Development of professional creativity of future teachers (Based on comparative research in Ukraine and Poland)

The article outlines the essence of professional creativity in pedagogical activity. The teacher’s creativity is described as a complex of intellectual and personality characteristics of the individual, contributing to the independent generation of original ideas and their non-traditional solution. On the basis of comparative experimental research, the level of non-verbal creativity of future teachers of the bordering regions of Ukraine and Poland was revealed in the paper. According to the results of the diagnosis of non-verbal creativity (Torrens methods), the authors conclude that a significant proportion of Ukrainian and Polish students are not able to produce a sufficient number of original ideas in a minimal verbalization (for example, most of the future teachers had the average (47.3% in Ukraine, 45.8% in Poland) and low (respectively 18.7% and 25.8%) levels of non-verbal creativity based on the index of originality). It is emphasized on the need to focus the content of higher education on the development of future teachers’ ability to seek out non-standard options in organizing the pedagogical process, creative modeling of lessons and educational activities, the creation and implementation of original pedagogical ideas, authoring techniques, etc.

Education in the Context of European Culture: Rationalism, Pragmatism, and the Outlines of Future Ethics

The article discusses education as a phenomenon of European culture. The author argues that education (having emerged as a product of the Western civilization and representing the deep foundations of the European style of thinking) becomes inalienable component of European culture and largely determines its development trends. Thus, education traditionally was an important component of religious culture, despite that the methodological rationalism of scholasticism came into conflict with the postulation of the fundamental non-objectivity of God. Teaching theology as an academic discipline considered as a form of the comprehension of God. Since education turns out to be one of the basic elements of European culture, that form of education, which dominates in a particular period of history, plays a determinative role in the development of various cultural phenomena. This is demonstrated by the example of ethics and morality. Thus, the interpretation of education as studying leads to the formation of deductive thinking, which, when applied to the sphere of morality, presupposes the submission of specific situations under the learned universal rules of standardized moral code. In contrast, modern moral consciousness understands moral choice as creative modeling of behavior in specific situations, idiographically understood as unique. This is possible only on the basis of the reception of deep general human values, which means the connection between the modern type of morality and education. Therefore, education should include not only studying (which is now understood as training of technologies for obtaining knowledge rather than the accumulation of knowledge itself) but also cultivation of personality, and the latter should be in focus.

FEASIBILITY OF CREATIVE EXPLORATION, CREATIVE ELABORATION, CREATIVE MODELING, PRACTICE SCIENTIFIC CREATIVITY, DISCUSSION, REFLECTION (C3PDR) TEACHING MODEL TO IMPROVE STUDENTS’ SCIENTIFIC CREATIVITY OF JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL

Creative exploration, Creative elaboration, Creative modeling, Practice scientific creativity, Discussion and Reflection (C3PDR) teaching model is a model specifically developed to improve the students’ scientific creativity of junior high school. This research is aimed to analyze the feasibility of C3PDR model in improving the students’ science creativity. The teaching model is considered feasible if it meets the criteria: valid, practical and effective. Ninety-six of the eighth-grade students in Samarinda, Indonesia who attended the science subjects participated in the research during the odd semester in academic year 2015/2016. Its validation was performed by three science education experts through focus group discussions and using validation sheets. The practicality of the model was assessed by 4 teachers using the observation sheets and the effectiveness of the model was determined based on the pre-test post-test of scientific creativity. Scientific creativity measured using Scientific Creativity Structure Model (SCSM) test. The results showed that this model has the content and construct validity in very valid category, practical, and effective with the statistic percentage of agreement R > 85% and n-gain values = .42, and p < .05. Thus, the C3PDR teaching model is feasible to improve the student’s scientific creativity of junior high school. Keywords: C3PDR teaching model, scientific creativity, feasible, junior high school.

Figurative and Creative Modeling Methods Broadening the Project Search

Fresh and original solutions are needed anywhere, not only in design practice. The designer’s task is to be outside the routine and to create a new image of things that correlates with a renovated being of a person. Figurative and creative modeling methods facilitate liberation of the designer’s imagination. The aim of the research is acquainting the reader with figurative and creative modeling methods that make it possible to get creative projects ready and develop them at a higher level; revealing connections with other kinds of creative activities; substantiating the need of using methodological recommendations for precise notion of a projected object. The base of the research is the course content of advanced training of teachers «Modern Educational Technology» and analysis of some methods that were used in a number of works in design.