Creating Creative Learning Environments by Creative Partnerships Programme—Evaluation of the Creative Partnerships Pilot Mathematics Programme in Pécs

Abstract

A Creative Partnerships programme is focused on the long-term relationship between creative practitioners and schools. Creative professionals from various branches (of arts) help students master different types of knowledge and skills. Creative practitioners bring new expectations, which clearly challenge students. But it is not only students that are jerked out of the rut of daily routine by the new learning process—schools as a whole and mainly teachers are highly affected. Creative Partnerships has developed a pedagogical approach known as the “high functioning classroom” which encourages teachers to change their classroom practice so that lessons are replete with challenges that relate learning to real-life situations; where students are engaged physically and socially, as well as emotionally and intellectually; and where students’ own experiences, observations and questions take centre stage. The transformation of teaching and learning is based on creative processes which are channelled into classrooms and school life. Techniques applied in the methodologies of teaching various subjects are derived from artistic practices. Whilst working in the classroom with the students, the artist remains an artist, and the teacher remains a teacher. The programme does not offer arts education. What the Creative Partnerships programme does is to prepare artists to work with teachers and students to bring about sustainable changes in teachers’ teaching practice. The aim of the present paper is to present the main results of qualitative and quantitative research measuring the impact of the Creative Partnerships pilot programme on certain competencies, reading skills development and maths knowledge of the participating (socially disadvantaged) students.