On Monday (September 29, 2025), the Department of Educational and Psychological Sciences at the College of Education for Humanities, Tikrit University, held the defense of the Ph.D. dissertation submitted by Arkan Khalil Ibrahim, entitled “The Effectiveness of an Instructional Program Based on the Serious Creativity Theory in the Achievement of Fifth-Grade Literary Students in History and the Development of Their Higher-Order Thinking Skills.”
The study aimed to design an instructional program grounded in the Serious Creativity Theory for teaching history to fifth-grade literary students, incorporating varied teaching methods, activities, and assessment tools. A quasi-experimental design was adopted, with the research population consisting of all male students in day secondary schools in Tikrit District. The sample included 67 students divided into two groups: 34 in the experimental group and 33 in the control group. Statistical equivalence was ensured across variables such as age, intelligence level, prior knowledge, fourth-grade history scores, parental education level, and pre-test results in higher-order thinking skills. Two instruments were developed: a 40-item achievement test and a 25-item higher-order thinking skills test.
The study reached several key findings:
- There were statistically significant differences at the (0.05) level in favor of the experimental group in achievement scores compared with the control group, indicating the program’s effectiveness.
- There were statistically significant differences at the (0.05) level in favor of the experimental group in the post-test results of higher-order thinking skills.
- There were statistically significant differences at the (0.05) level between the pre- and post-test scores of the experimental group in higher-order thinking skills, reflecting the positive impact of the program.
The examining committee consisted of:
- Prof. Falah Saleh Hussein – Tikrit University, College of Education for Humanities – Chair
- Prof. Muna Hassani Mohammed – University of Kirkuk, College of Education for Humanities – Member
- Prof. Jalal Mazhar Mohammed – Tikrit University, College of Education for Humanities – Member
- Assoc. Prof. Aidan Atiyah Sameh – Tikrit University, College of Education for Humanities – Member
- Assoc. Prof. Mubdir Mohammed Ali – Tikrit University, College of Education for Women – Member
- Prof. Ihsan Nadhir Hussein – Tikrit University, College of Education for Humanities – Member & Supervisor
#Media and Government Communications Division – College of Education for Humanities – Tikrit University
