood education refers to children’s participation in a variety of activities that engage their minds, bodies and senses (Sinclair, Jeanneret & O’Toole, 2012; Kearns, 2017); to inspire all children with the opportunity for creative and imaginative expression. Duffy (2006) and Sinclair et al. (2012) state that creativity is the process where children use their imagination to problem solve, develop new ideas, independence and flexibility to accomplish tasks. Furthermore, when educators foster creativity, they are assisting children in making meaning through play and developing their growing capacity to communicate, collaborate and think critically to meet the demands of life in the 21st century (Duffy, 2006; Korn-Bursztyn, 2012; Sinclair et al., 2012).