Classroom creativities, pedagogic partnership and the improvisatory space of creative teaching and learning

Abstract

There is a long history of collaborations between teachers and professional artists in participatory arts activities in schools and communities. Models of pedagogic partnerships between artists and teachers vary considerably. However, effective partnerships between artists and teachers in schools suggest that it is in classroom creativities that innovative professional practices emerge. This chapter draws significantly on Professor Maurice Galton’s study of the pedagogy of resident artists in schools for Creative Partnerships and the Arts Council of Great Britain. Extending Professor Galton’s ideas, I argue that creative learning and teaching are more likely to occur when the rigid division between teacher and student is relaxed, creating an improvisatory space where teacher, artist and students jointly construct the improvisational flow of the classroom.