Question: Creativity comes through the interaction of different disciplinary ways of seeing things. How can you help your online students to be more creative?
I think one of the first things I would do is to ask them to describe a situation in which they believed they were being creative. Asking questions as to what kind of environment they were in, what resources they had at hand, what mood they were in, if they were alone or in a group. Then I would ask them for another example in which they were faced with a problem that required a creative solution, but they failed to come up with something novel. Again, I would ask what state of mind they were in when that happened, if they were alone, in a group, outdoors, indoors, etc. I think by comparing both situations they will understand the ideal situation they have to be in that will foster creativity.
Hi Julio,
ReplyDeleteHow could you take this a step farther by creating something based on your suggested questions?
Thanks,
Greg
Hi Greg,
DeleteLet me try something based on that, here it goes...
Activity
You will need to conduct this activity in a quiet place. Have a notepad and a pen for taking notes.
1. Make a list of those events in your life (work, home, out there) in which you face a situation that required a solution from you, and in which you believe you were able to come up with that solution by using your creativity skills (maximum of five items).
2. Now, make a list of those events in which you were faced with a challenging situation that required the use of your creativity skills and, at the end, your solution did not result in a favorable outcome, or you were not able to provide a solution other than the commonly used approach in that situation (or what common sense dictated in that situation, maximum five items).
3. Merge both lists and categorize them from most creative moment to least creative moment, start with the item in which you believe you came up with the most original solution and finish the list with the item in which you came up with the least original solution.
4. Pick the top and last items, take two pieces of paper and make a header on one saying something on the lines of "most creative moment" and on another piece of paper write down something like "least creative moment".
5. Start with the least creative moment list, draw lines that create four sections in that piece of paper and write down the following as subheads: environment, mindset, resources, and team.
6. In the environment section describe the setting you were in: outdoor? Indoor? Was it hot, cold? Was there peer pressure? Were you facing a crowd? Were you alone? Were you sitting? Standing? You need to describe succinctly any detail that describes the environment you were in during this moment.
7. In the mindset section describe your mood, were you sleepy, tired? Were you under stress? Was something on your mind? Were distracted by the environment, your peers? Were you angry, happy?
8. The resources section should contain any details on materials, equipment, people (support), technology, knowledge, you did or did not have available to solve the situation.
9. The team section mentions if you were working alone or with a team. Describe if you were able to listen to others and if you were able to express your ideas clearly. If you were alone, mention if you resorted to others for their opinion or their suggestions. Did you ask for help?
10. Put down this list and do something else for a couple of hours or more, do not try to analyze the first list immediately. Its is important that your second analysis is not biased by the experiences from the second list of "least creative moment".
11. Repeat 5-9 for the first list of "most creative moment".
12. Take both lists and place them in front of you. Do you see a pattern on each item? Can you tell if there is something in the environment, your mood, the available resources, or if you were working alone or in a team that affects your creative process? Can you tell which of these items influences your creative process? Is it something you can change?
What do you think Greg? Please, let me know.
Thank you.