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This report has been commissioned by the Royal Commission into Early Childhood Education and Care(ECEC) in South Australia. The Commission, established on 16 October 2022, is an opportunity topropose new solutions and provide advice to the government on delivering a high-quality early yearssystem that is fit for the children of South Australia Refereed/Peer-reviewed

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Supplemental material, sj-pdf-1-joa-10.1177_1932202X20978356 for What Is Creativity in Education? A Qualitative Study of International Curricula by Timothy J. Patston, James C. Kaufman, Arthur J. Cropley and Rebecca Marrone in Journal of Advanced Academics

Proponents of artificial intelligence boast its many promises, including the potential for creativity. Whether the realities of artificial cognition align with these promises, however, remains hotly debated. In this chapter, we explore the role of artificial intelligence in creative problem-solving through the lens of cognition. Through this lens, we advance the argument that, at present, creative problem-solving remains a distinctly human capability. Specifically, we examine how artificial cognition can and cannot engage in each stage of creative problem-solving, as well as the underlying mechanisms of divergent and convergent thinking. Although we find little evidence to support the creativity of artificial cognition, we advance several ways in which artificial cognition can augment human cognition to enhance creative problem-solving.

Scientific and mathematical creativity are important to support innovation in the 21st century. These creative skills can be taught and learned at school. In this chapter, we present important theoretical frameworks that help us understand how they can be developed in the classroom. We cover some of the challenges and opportunities that come with it and present some design principles and practical applications for primary and secondary classrooms. We then address the latest research trends in emerging and propose future lines of research in this space, including the role of technology in the measurement and development of scientific and mathematical creativity, and the increasing use of dynamic micro-longitudinal approaches to studying them.

Purpose The concept of sustainable development (SD) is a popular response to society’s need to preserve and extend the life span of natural resources. One of the 17 goals of the SD is “education quality” (Fourth Goal of Sustainable Development [SDG-4]). Education quality is an important goal because education is a powerful force that can influence social policies and social change. The SDG-4 must be measured in different contexts, and the tools to quantify its effects require exploration. So, this study aims to propose a statistical model to measure the impact of higher education online courses on SD and a structural equation model (SEM) to find constructs or factors that help us explain a sustainability benefits rate. These proposed models integrate the three areas of sustainability: social, economic and environmental. Design/methodology/approach A beta regression model suggests features that include the academic and economic opportunities offered by the institution, the involvement in research activities and the quality of the online courses. A structural equation modelling (SEM) analysis allowed selecting the key variables and constructs that are strongly linked to the SD. Findings One of the key findings showed that the benefit provided by online courses in terms of SD is 62.99% higher than that of offline courses in aspects such as transportation, photocopies, printouts, books, food, clothing, enrolment fees and connectivity. Research limitations/implications The SEM model needs large sample sizes to have consistent estimations. Thus, despite the obtained estimations in the proposed SEM model being reliable, the authors consider that a limitation of this study was the required time to collect data corresponding to the estimated sample size. Originality/value This study proposes two novel and different ways to estimate the sustainability benefits rate focused on SDG-4, and machine learning tools are implemented to validate and gain robustness in the estimations of the beta model. Additionally, the SEM model allows us to identify new constructs associated with SDG-4.

Refereed/Peer-reviewed Technology is omnipresent in our rapidly changing digital world. Capitalising on these technologies is paramount for education systems to support a modern workforce. This study presents a review of 10 countries, highlighting how different public education systems have integrated digital technologies for teaching and learning. These education systems were selected based on their high performance and continuous improvement in international assessments. Four main themes emerged as key areas of focus from our analysis: improved and enhanced teaching and learning; digital maturation, including tackling the first and second digital divide; data-driven decision making and evidence-based education; and AI in education. Our findings will help benchmark current approaches and uses of digital teaching and learning, including perceived challenges and opportunities that can be used to inform the development and implementation of digital education policies.

