Abstract:

This study aims to reveal the metaphorical perceptions of high school 11th-grade math-science students toward the concept of creativity. The study was based on phenomenology. The sample of the study consised of 83 students attending the 11th-grade math-science of a high school affiliated to the Ministry of National Education (MEB). The data in this study were collected using a metaphor form. The metaphor form asked the students to complete the this sentence. “Creativity is like / similar to ................... Because....................”. The data of this study were analyzed by the content analysis method. The findings revealed that 71 metaphors and 14 categories related to the concept of creativity were determined. These categories were defined as infinity, difference, variable, synthesis, originality, requiring effort, innovation uncertainty, discovery, usefulness, design, emotional, perfect and periodical, respectively. The categories with the highest number of metaphors were infinity and difference, respectively. The metaphor with the highest frequency were sky. The findings indicate that the perceptions of high school students toward the creativity concept diversified and that they viewed the concept from different thematic perspectives. The students’ perceptions about the concept of creativity were generally positive. This study is limited to high school 11th-grade math-science students. However, given the results of this study and the fact that the creativity concept is effective in every field today, it is recommended to conduct similar studies with student groups at different levels and studying in different fields for further studies. It is also important to include teachers into the studies in order to obtain rich data.

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