By Mike
Duncan, Superintendent
“Creativity
is the process of having original ideas that have value.” Sir Ken Robinson
So often we
think of creativity as the fine arts-music, art, drama-and, certainly, these
endeavors are creative as participants use their mediums to interpret,
challenge and reimagine the world in which we live, however, creativity is much more than the creation
of art; it is in part the essence of combining”…seemingly unrelated ideas into
something new…” (Daniel Pink, 2006). To this
end, students think and problem-solve creatively when they create new and
worthwhile ideas; elaborate, refine, analyze, and evaluate their own ideas;
demonstrate originality and inventiveness in work and understand real world limits
to adopting new ideas.
Innovation
has been the life-blood of the American experience, creating the world’s
strongest economy and the highest standard of living. Major economic powers around the world are biding
to enhance innovation and discovery. “China
is now focusing on how to unleash more creative, innovative juices among its
youth” (Thomas Freidman, 2007).
To address
the issue of creative problem-solving, we are engaged in professional learning
focusing on student work that requires inquiry and value beyond school. The
High School STEM program is experimenting with design challenges to develop
solutions using science, technology, engineering and mathematics to solve
real-world problems. Creative
problem-solving is the most challenging issue we face; it’s just not in the DNA
of American education today.
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