Refereed/Peer-reviewed The proliferation of AI in many aspects of human life—from personal leisure, to collaborative professional work, to global policy decisions—poses a sharp question about how to prepare people for an interconnected, fast-changing world which is increasingly becoming saturated with technological devices and agentic machines. What kinds of capabilities do people need in a world infused with AI? How can we conceptualise these capabilities? How can we help learners develop them? How can we empirically study and assess their development? With this paper, we open the discussion by adopting a dialogical knowledge-making approach. Our team of 11 co-authors participated in an orchestrated written discussion. Engaging in a semi-independent and semi-joint written polylogue, we assembled a pool of ideas of what these capabilities are and how learners could be helped to develop them. Simultaneously, we discussed conceptual and methodological ideas that would enable us to test and refine our hypothetical views. In synthesising these ideas, we propose that there is a need to move beyond AI-centred views of capabilities and consider the ecology of technology, cognition, social interaction, and values.

The concept of “creativity” as a desirable attribute within education is long-standing. The fields of education and creativity have developed, and periodically intersected with, government reports, policies, commentaries, and advice. Recently, an increasing number of countries have emphasized creativity in their official curricula. However, the journey from openly acknowledging the importance of creativity to systematically and purposefully supporting its promotion in the classroom is a long one. The research reported in this article focuses on what might be regarded as the first step in this journey: school curriculum. This article analyzes curricula in 12 countries and asks three key questions: if and how creativity is defined, where is it placed in the curriculum, and what concrete advice is provided for teachers? Despite widespread interest and a productive field of research in creativity, our examination reveals little support for teachers to turn policy into practice. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

The field of creativity remains misunderstood by the general public and implicit beliefs, in particular an Arts Bias, continue to permeate popular culture. This has the potential to derail efforts to embed creativity in the 21st century classroom, at a time when it is most needed. We therefore ask if teachers endorse such an Arts Bias in creativity. The present study found a lower than expected tendency towards an Arts Bias among teachers from more than seven countries. However, differences by discipline and level of self-rated creativity suggest specific pathways for enhancing efforts to embed creativity in the classroom. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Thesis (PhD(Systems Engineering))--University of South Australia, 2020. Includes bibliographical references. Education promotes 21st century STEM skills through the teaching of mathematics and creativity. Unfortunately, female students experience disadvantages in mathematics which can lead to gender inequality in the STEM workforce. This research proposed and answered the question ‘How do we encourage positive mathematical attitudes and creative abilities in students, particularly females?’ Results from three studies highlight that females have lower confidence in their mathematical creativity in comparison to males. Additionally, results show that only female teachers endorse the stereotype that mathematics is a male subject. Results also propose how creativity-based interventions can minimise negative attitudes towards mathematics and decrease sex differences in the subject. Overall, the results suggest that creativity may lessen the sex gap in mathematics and promote gender equity in STEM.

The advent of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0) and a broader digital transformation of society is driving both a renewed focus on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education as well as a recognition that creativity is a prerequisite for employment in the 21st century. Together, these elements are the catalyst for a key question: what is the impact of school education, in its broadest sense, on the development of STEM-based creativity in children? To shed greater light on this question, this study focuses on mathematical creativity in children across grades six-12, at a large Australian school. The study reported in this paper found that although mathematical creativity increases from year to year, there is a significant within-year decline in creativity. This paper explores possible explanations for this decline, suggesting that it is driven by a combination of environmental, personal, and process-related factors present in the context of school education. The study sheds light on the relationship between the development of mathematical creativity in high school students, and the factors that may impede this development. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Guided by four key elements of creativity theory (the 4 Ps), framed in an educational context (Results, Investigation, Students and Environment), this study examines implicit beliefs in a large sample of teachers across a range of discipline areas. The study finds that teacher implicit beliefs of creativity reflect a more differentiated and operationalized framework of five factors. Furthermore, these implicit beliefs are not indicative of a narrow, arts-biased understanding of creativity. Notwithstanding these results, the study also found differences among teachers by gender, discipline, level (elementary versus secondary), and even by the teachers’ assessment of their own creativity. The implications of these results for teacher training and development are discussed. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

School systems around the world are, for a variety of reasons, moving towards a greater emphasis on creativity in the classroom. This paradigm shift raises important questions for teachers. Do teachers need to be creative themselves in order to develop creativity in their students? Is teaching a creative profession? Regardless of the importance and interplay between teaching creatively, and teaching for creativity, what role does teachers’ belief in their own creativity play in this move to a more creative classroom? In this paper, we examine the creative self-concept of teachers across a range of countries, disciplines, and other variables, asking which groups of teachers, if any, may be best prepared for the reorientation of the 21st century curriculum towards creativity in the classroom? Refereed/Peer-reviewed