creativity is the most important thing we can teach

Creativity is the Most Important Thing We Can Teach Our

Children in the New Millennium

Bonnie CramondThe Department of Educational Psychology

& Instructional TechnologyThe University of Georgia

B.Cramond, University of Georgia

R. Buckminster Fuller Recalled that during his childhood at the turn of the last century, people tried to predict the future and could not begin to conceive of automobiles, electrons, travel to the moon, or even air wars as reality.


R. Buckminster Fuller Only about 1% of the world was literate, and

fewer still thought of humanity in world terms.

We, too, are poised on the brink of change in this new millennium

Prediction is still true: successful adaptation to world change and enrichment of our world depend on creative endeavors.


How Much of What You Learned in School is True Now? There were only 49 states, or 48. Man had not walked on the moon; even airplane trips

were reserved for the wealthy, and travel was easy. Our food was not zapped, and our files were not zipped. The idea of a Black man or a woman running for

president was unthinkable.(A Catholic was controversial) UTube, ipods, cell phones, Skype, Blue Tooth, email,

ebay, and Facebook had no meaning Amazon, chats, and MySpace had different meanings,

and “text” was not a verb. People, not machines, got viruses.


We are moving from industrial societies to knowledge societies

We must realize that it is time to move past the 3 Rs of Reading, ‘riting, and ‘rithmetic


To the 4 Rs1. Richness of curriculum2. Recursion through reflective interaction 3. Relations of new understandings into the

larger picture; and 4. Rigor of being a critical consumer and

understanding the transitory nature of knowledge

(Doll,1993)


5th R: Reverse the Role of the Learner

Passive---> ActiveConsumer---> ProducerDependent--> Independent


Types of Creativity

Inventive addresses a worthwhile problem novel and appropriate solution

Expressive Illustrates the creator’s emotions and aesthetics original and valuable


Inventive Creativity Exhibited in mathematics,

science, and social arenas Recognizes and identifies

problems that may or may not be apparent to others,

When solved, result in an improvement in the domain Dean Kamen, Inventor


Inventive CreativitySaves and improves lives

Segway


Inventive CreativityMay produce an intangible product--

such as a social movement

Mohandas Ghandi Martin Luther King, Jr.


Inventive Creativity

Finds worthwhile problemsProduces solutions of value

Watson, Crick, and Franklin (and Wilkins)


New World Problems Inventive

Novel solutions to unsolved problems Early recognition & product creation Market response


According to Torrance,

“When a person has no learned or practiced solution to a problem, some degree of creativity is required”


January 2006

Davos, Switzerland World Economic Forum rum

Annual Meeting

The purpose of a newsletter is to provide specialized information to a targeted audience. Newsletters can be a great way to market your product or service, and also create credibil ity and build your organization’s identity among peers, members, employees, or vendors. First, determine the audience of the newsletter. This could be anyone who might benefit from the information it contains, for example, employees or people interested in purchasing a product or requesting your service. You can compile a mail ing list from business reply cards, customer information sheets, Business cards collected at trade shows, or membership lists. You might consider

The Creative Imperative

Innovative Solutions to Global Challenges The purpose of a newsletter is to provide specialized information to a targeted audience. Newsletters can be a great way to market your product or service, and also create credibility and build your organization’s identity among peers, members, employees, or vendors. First, determine the audience of the newsletter. This could be anyone who might benefit from the information it contains, for example, employees or people interested in purchasing a product or requesting your service. You can compile a mailing list from business reply cards, customer information sheets, Business cards collected at trade shows, or membership lists. You might consider purchasing a mailing list from a company. If you explore the Project Gallery, you will

purchasing a mailing list from a company. If you explore the Project Gallery, you will find many publications that match the style of your newsletter. Next, establish how much time and money you can spend on your newsletter. These factors will help determine how frequently you publish the newsletter and its length.

find many publications that match the style of your newsletter. Next, establish how much time and money you can spend on your newsletter. These factors will help determine how frequently you publish the newsletter and its length. It’s recommended that you publish your newsletter at least quarterly so that it’s considered a consistent source of information. Your customers or employees will look forward to its arrival.

Creativity Promotes Economic Growth

Recent reports maintain that our nation cannot retain its economic and scientific position in the competitive world with a work force that has mastered only minimum competencies


Prototypical U.S. Industry …in 10 years if all goes well


Richard Florida, EconomistThe Rise of the Creative Class: And How It's Transforming Work, Leisure, Community and Everyday Life (2002)

There is a new social class, the creative class, who generate new ideas, new technology, and new creative content that profoundly influence work and lifestyle issues.

The Flight of the Creative Class: The New Global Competition for Talent (2005)

Nations are in competition to nurture and retain their most creative talent because they are linked to a nation’s prosperity.


Top Five European Countries and the U.S. in Number of Patents in 2001

Country # of Applications % of TotalGermany 21,308 19.37France 6,802 6.18Netherlands 5,371 4.88U. K. 4,853 4.41Switzerland 3,808 3.46U.S.A. Approx. 300,000 NA


Patents filed…in 1998 Per million

inhabitantsPer million Euro in R&D

Per 1000researchers

EU 98,986 263 0.70 115

USA 132,767 482 0.65 137

Japan 357,379 2824 3.48 591


As the rest of the world becomes more interested in creativity, the U.S. is focusing on basics.

As we focus on leaving no child behind, the rest of the world is leaving us behind.


What of Expressive Creativity? The impetus for the arts Results not from the

recognition of a problem,

But from the need to communicate with others and/or express oneself


Not real dichotomy inventive expressive

Aesthetic experience in the realization of an elegant solution to a problem

There are many problems to be solved in the completion any artistic expression


Not real dichotomy inventive expressive

Combination-- a new menu item makes use of an

abundance of a food (inventive)

takes care to make the new item as appealing to the senses as possible (expressive).


Expressive Creativity Helps Us Understand Our World

By using world events as the subject matter of the creations

For example, the Spanish Civil War inspired these:

Guernica


Expressive CreativityHelps us deal with the stresses of modern life

Maya Angelou wrote about the racism and rape she suffered in her life in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings


Expressive Creativity

Helps us to express the anguish, longing, and loneliness we sometimes feel, and to relate to others

QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressorare needed to see this picture.


Multiculturalism and TechnologyOpportunities for creators to

reach a wider audienceexplore alternate avenues of expressionBypass the gatekeepers


Hoffer, 1973

“In a time of drastic change, it is the learners who inherit the future. The learned find themselves equipped to live only in a world that no longer exists”


This is a time of drastic change…Our children must all be learners...and creative