Microsoft Word lilly creativity (early childhood) done docx

 
Cultural influences
Culture can have an influence on how creativity is promoted in education. In Chinese 
culture, children were expected to master basic skills before exhibiting their own creativity, 
while the European/American view rests on the idea that natural development of intrinsic 
creativity in children is not to be corrupted by strict guidance (Huntsinger, Jose, Krieg, and Luo, 
2011). Findings suggested that at the same age, Chinese children exhibited higher levels of 
creativity in their drawings due to their development of representational skills. This study 
compliments the Vygotskian perspective of constructivism suggesting children benefit from 
adult guidance by bringing children into their zone of proximal development in learning to draw, 
as they do in learning to speak (Huntsinger et al., 2011). This implies creativity might be 
enhanced by the incorporation of intentional teaching (structured guidance) in early childhood 
education in order to promote the developmental skills in young children that would give them 
the opportunity to express their creative ideas later in their development (Huntsinger et al., 
2011). 
Europe’s current dedication to foster creativity and cultural development in early 
childhood education introduces new perspectives and ways of thinking about young children's 
creative and cultural development that challenge traditional perspectives (Faulkner, Coates, 
Craft, & Duffy, 2006). The authors argue children are active agents in the creation of their own 
cultures rather than passive recipients, demonstrated through the spontaneous songs that children 
engage in across cultures. Barret (cited in Faulkner et al., 2006) draws her conclusions from a 
longitudinal ethnographic case study of a young child’s musical development in which she states 

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that invented song is a dialogic tool that children use to express their identity and construct 
cultural meanings and understanding, and therefore should be encouraged.