Acknowledging Creative Thinking Skills Erasmus Project

Project Title

Acknowledging Creative Thinking Skills

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for school education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2015

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; Recognition, transparency, certification; Recognition (non-formal and informal learning/credits)

Project Summary

There are five partners working together on this project: four national Steiner school associations and one UK awarding body:
• the Steiner Waldorf Schools Fellowship (UK),
• Sammenslutningen af frie Rudolf Steiner skoler i Danmark (Denmark); s
• steinerskoleforbundet (Norway);
• Steinerkasvatuksen liitto (Finland) and
• Crossfields Institute, the awarding body for the qualifications.
Our project ‘Acknowledging Creative Thinking Skills’ aimed to contribute to the development of a European area of Skills and Qualifications, thereby raising attainment for all students and reducing the numbers of early school leavers. We had identified a need for internationally portable qualifications at Levels 3 and 4 (EQF) that recognise and validate learning gained through an integrated variety of formal, non-formal and informal learning styles. This will give real mobility opportunities and a sense of educational community across borders.
Those students whose learning styles do not sit well with formal learning and summative exam assessments are at greater risk of becoming disillusioned, disengaged, stressed and even disruptive. Similarly, those who manage well within a formal learning environment in their teenage years are also not best served in an exam driven environment, in that it places undue stress upon finite fact regurgitation rather than creative understanding and engagement with principles as continually developing concepts. We want to facilitate creative thinking and maximise potential in all students through a holistic approach to curriculum development and implementation combining the highly-focused, analytic thinking and memory training involved in formal education with the softer focus, non-verbal, experience of interconnections and context that is often found in non-formal and informal learning. It was this context that development of Level 2 and 3 qualifications was realised.
We recognised that in order to enable the successful embedding of this approach in schools, a parallel activity developing suitable CPD and assessor training was needed.
The methodology for this three year project was collaborative and involved:
• 4 Project Management meetings to plan and disseminate results relating to:
• 4 Curriculum Development Transnational Activities facilitated by the Crossfields Institute which developed an innovative integration of formal, non-formal and informal learning within school provision and also through enhancing and assessing creative thinking skills across the curriculum. This work involved subject specialists in consultation with learning support specialists. The participants were experienced teachers, teacher trainers and educationalists.
• 3 Assessor Trainer Transnational Activities lead by Crossfields trained assessor experts called ‘Quality Champions’ to cascade down the necessary assessment training to teachers in the schools. Assessor training includes holistic assessment using a range of integrated methods.
• Crossfields worked collaboratively with the partners on the detailed development of the units including an innovative module making explicit the creative thinking skills so valued in Higher Education, employment and business.
• Sector approval has been given by UK Ofqual for the ‘Sector for Learning and Life’.
• The diploma design work is complete and qualifications will be rolled out in two stages with the initial 2 Certificates submitted in October 2018 and expected to go live by Nov 1st. The remaining diploma and extended diplomas qualifications are expected to be available in 2019.
• Alongside this, an invaluable overview of approaches, methodologies and context in the light of the Creative Thinking Skills Spectrum, identified, has been synthesised into an easily understood and digestible publication suitable for practical use and wider dissemination in the form of the SWSF intellectual output: ‘Acknowledging Creative Thinking Skills: Educating for a Creative Future’. This will be freely available on the dedicated ACTS website from December 2018, along with articles, reports, forums and information about the diploma.
This has significant long term implications. The paradigm shift in approach to curriculum and assessment practices is an important in principle step that has not been achieved elsewhere. Alongside this, there is the identification of a full set of Creative Thinking Skills which has received international interest and has potential to beneficially inform education policy and practice. It also has significant wider implications: for example, higher education, business training and apprenticeships, and a contribution to addressing mental health issues.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 366740 Eur

Project Coordinator

Steiner Waldorf Schools Fellowship Limited & Country: UK

Project Partners

• Steinerkasvatuksen liitto
• steinerskoleforbundet
• Crossfields Institute
• Sammenslutningen af frie Rudolf Steiner skoler i Danmark