Valuing our journeys of becoming: humanising creativity.

types: ArticleIn this paper we explore the relationship between creativity and identity in dance education. We consider how, when creating dance, young people can go on a 'journey of becoming'; how in the process of making dance, they are also being made. We draw on the Dance Partners for Creativity research, a qualitative in depth study of creative partnership practice in secondary level English dance education, to develop these ideas. Understanding the journeys of becoming within this research has helped us to refine the concept of ‘humanising creativity’. This is an active process of change guided by compassion and shared values. It comes from people engaging in collaborative thinking and joint action to imaginatively develop new ideas which are valuable to them and their community. The research and conceptual development leads us to suggest that educationally, we might better recognise and value the journeys of becoming at the heart of humanising creativity, not only within dance but perhaps more widely