Last modified: 2018-07-07
Abstract
Creativity is an ability produced from the cognitive activities to get ideas in solving problems by combining the concepts that have been mastered marked by fluency, flexibility, novelty, and elaboration. Therefore, everyone has the potential to be creative but they have different degrees of creativity so their creativity is unique. The uniqueness fosters many researches on creativity, but the creativity of mathematics teacher, especially the one that is related to the differences on teaching experience is still considered quite deficient. This research aims to get description about the creativity of the junior mathematics teachers and senior mathematics teachers on the problems on plane figures.
This research is an explorative research and uses qualitative approach by empasizing more in the processes and meaning. The instruments used in the research are the researcher itself as the main instrument supported with the written assignments on the problems on plane figures, and the valid and reliable interview guidelines. Data collection was conducted by doing assignment-based interviews. There are two subjects in this research which are junior mathematics teachers and senior mathematics teachers. The research procedure involves making the supporting instruments, choosing the subjects, taking data, testing data reliability by using time triangulation, data analysis, followed by discussion to get conclusion.
The result of this research shows that (1) the creativity of junior Mathematics teachers of Junior High School in solving the problems on plane figures, covers (a) fluency, shown by the various answers in solving the problems based on the types of figures obtained from splitting a figure into several figures; (b) flexibility, shown by various ideas to find the answer in dividing a right-6 cm isosceles triangle into two parts with the equal area; (c) novelty, shown by new answers and ideas/strategies that have never been thought before in solving problems on plane figures; and (d) elaboration, shown by developing an idea to make a scalene figure with 9 cm2 area into a right trapezium, a right-isosceles triangular, and a circle. Secondly, the junior teachers show the elaboration by developing an idea to change the dividing edge from a vertical edge into a horizontal edge, and (2) the creativity of senior Mathematics teachers of Junior High School in solving the problems on plane figures cover (a) fluency, shown by the various answers in solving the problems based on the types of figures obtained from splitting a figure into several figures; (b) flexibility, shown by various ideas to find answers in dividing a right-6 cm isosceles triangle into two parts with the equal area; (c) novelty, shown by new answers and ideas/strategies that have never been thought before in solving problems on plane figures; (d) elaboration, shown by developing an idea to change the dividing line from a straight line into a curve line.