GYMNASIELEVERS KREATIVA, MENINGSSKAPANDE OCH SOCIALA LÄRPROCESSER I BILDKLASSRUMMET

Abstract

This study was conducted using a qualitative method and a phenomenological approach. The aim of the study is to develop an understanding of how upper secondary school students experience learning in creative processes within art education, with a particular focus on how learning and meaning making are shaped through social interaction in the art classroom. The study also aims to illuminate how students direct their attention towards materials, creative processes, and classmates during an observed art lesson. The study is grounded in a phenomenological lifeworld perspective, where the concepts of intentionality, intersubjectivity, and stock of knowledge are used to interpret and understand the empirical material. The material consists of two focus group interviews, four individual semi-structured interviews, and one classroom observation conducted at an upper secondary school during the author’s teaching practicum. The analysis was carried out through thematic analysis. The results show that students’ motivation and meaning making are influenced by the design and structure of assignments, opportunities for independent work over extended periods of time, and encounters with new materials and techniques. Creative processes are experienced as open, dynamic, and exploratory rather than linear. The findings also show that learning takes place through the intersubjective classroom environment, as students describe how observation and conversations contribute to inspiration and development. Students also describe the social classroom environment as a resource where creative processes are discussed and where students support one another. At the same time, a vulnerability emerges in being exposed to others, where comparisons can create insecurity and affect the creative process negatively. The results also show that students regulate their attention between social activity and focus on their own creative work, for example using of headphones and music during lessons.