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Creative participation in the essay writing process

journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-07, 21:13 authored by Phyllis Creme, Celia Hunt
This paper reports on a qualitative action research project which looked at the possibility that giving students an opportunity of exploring their relationship with their essays through a range of creative writing techniques might enhance creativity in university writing. The project comprised a series of practical and experiential workshops, with questionnaires and follow-up interviews. The workshops are described, and themes arising from the different strands of the project discussed, using case study material from individual students. Drawing on a range of theoretical perspectives from psychoanalysis, literary theory and academic literacies, the discussion covers notions of genre, writer identity, creativity and play. We argue that approaches introduced in these workshops have implications for mainstream practice in ways that could enable students to feel freer, more empowered and more present in their university writing.

History

Publication status

  • Published

Journal

Arts and Humanities in Higher Education

ISSN

1474-0222

Publisher

SAGE Publications

Issue

2

Volume

1

Page range

145-166

Pages

22.0

Department affiliated with

  • Centre for Community Engagement Publications

Notes

This peer reviewed paper is an innovative contribution to the developing trend to use the arts for reflecting on learning; in this instance creative writing exercises specially adapted from a personal development context were tested out with a group of undergraduate and postgraduate students wishing to develop essay writing skills. This paper has so far been cited in six published papers (Google Scholar), as well as other references elsewhere. Each of the two authors contributed to the research and writing from a different expertise: Hunt from the use of creative writing as a developmental tool; Creme from student writing and academic literacies. The approach has wide application to reflective practice and conceptual thinking about the self in the learning and writing processes.

Full text available

  • No

Peer reviewed?

  • Yes

Legacy Posted Date

2012-02-06

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