I believe children today suffer from stifled and ignored creativity, and that creative thinking development methods should be adapted to the

education of all children.

Michelle Korenfeld

The role of the teacher and the teaching method presented in this abstract are based on my teaching at The Dr. Erica

Landau Institute for the gifted in Tel Aviv, Israel, based on her book "The Courage to be Gifted" [2], and on conversations

with Dr. Moshe Rishpon, who established the Science Oriented Youth Department in the Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel. The Science Oriented Youth

Department is a pioneer in the field of science education and a leader of that field worldwide. Both institutes' teaching

methods have enabled children to become leaders in their fields of expertise.

A leap in technological development is expected in a few decades. We will enhance the intelligence that evolution has bestowed on us. Human creativity will be amplified. Yet the ability to act on our destructive inclinations will be amplified, too [6]. Our challenge as educators is to develop students' thinking skills and humane approach. Our goal is that tomorrow's adults use technology ethically, to take the world a step further into an age of creativity and humanity.

The Future of Education [6]

Every person all over the world will have ready access to the highest quality knowledge and instruction.

The learning experience for each student will improve, as computer programs will adapt to each student's needs and there will be virtual laboratories.

In a few decades artificial intelligence will merge with human intelligence. Vast knowledge embedded in our brains will merge with the vastly greater capacity, speed and knowledge sharing ability of our technology.

We will then have the ability to download knowledge and skills .

Future professions will require:

• Creativity• Flexibility and Constant Development [3]• Innovation [3]• Interdisciplinary vision [3]• Decision Making [3]

Creativity Being Stifled by Education

Young children enter pre-school alive with creative confidence. By the time they leave high school, many have lost that confidence entirely [1] .

today's mainstream education has been shaped by particular ideas about academic intelligence, which disregard abilities that are important for creativity and innovation [1].

Teachers lack understanding of the nature of creativity and undervalue creativity [7].

Complementing Classical Learning with Creative Thinking development

Creativity is possible in every discipline and should be promoted throughout the whole of education [1].

Case studies of teachers who have experience with teaching gifted and creative students can bring new insights into understanding and teaching creative students. For example, Sak's research: About Creativity, Giftedness, and Teaching the Creatively Gifted in the Classroom [7].

About Creativity

According to Freud creativity presents a healthy form of sublimation, using unfulfilled unconscious drives for productive purposes [4] .

According to Kris creative individuals are able to recreate a childlike state of mind in which unconscious ideas are more accessible to the conscious mind [4].

According to Skinner individuals' actions are determined solely by their history of reinforcement. Thus, creativity can be influenced by reinforcement [4].

According to Mednick Individuals who frequently bring remote ideas together should be more likely than others to produce creative ideas [4].

According to Maslow and Rogers the ability to express ideas frequently without self-criticism is essential to creativity, and is paralleled to the innocent, happy creativity of secure children. Creativity is the product of healthy human growth [4].

About Creativity

According to Csikszentmihalyi flow is a state in which the person is deeply involved in an activity, and concentration is high. There are a loss of self-consciousness and a diminished sense of time. Artists painting, musicians practicing, and scientists absorbed in their work are examples of individuals in flow. Thus, flow is tied to creativity [4] .

According to Dr. Landau playfulness is typical to creativity. Many scientists and artists approach problems playfully, thus coming up with new solutions [2]. Humor is seeing something from a different perspective. The discovery of new connections creates the humoristic surprise. It is enabled by flexibility. That is in fact the definition of creativity, as well.

According to Seelig scientists and artists of all types are the world's "noticers". They are trained to pay attention and to communicate what they see and experience to the rest of the world [8].

About Creativity

According to Sak – Research on Gifted Students' Class:

Being creative is being perceptive. It's about being able to understand or perceive the complexity of the outer world. It's about what people can do to make the world interesting, innovative and original. It's about coming up with a newer idea or manner that are unusual [7].

Creativity comes from insights .Emotions intensity plays a significant role in the creative personality [7].

