History, children's thinking and creativity in the classroom: English and Romanian perspectives

The article arose incidentally from a research project aiming to identify common features of good practice in teaching history to 10-11 year olds in England and Romania, as a basis for further collaborative development. Analysis revealed lessons characterised by higher-order questioning in both countries, but also raised questions about whether children were learning the process of historical enquiry. One lesson in England, based on pupil activities which was not typical of this sample stimulated discussion of what is meant by 'creativity' in history, and whether this is an integral component in historical thinking.