DCU Changemaker Schools Network Conference 2025: Creativity and Citizenship
The DCU Changemaker Schools Network (DCU CSN) Conference took place on 27th February 2025, in the Seamus Heaney lecture theatre of St. Patrick Campus DCU. The organisers, John White and Seán Ormsby (DCU CSN) noted that this choice of venue was not by accident, given the conference’s title: ‘Creativity and Citizenship in DCU Changemaker Schools’! Creativity is one of the central pillars which underpins the work of changemaker schools.
Delegates working together creatively through drama
While the conference provided delegates with fascinating insights into current thinking about creativity and ‘possibilities’, it also had a very grounded and practical nature. Speaking of ‘grounded’ one of the presenters, Eliya Lavine from Creative Schools Ireland provided a workshop for delegates in the outdoor tree area of St Patrick’s Campus, offering insights on how the outdoors, creativity and citizenship are naturally entwined. In a similar vein, Catherine Sheridan from Creative Ireland delivered a workshop on creativity which focused on the power and active manner by which children can be creative through drama. Alan Morgan from UCD encouraged delegates to ‘reimagine' teaching and learning through creative experimentation and ‘shapeshifting’, which explored problem solving and considered ‘entrepreneurial mindsets’ in the context of being a citizen of the present and the future.
Prof. Vlad Glaveanu
Such intriguing and creative work was contextualised by two other key inputs. Firstly, seven children from Scoil Chiaráin, Donnycarney presented on three very creative and fascinating projects they have been working on, highlighting how creativity is fun, possible and very meaningful in terms of children’s learning. Secondly, the conference was underpinned by the wonderful insights and thought provoking presentation by its keynote speaker, Prof Glaveanu. Prof Glaveanu offered a wide range of perspectives on creativity. Speaking of perspectives, his presentation highlighted the power of perspective for creativity, the necessity to prepare children as citizens of the future and to also empower them to shape it. The keynote explored how creativity and possibility thinking can transform learning and provided many practical suggestions about ‘creative education’, to include a ‘Pedagogies of the Possible framework’ for delegates to consider.
The conference also welcomed 16 new schools to the network, with each school providing a short video of their school. These videos revealed the very exciting and enriching expertise which these new schools will bring to the DCU Changemaker Schools Network. Indeed, the creative manner by which they developed these videos highlighted the power of collaboration and the use of multimedia approaches in learning.
The conference illustrated the power and ‘magic’ of creativity and children as citizens of the future. It effectively explored and examined how we ‘can do’ creativity and citizenship in schools. It also inspired and reminded delegates of the fun and value of using creative approaches for children as learners and citizens of the future.
Dr. John White
Dr John White, Director of DCU Changemakers spoke about the conference afterwards noting:
“The conference was indeed exciting and enlightening. I felt there was a sense of ‘magic’ and excitement in the air. It highlighted for me, as an educator, the huge value of creativity in children’s learning. Conversations with delegates about creativity, reminded me of the many and varied ways by which DCU Changemaker schools are actually creative. It also reminds me of the fun, excitement and actual wide spectrum of learning which creativity can propagate. I am convinced that creativity really needs to be centre stage in all our thinking about children’s educational experiences.”
Conference Presenters and Workshops
Prof. Vlad Glaveanu
Keynote Address: ‘Creative Education: New Horizons of Possibility’
Speaker: Prof. Vlad Glaveanu (DCU)
In a rapidly changing world, education must not only prepare students for the future but also empower them to shape it. In this keynote, I will explore how creativity and possibility thinking transform learning and propose as well as illustrate a Pedagogies of the Possible framework for creative education. This approach invites educators to foster open-ended exploration, challenge deep seated assumptions, and cultivate spaces where new ideas and perspectives emerge. Such pedagogies, I will argue, open up new horizons of possibility for students, teachers, and society as a whole.
Vlad Glaveanu is Full Professor of Psychology and Director of the DCU Centre for Possibility Studies at Dublin City University, Ireland, and Adjunct Professor at the Centre for the Science of Learning and Technology, University of Bergen, Norway. He specialises, among others, in the study of creativity, culture, collaboration and wonder. He is founder and president of the Possibility Studies Network and editor of the Sage journal Possibility Studies & Society.
Workshop Facilitator Alan Morgan
Workshop Theme 1: ‘Creativity, Innovation and Entrepreneurship’
Facilitator: Alan Morgan (UCD)
Reimagining Teaching & Learning Through EXPERIMENTING using the SHAPESHIFTING Design Method: A 25 minute fast paced workshop that allows you to explore possibilities and can help unlock different ways to approach a problem. During the workshop you will develop an initial idea, share and plus this idea and then Shapeshift it into something entirely different. This will be a collaborative and fun activity which participants can take away and use in their own educational context.
