Being and becoming: Elements of pedagogies described by three East Anglian creative practitioners

It has been argued that a creative and cultural education is central to developing a creative workforce and promoting social inclusion. Despite the expanded involvement of creative practitioners in English education toward these aims, their pedagogies remain unclear and under-researched. The purpose of this exploratory case study is to examine elements of pedagogies creative practitioners describe. Four aspects of being central to the pedagogies of three East Anglian creative practitioners are discussed: not knowing, open-endedness, playing like a child, and becoming. It is argued that if creative practitioners are to contribute to imagining and creating new educational systems of and for the future, then their perspectives on ways of being must weigh in on that debate.

Research highlights▶ Explore 3 creative practitioners’ descriptions of pedagogy. ▶ Examine being characterised by not-knowing, open-endedness, playing like a child, and becoming. ▶ Discuss its relation to creative workforce development and social inclusion. ▶ Argue why creative practitioners’ perspectives are essential to education debates.