Skip to Main Content
 

Global Search Box

 
 
 
 

Files

File List


Champa_Martha_Final Dissertation.pdf (5.18 MB)

ETD Abstract Container

Abstract Header

Awakening: The Lived Experience of Creativity as Told by Eight Young Creators

Champa, Martha Marie
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1481017239325047

Abstract Details

2016, Doctor of Philosophy, University of Toledo, Curriculum and Instruction: Gifted and Talented.
Creativity is an aspect of the human condition that eludes a common definition, description, and experience. When trying to make sense of creativity, some describe creative behavior while others describe creative products. There are those who are curious about the process of creativity and others who want to understand what inspires that process. Some want to understand the external context that awakens and nurtures creativity and others seek to unveil the internal context of creators while they go about their work. This dissertation joins this multi-faceted conversation about creativity. Through a qualitative research design, this descriptive, multi-case study captured the essence of the lived experience of creativity through the voices of eight young poets recognized for their creative work. The creativity of these young people was acknowledged when they placed in an Ekphrastic Poetry Contest sponsored by the Toledo Museum of Art. In the telling and the observing of eight young creators’ personal experiences with creativity, the following research question is answered: How have the winners of Ekphrastic Poetry Contests experienced creativity? Previous research has explored both the development of creativity and the experience of creativity. The findings of this study both affirm previous research and illuminate areas not yet fully explored. Participant voices and experiences were heard and preserved through a variety of data collection methods: interviews, observations, document analysis, and focus groups. In the presentation and analysis of the data, the essence of their lived experience with creativity contributes to the knowledge of creativity and its various facets. The findings of this study can be summarized as follows: creativity is defined as the making of something new and original as well as a vehicle to express oneself. Creativity is awakened and nurtured through engagement in a variety of creative activities, through support of others, and in the possibilities offered in the school environment. It is experienced affectively and cognitively and within a personal, interior context coined as the hermetic work space. These findings offer both support of previous research and provide new insight into the creative process and will be significant to those who seek to understand the experience and inner workings of creativity.
Robert Schultz, Ph.D. (Committee Chair)
Brian Kennedy, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
Joel Lipman, J.D. (Committee Member)
Susanna Hapgood, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
416 p.
Art Education; Curriculum Development; Early Childhood Education; Education; Educational Theory; Gifted Education; Language Arts; Literacy; Teacher Education; Teaching
creativity; convergent thinking; divergent thinking; descriptive case study; ekphrastic poetry; Think Aloud Method; the hermetic work space

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Champa, M. M. (2016). Awakening: The Lived Experience of Creativity as Told by Eight Young Creators [Doctoral dissertation, University of Toledo]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1481017239325047

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Champa, Martha. Awakening: The Lived Experience of Creativity as Told by Eight Young Creators. 2016. University of Toledo, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1481017239325047.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Champa, Martha. "Awakening: The Lived Experience of Creativity as Told by Eight Young Creators." Doctoral dissertation, University of Toledo, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1481017239325047

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

toledo1481017239325047
945
© 2016, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by University of Toledo and OhioLINK.