As an Entrepreneurial Specialist at the UCD Innovation Academy, Alan has curated and facilitates a level 9 accredited programme that offers educators in Ireland and around the world the opportunity to reimagine their teaching practice. The Entrepreneurial Educators Programme offers educators a chance to explore experiential teaching practices and the development of their entrepreneurial mindset which they then bring back to their classrooms with renewed energy, to transform learning for their students - the ripple effect. Alan has recently received a number of significant awards recognising his work in transformative education, , these include; The ACEEU Triple E Award for European Entrepreneurial Leader of the Year 2024 for his work on "Empowering Educators, Transforming Classrooms: The Power of the Ripple Effect "; In December 2024, Alan received the UCD College level Teaching and Learning Award in recognition of exceptional contribution to learning and in February 2025 Alan received the highest teaching and learning accolade in UCD - The UCD University Award for Exceptional Contribution to Learning 2023/24.
Alan is in the final year of his Doctoral Thesis at The University of Wales Trinity Saint David where he is exploring the possibility of the cultivation of an entrepreneurial mindset in primary schools in Ireland.
Workshop Facilitator Eliya Lavine
Workshop Theme 2: ‘Creative Learning: Action and the Outdoors’
Facilitator: Eliya Lavine (Creative Schools)
This workshop with Seed Scholars' Eliya Lavine, will explore sensory engagement and nature connection in the outdoor environment. Eliya will guide participants through nature-based play exercises, attuning to textures, sounds and sights intended to simultaneously awaken and calm the nervous system while encouraging grounding with self, others and place. The facilitator will share simple, hands-on, cross-curricular outdoor practices that can be adapted to inspire creativity in all class levels and abilities. Weather permitting, this workshop will take place outdoors at the DCU campus, so please be prepared with wet/windy-ready gear (coat, shoes) so we can comfortably go out and get stuck in!
Eliya Lavine (she/her) is a socially engaged, nature-based community arts educator & facilitator with over 10 years experience working at the intersection of people and place, art and science. Her practice seeks to re-root young people and their networks with nature connection, creatively nurturing webs of curiosity and care. Her work engages play, interactive meaning-making, and crafting with natural materials through which participants respond to themselves, each other, and the natural environment - cultivating active hope to move us towards a more just and joyful future.
With a primary school teaching background, she now utilises her education training and experience in her work operating Seed Scholars (www.seedscholars.com), a nature-based learning initiative that partners with schools, community, and arts groups. She also works with the Arts Council as a Creative Associate and Regional Coordinator through the Creative Schools Programme, and as a specialist on the Heritage in Schools Panel. From Los Angeles, California, she now resides rurally in Co. Westmeath and greatly appreciates exploring nature in the spectrum of urban to countryside settings.
Workshop Facilitator Catherine Sheridan
Workshop Theme 3: ‘Creativity and Drama’
Facilitator: Catherine Sheridan (Creative Schools)
Join us for an engaging and creative drama workshop designed for primary school teachers, focusing on the power of empathy, leadership, teamwork, and creativity. Participants will explore various drama strategies and activities that encourage reframing thinking and collaboration. This workshop aims to equip teachers with tools to inspire their students and foster a positive and inclusive learning environment.
Catherine Sheridan is a multifaceted arts professional, serving as a facilitator, director, playwright, actor, drama lecturer, producer, project manager, arts consultant, and mentor. With a diverse background in drama, theatre, and arts education, she is recognised for creating and implementing innovative programmes that inspire young minds and foster artistic growth for nearly three decades.
Catherine plays a pivotal role in various Creative Ireland Creative Youth initiatives, including TAP, BLAST, and I Am Creative. Catherine is also the founder and Artistic Director of Roscommon County Youth Theatre and serves as a mentor for Youth Theatre Ireland’s Drama Facilitation programme. She has directed an impressive 46 productions. Throughout her career, Catherine has collaborated with numerous esteemed organisations and educational institutions, including Mary Immaculate College, UL, NUI Galway, The Arts Council, the Department of Education and Skills, Youth Theatre Ireland, various Local Authorities, the ESCI Network, Drama League of Ireland, Calipo Picture & Film Company, The Abbey Theatre, Branar, Blue Teapot, Galway Community Circus, and Baboró International Arts Festival. Catherine has trained in the USA with Anne Bogart and the SITI Theatre Company in Viewpoints and Suzuki techniques, in Russia with the Theatre Union of the Russian Federation in Moscow, as well as participating in numerous masterclasses with theatre professionals across England, Ireland, and Scotland. She holds a Master's degree in Drama and Performance from University College Dublin and a Diploma in Drama, Arts, and Theatre Studies from Maynooth University.