Three keys to creativity that could boost education

Creative abrasion is the ability to generate ideas through discourse and debate between differing viewpoints. Most innovations result from collaboration, not from any one individual’s “eureka” moment.

Creative agility is the ability to test and refine ideas through quick pursuit, reflection and adjustment. It encompasses the kind of discovery-driven learning used by scientists and designers to solve problems, with a mix of the scientific method and the artistic process.

Creative agility focuses on trial-and-error action instead of planning a solution. Any outcome, even negative, can provide important insights.

Creative resolution is the ability to synthesise divergent and even opposing ideas to create a new solution. In innovative organisations, individuals or particular groups – even bosses or experts – are not allowed to dominate. Such organisations do not compromise or decide on an easy solution, but rather allow leaders to combine multiple ideas, as opposed to selecting only one option.

To be innovative, people need a leader who understands the power of collaboration and is able to create an environment in which everyone is willing to share and refine ideas together.

The creative process is one in which people, often with diverse perspectives and expertise, journey together in a collaborative problem-solving process.

Crucially, these ideas can be adopted in schools and thus benefit society by instilling creative and critical thinking in the young generation. A culture of active learning in schools, where teachers serve as open-minded facilitators, will nurture students’ imagination. 

Maria Loh Mun Foong

Singapore

(From the Straits Times/ANN)