Barriers And Opportunities For Practising Creativity And Creative Teaching With Gifted Girls In Primary Schools In The KSA

Abstract

In recent years, the Saudi educational system has witnessed significant changes and developments aimed at enhancing students’ performance by promoting creativity and nurturing creative and gifted students in primary schools. Encouraging creativity and creative teaching has become one of the basic goals of the Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Education (MoE) with focus on teachers and students, which it evaluates through supervision of teachers and primary schools. However, recent research indicates the failure of many schools and institutions that sponsor gifted students to promote students' creative abilities, which would contribute to enhancing their talents. Accordingly, it is necessary to conduct research into this area of Saudi Arabian education to explore the perceptions of female teachers, supervisors and gifted female students about creativity and creative teaching with gifted students in girls' primary schools. This research responds to this need and aims to study and explore the perceptions of female teachers, supervisors and female gifted students about barriers and opportunities facing the promotion of creativity and creative teaching practices in Saudi Arabian girls' primary classrooms and current curricula. The study was conducted using the exploratory interpretive methodology. Interviews and focus groups, with analysis informed by a constructivist grounded theory approach, were used to obtain in-depth data to understand participants' responses from different perspectives. Data were collected in this study using semi-structured interviews with nine female teachers who teach classes that include female gifted students, and four female supervisors who supervise teachers of classes with female gifted students. Also, 14 female gifted students from public and private schools identified as gifted from the fourth to sixth grades in the girls’ primary level took part in three focus groups. Through these tools, a rich set of data was analysed to answer the research questions and objectives. The results of this study revealed that participants have clear concepts about creativity and its role in the classroom, whether for ordinary or gifted girls. Despite this, the participants pointed to a selection of barriers facing the promotion of creativity and creative teaching in girls’ primary schools. There was a lack of professional training that aims to develop female teachers for creative teaching and creative teaching practices, as well as dealing with gifted students, for teachers, in addition to a lack of time and resources in schools and the integration of female gifted students with many students in regular classes. On the other hand, teachers pointed to opportunities that enhance creativity among students, such as applying a set of practices to enhance creative teaching and learning strategies, cooperative learning, brainstorming, learning by playing and self-learning. The results of this study also revealed that the current curricula in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) help enhance creativity although they do not seem appropriate for gifted students. The results of this study provide a comprehensive understanding of the current landscape of creativity and creative teaching in one area of Saudi Arabia. They also provide valuable insights into the possibility of promoting a more creative and inclusive educational environment for all students, especially gifted girls. Therefore, in addition to its contributions to researchers and education professionals, this study is also valuable to educational policymakers in Saudi Arabia.