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The Library will look into your claim and consider taking remedial action upon receipt of the written requests. Pao Yue-kong Library, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong http://www.lib.polyu.edu.hk FROM “MADE IN CHINA” TO “CREATED IN CHINA” – A STUDY OF NURTURING STUDENTS’ CREATIVITY IN ANIMATION EDUCATION IN CHINA MA CHI FAI, HENRY Ph.D The Hong Kong Polytechnic University 2016 The Hong Kong Polytechnic University School of Design From “Made in China” to “Created in China” – A Study of Nurturing Students’ Creativity in Animation Education in China MA CHI FAI, HENRY A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy November 2014 Abstract After China’s reform and opening-up, structural changes were made in cultural development. China started to address the Cultural Industries as a subject for national policy-making in 1998. With the impact of the development of the Creative Industries in the UK and other countries, China adopted the term Cultural and Creative Industry in a national strategy to initiate a structural refinement of the industrial sectors. The animation industry in China has long served as a major OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) centre to foreign investors, and was starting to develop into ODM and OBM (Original Design Manufacturers and Original Brand Manufacturers). This led to a rapid demand for creative talent from higher education institutes in China. Animation training in China has had a long tradition of nurturing skillful artists and workers for the OEM market. As the strategic development of the Cultural and Creative Industries in China progressed, the animation industry and the animation education sector received substantial support from the government. Many schools and animation programs emerged. Many scholarly articles indicated that the rapid increase in animation programs created a number of problems. However, nurturing creativity as a core concern for animation education in the context of the creative industries has not been addressed adequately. This creates a knowledge gap in our understanding of the animation education field in China. The objective of this research is to explore the current situation of how higher animation education is nurturing students’ creativity; understand how teachers and students perceive the meaning of creativity in animation education; identify what particular curricula and teaching methodologies teachers are using in animation education in nurturing students’ creativity; generate knowledge to bridge the knowledge gap in nurturing students’ creativity in animation education; and suggest a theoretical framework to help animation educators to improve their teaching for creativity. i Publications Journal papers • Ma, H. (2014) “The Necessary Elements for the Youth in Developing Creative Industries”, Journal of Youth Studies. Vol. 17 Issue 2: pp.3-10 • Ma, H. (2013) “The Opportunities and Challenges of Youth Startup in Creative Industries”, Journal of Youth Studies. Vol. 16 Issue 1: pp.3-11. • Ma, H. (2013) “A Study of Creative Problem Solving Behavior of Design Students“, The International Journal of Pedagogy and Curriculum. Vol. 19 Issue 4: pp. 63-69. Conference papers • Ma, H. (2014) “A Study on Creativity in the Contextual Concern of Creative Industries”, Conference Proceedings: 2014 International Conference on Cultural Creative Industry and e-Business. • Ma, H. (2014) “A Study of Nurturing Students’ Creativity in Animation Education in China”, Conference Proceedings: International Conference on Education and Social Sciences. • Ma, H. (2013) “The Cultural and Creative Industries Development in China”, Conference Proceedings: 2013 Annual Conference on Management and Social Science. ii Acknowledgements I would like to send my hearty thanks to all my supervisors, including the late Prof. John Heskett, Prof. Lorraine Justice, and Prof. Timothy Jachna, on their patience and mentoring in my journey of knowledge finding. iii Table of contents Abstract ..................................................................................................................................... i Publications .............................................................................................................................. ii Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................. iii Table of contents .................................................................................................................... iv List of Figures ........................................................................................................................ viii List of Tables ........................................................................................................................... ix Chapter 1 Objective and Purpose Statement .......................................................................... 1 1.1 Introduction and Overview ........................................................................................ 1 1.2 Background and Context ............................................................................................ 3 1.3 Knowledge Gap in Animation Education Research .................................................. 10 1.4 Statement of Purpose and Research Questions ...................................................... 12 1.5 Research Approach and Design ............................................................................... 14 1.6 Chapter Summary .................................................................................................... 17 Chapter 2 The Development of Animation Education in China ............................................. 19 2.1 Introduction and Overview ...................................................................................... 19 2.2 Creative Industries ................................................................................................... 19 2.3 Cultural and Creative Industries in China................................................................. 22 2.4 Animation Industries in China .................................................................................. 23 2.5 Animation Education in China .................................................................................. 28 2.5.1 The Development of Animation Education ........................................................... 28 2.5.2 Issues in Animation Education Development ....................................................... 33 2.5.3 Creativity Research on Animation Education in China ......................................... 36 2.6 Chapter Summary .................................................................................................... 39 Chapter 3 Teaching for Creativity .......................................................................................... 40 3.1 Introduction and Overview ...................................................................................... 40 3.2 Creativity .................................................................................................................. 40 3.2.1 Definition of Creativity .......................................................................................... 41 3.2.2 Study Approaches of Creativity ............................................................................. 42 3.2.3 Categories of Creative Magnitude ........................................................................ 42 3.2.4 Six Ps of Creativity ................................................................................................. 43 3.2.5 Major Approaches on Creativity Research ........................................................... 45 3.3 Creativity Education ................................................................................................. 47 3.3.1 Historical Development of Creativity Education ................................................... 48 iv 3.3.2 The Importance of Creativity in Education ........................................................... 50 3.3.3 Education Institutes Inhibit Creativity .................................................................. 51 3.3.4 Teachers’ Conception of Creativity ....................................................................... 52 3.3.5 Creativity and Culture ........................................................................................... 53 3.3.6 Creative Teaching and Teaching for Creativity ..................................................... 54 3.3.7 Different Approaches on Teaching for Creativity