Chinese teachers, students share practices at creativity in education summit

Educators from China joined experts and school teachers from around the world in sharing best creativity in education practices at a two-day international summit held in both Paris and London this week.

Themed around creative thinking in schools, attendees at the Creativity in Education Summit 2022 shared expertise on global policy, local action, and on interdisciplinary learning.

The summit was co-hosted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's Centre for Educational Research and Innovation, and the Global Institute of Creativity Thinking. Representatives present were from China, the United Kingdom, Australia and the United States, among others.

In a speech on the first day of the summit in Paris, Liu Liming, president of China Education Association for International Exchange, said the Chinese government had actively formulated policies to guide students' development of core competencies and ability to innovate.

"The current curriculum program and standards have just been revised in April … which emphasize innovation with the integration of the successful experience in the development of Chinese curriculum and the learnings from the latest achievements of curriculum reform overseas," he said.

Andreas Schleicher, director for education and skills at the OECD, recognized in his speech the importance of creativity and creative teaching and learning in today's knowledge societies and emphasized we should embrace new technologies for new learning.

During a workshop held at the British Library in London on Tuesday, a creative project titled "Underwater Drones", presented by Chinese students from Beicai Senior High School, affiliated to Shanghai Maritime University, in Pudong, Shanghai, caught the attention of many British teachers.

Xue Sheng, a physics teacher at the school, explained how in the past semester he had guided students to build and upgrade a remote-controlled underwater drone, while he acted as a learning companion and reference point.

"There were times when students' questions and problems also caught me out, but I was able to engage (an) external expert to help," he said. "The process facilitated students to grow from curious rubbernecks to serious inquirers, deep thinkers, and creative problem solvers."

Edward Derbyshire, head of drama at Pate's Grammar School, noted the differences in education systems worldwide and highlighted approaches from China that could serve as examples for schools in the UK.

"The fact that it was alright for teachers to be just facilitators and collaborators with students is important," said Derbyshire. "As a teacher, I'm prepared to say to students that I don't know and let's find out together."

In another case study, Wang Bing, principal of Jiading Defu Middle School, introduced how students in her school explored the subject of the geographical and historical formation of the "Hexi Corridor" in Northwest China, which emphasized the role of teachers as facilitators scaffolding the learning journey.

An Guiqing, professor of curriculum and instruction at the East China Normal University, said that in the latest round of national curriculum reform, interdisciplinary learning with a focus on "whole person" education had been emphasized, aiming at improving students' innovative literacy.

Laura McBain, co-interim managing director at Hasso Plattner Institute of Design, Stanford University, said she was impressed by Chinese educators' ability to uncover projects that allow students freedom and possibility to design new products and ideas with accessible materials that makes teaching creativity scalable.

Bill Lucas, chair of the advisory committee of the Global Institute of Creativity Thinking, said: "I think there is a much greater interest in interdisciplinary, more problem-based learning in China."

During the summit, a report on the progress of creative thinking in schools across the world in 2022 was published, and a research around creativity in comprehensive courses based on regional characteristics, which included practices from more than 40 schools in Shanghai over the past three years.

"These are all really good examples of where the country is going. Educators are encouraging students to be more active and creative," said Lucas.