The Characteristics of Creative Students Described by Teachers and Their Effects on Teachers' Perceptions of Students

Abstract

In this study, we explored teachers' perceptions of creative students' characteristics and how these perceived characteristics are related to students' school adaptation or creative talent perceived by teachers. To this end, we conducted two studies. Study 1 explored teachers' perceptions of creative students' characteristics. Study 2 examined how the characteristics of creative students affect teachers' perceptions of students by using an experimental vignette method. In Study 1, we collected 25 teachers' perceptions of creative students' characteristics in an open-ended manner. Responses were categorized by a total of 41 characteristics, and a 9-point Likert scale was finally created. The scale was conducted on 204 teachers, and six factors resulted from the exploratory factor analysis. In Study 2, we created 2⁶ (= 64) vignettes using six factors derived from Study 1. A total of 189 teachers participated in the vignette experiment and confirmed how teachers' perceptions of students (i.e., academic achievement, academic motivation, peer relationship, relationship with teachers, intention to recommend creativity nurturing special programs, and the burden of teaching) differed by the characteristics presented in each vignette. Based on the results, the importance of teachers' perceptions in creative education was discussed.