Differences in the development of creative competencies in children schooled in diverse learning environments

Studies on the development of creativity have highlighted the impact of learning environments. In particular, pedagogical approaches are hypothesized to differ concerning their emphasis on individual initiative, and action-based learning. A semi-longitudinal study was conducted during two consecutive years with 210 children in elementary schools with traditional and alternative pedagogical approaches. Our results highlight ( I) an influence of pedagogy on children's creative performance; (2) a positive influence of alternative pedagogy on creative development froth year I to year 2 mainly for Montessori school. Children's creative performance was influenced not only by the type of task but also by the type of school. (C) 2007 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.