Peer-reviewed article
Creativity in Ibero-American Early Childhood Education Curricula
Mar Oliver-Barceló, María Ferrer-Ribot, Carme Pinya Medina ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study analyzes ten early childhood education curricula from Ibero-American countries to understand how they define and teach creativity. The research found that creativity is considered important in these curricula, but there is inconsistency in how the concept is defined and taught. The study recommends that countries clarify what they mean by creativity and strengthen arts training in teacher education programmes.
Key points
- Creativity is recognized as important across the ten Ibero-American early childhood curricula analyzed
- There is wide diversity in how creativity is conceptually defined across curricula
- Curricula lack depth in their methodological recommendations for fostering creativity in classrooms
- Initial and continuing teacher education needs to strengthen artistic training to support creativity development
Limitations
This is a curriculum analysis document review rather than an evaluation of actual classroom practice or child outcomes; it does not measure whether children actually develop creativity or how well teachers implement these curriculum recommendations.
Abstract
Abstract Given the wide diversity of conceptions of creativity, this study analyzes ten Ibero-American early childhood education curricula with the aim of finding out what concept, approach, and teaching methodology they propose for creativity. The research addresses two questions: what is the implicit or explicit notion of creativity held by the Early Childhood curricula, and what methodological recommendations are included to foster creativity in the classroom? The study used qualitative methodology, specifically content analysis completed with expert judgement. Results showed the importance of creativity in the curricula analyzed and highlighted not only the need to clarify the term at a conceptual level, but also to examine in depth the teaching and learning methodologies used. In conclusion, the study urges to strengthen artistic training in both initial and continuing education studies.