Dissertation committee:
1. Ευγενία Φλογαΐτη, Καθηγήτρια του Τμήματος Εκπαίδευσης και Αγωγής στην
Προσχολική Ηλικία του Εθνικού και Καποδιστριακού Πανεπιστημίου Αθηνών
2. Μαρία Δασκολιά, Αναπληρώτρια Καθηγήτρια του Παιδαγωγικού Τμήματος
Δευτεροβάθμιας Εκπαίδευσης του Εθνικού και Καποδιστριακού Πανεπιστημίου
Αθηνών
3. Τιτίκα Σάλλα, Ομότιμη Καθηγήτρια της Ανώτατης Σχολής Καλών Τεχνών
4. Γεωργία Λιαράκου, Καθηγήτρια του Παιδαγωγικού Τμήματος Δημοτικής
Εκπαίδευσης του Πανεπιστημίου Αιγαίου
5. Αλεξάνδρα Ανδρούσου, Αναπληρώτρια Καθηγήτρια του Τμήματος Εκπαίδευσης
και Αγωγής στην Προσχολική Ηλικία του Εθνικού και Καποδιστριακού
Πανεπιστημίου Αθηνών
6. Κώστας Γραβριλάκης, Επίκουρος Καθηγητής του Παιδαγωγικού Τμήματος
Δημοτικής Εκπαίδευσης του Πανεπιστημίου Ιωαννίνων
7. Ίριδα Τσεβρένη, Επίκουρη Καθηγήτρια του Παιδαγωγικού Τμήματος
Προσχολικής Εκπαίδευσης του Πανεπιστημίου Θεσσαλίας
Summary:
This doctoral thesis fits in the scope of Environmental Education/Education for Sustainable Development (EE/ESD) in the context of Preschool Education. It focuses on the concept of creativity, oriented in exploring and solving an environmental issue in a kindergarten school. Specifically, the study aims to investigate whether creative thinking in preschool children is promoted through the development of an educational intervention focused on visual arts, within the framework of EE/ESD.
The main research question of this study was: “Does EE/ESD promote kindergarten children’s creativity, using art as a vehicle?” In order to investigate this question, the following sub-questions were formulated: 1) Are the indications affirming children's expression of creativity detected in the context of an environmental education intervention using visual arts? 2) Which factors seem to influence the development of kindergarten children's creative thinking during an environmental education intervention based on visual arts? 3) How is the creative process evolving towards solving an environmental issue with the contribution of visual arts? The research was conducted in a public kindergarten school in Attica by the in-service kindergarten teacher as the researcher, during the 2012-2013 school year. The method used to investigate the research questions was Action Research (AR), which monitored the design and the implementation of an environmental education intervention about waste reduction and waste management, using visual arts as the main tool.
The analysis of the results has shown that creativity is a key competence that can be developed within the context of EE/ESD, promoting the vision for a sustainable school. Specifically, the findings have shown that in order to facilitate the development of kindergarten children’s creative thinking towards resolving an environmental issue, a permissive pedagogical context that takes into account young children’s particular needs and interests is needed. A context that provides students with ample time and space and rich stimuli, so that they can freely develop their ideas and intervene decisively in the context and the content of their learning, gaining more control over the learning and the creative process. In addition, it requires an educator who is responsive to change and innovation and uses learner-centered and collaborative approaches, along with more 'open' pedagogical tools, such as art-based methods, in order to support students' creative thinking and action towards sustainability. An educator with the intention to explore and identify both his/her explicit and implicit theories, beliefs and pedagogical choices as a practitioner, that may restrain the development of creative process and face them with a critical eye, ready to change them, whenever necessary.
In summary, the present study argues that: Developing children's creative thinking when tackling an environmental issue through art in a kindergarten school, requires a pedagogical context that is receptive to change and innovation, along with a supportive teacher who utilizes 'open', participatory and collaborative, learner-centered approaches which allow children to be more autonomous and gain more control over the learning process, nurturing their thinking and action for the environment.
Keywords:
environmental education, education for sustainability, preschool education, creativity, action research, art
