Development of creativity-based learning activities to promote creative thinking of grade 6 students on the topic of polygons

Abstract

This research aimed to: i) develop creativity-based learning activities (CBL) for grade 6 students on polygons to meet the 80/80 efficiency criterion; ii) compare mathematics learning achievement before and after CBL instruction; and iii) compare creative thinking before and after CBL instruction. The sample consisted of 22 grade 6 students at Chumchon Ban Chom Sa-at School, Roi Et Province, Thailand, selected via cluster random sampling. Research instruments comprised 17 CBL lesson plans, a 20-item multiple-choice achievement test, and an 8-item open-ended creative thinking test. Data were analyzed using percentage, mean, standard deviation, and paired samples t-test. The findings revealed that: i) the CBL activities achieved an efficiency index of 83.67/83.18, exceeding the 80/80 criterion; ii) post-instruction mathematics achievement was significantly higher than pre-instruction at the 0.05 significance level; and iii) post-instruction creative thinking was significantly higher than pre-instruction at the 0.05 significance level. These results indicate that CBL is an effective instructional approach for enhancing both mathematics achievement and creative thinking among primary school students.