Building a Creative School: Dynamic Approaches to School Development

Creativity--a buzz word in the education sector--is seen mainly as the domain of the creative arts in the curriculum. This book shows how creativity can be an approach to and an ethos for all aspects of school life and management.

Developing a school which enables children and young people to realize their creative potential is an immense challenge. There is no single formula for transforming a school into an environment that nurtures and develops the creativity of pupils. Each school has to grow creatively in its own way and in its own time.

The book explores the practical steps schools can take to enable this process. It examines organization, leadership, approaches to teaching and learning, curriculum design, assessment for learning, professional development, and partnerships, and is rooted in both theory and practice. The authors draw on current research on creativity and learning and on their own extensive professional experience. Examples, case studies, and practical ideas and suggestions are threaded through the book. While providing inspiration in the examples of success they describe, the authors also offer practical guidance and share some of the pitfalls, challenges, and barriers to creativity they have encountered in their own work.

Building a Creative School is for everyone involved in school change--teachers, school leadership teams, school principals, superintendents, teacher trainers, policymakers, and anyone interested in professional development of teachers and school leaders. The book will also be of interest to those working in partnership with schools and seeking to understand the dynamics of this process.

Pat Cochrane has worked in the field of lifelong learning since the 1970s. As Chief Executive of CAPE UK, she works with networks of schools, teachers, school leaders, and creative practitioners to generate creative approaches to teaching and learning.

Mike Collett has an extensive drama and literacy teaching background and has been influential in the uses of creativity to promote achievement throughout the curriculum in schools. He worked in the Manchester Arts Education Initiative and has been Research Fellow and Visiting Lecturer at Manchester Metropolitan University.