Creativity in students’ writing of open-ended stories across ethnic, gender, and grade groups: An extension study from third to fifth grades

The purpose of this study was to examine students’ creativity when writing open-ended stories—across ethnicity, gender, and grades. Participants were 139 students, including 67 males and 72 females, from urban and rural areas of the southwestern United States. The students were in third, fourth, and fifth grades and included three ethnicities: White, Mexican American, and Navajo. Written stories were selected from the Discovering Intellectual Strengths and Capabilities while Observing Varied Ethnic Responses (DISCOVER) project’s archives. Creative products were scored by using the Consensual Assessment Technique (CAT) by five experts. No significant differences were found between boys and girls; also, no significant differences were found across the three grade levels. The differences among the three ethnic groups were significant: the White students were more creative. Future researchers should focus on implementing comprehensive teaching methods to meet all students’ needs (e.g., the DISCOVER project). Teachers who work at schools with minority students should establish an early childhood program for teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) to help young students use the language and adapt to the culture.