 

The Role of the Teacher

• Teacher as a leader who raises leaders• Teacher as facilitator of students' creativity• Developing independent thinking, creativity, reason and humanity. • Mastering the art of listening and encouraging• Identifying strengths and building confidence• Developing lateral thinking (restructuring patterns and

provoking new ones) [9] [4]

• Developing critical thinking

(In critical thinking the individual assesses. In creative thinking the individual originates. [5])

• Encouraging curiosity to experiment and expressions of creativity • Raising happy productive individuals• Teacher as role model for life

Creative Thinking Development Methods in Class

Conversations - a conversation is more than a discussion of the material. In conversations thoughts are mixed with feelings. The mixing of feelings with thoughts contributes to the internalization of the knowledge. Creativity depends on interactions between feeling and thinking [1]. It is an opportunity for seeing how the subject is manifested in different fields in order to raise interdisciplinary vision .

Questions - teaching for creativity involves asking open-ended questions, where there may be multiple solutions [1].Our wish is that the questions we ask the students, and the ones they raise, be creative.

Experiments – learning through experiencing to arise conversation and thinking.

Expression in Writing and Drawing – independent time for students to extend ideas and connect them to real life.

Activity to Ignite Creative Thinking – My Experience

Through a dramatized story, the students enter a state of flow ofan hour and a half, in which they are confident to express their creativity.Conversation and teaching aids - discovering the world in an interdisciplinary vision: symmetry, the colors of the rainbow, colors of animals (camouflage, courting and warning).Students who at the beginning have expressed lack of confidence in their creativity, later participate in painting freely with oil colors.Learning through experiencing – darkening the classroom and playing with flashlights covered by red, blue and green cellophanes (The primary colors of light).The activity is thoroughly explained in Creative Children Like the Animals of the World (“A Rainbow of More than Seven Colors”) The magic of words and colors – The children do the magic that preserves their creative thinking for life using rainbow glasses.

Interactive Workbook – My Experience

The stories, poems and paintings in Creative Children Like the Animals of the World's purpose is to inspire children to write and draw freely themselves. While taking a journey toward broader horizons and creative thinking, they create their personal book .

Interactive WorkbookStories and Poems –

Learning English Paintings for creative inspiration

Interactive Workbook

Coloring Pages Free writing and Drawing

Experiences and Elaborations

Experiences and Elaborations

Conclusion

Classical learning enhanced by technology is the future of education. However, education is the future of humanity. In the process of fostering creative thinking, we also develop reason and humanity. Classical education therefore needs not only be enhanced by technology, but also complemented by teaching for creativity.

The future world, with its technological advancement raises fears. What if tomorrow's human being will be characterized only by technological advancement and academic skills? What if we will lack humanity and creativity? I believe we need to make sure our education not only doesn't stifle them, but develops them as much as possible.

Human intelligence is predicted to merge with artificial intelligence by the time our students are grown. How can we make sure the advanced human being of the future remains humane? By making sure the children of today develop a humane approach, and by ensuring they don't lose their creative thinking, curiosity and imagination – their human spark .

Click on the image for Raising Creative Thinkers’ website

Contact

Please feel free to contact. Your feedback will be much appreciated:

: 555 .mailto mchll @gmaill com

Thank you for your time and patience

MichelleKorenfeld

References and Links

[1 ]Robinson, K. (2011). Out of our Minds – Learning to be Creative. Capstone Publishing Ltd, pp. 49-80, 245-286.

: ? Ted Lecture Do Schools kill Creativity Sir Ken Robinson

[2 ]Landau, E. (1990). The Courage to be Gifted. Trillium Press Inc.

[3 ]Davies, A., Fidler, D., Gorbis, M. (2011). Future Work Skills 2020. Institute for the future for the University of Phoenix Research Institute. www.iftf.org , pp. 8-13.

[4 ]Strake, A.J. (2014). Creativity in the Classroom. Routledge, pp. 6-9, 161-164, 283-286.

[5 ]Paul, R., Elder, L. (2008). The Thinkers Guide to the Nature and Functions of Critical and Creative Thinking. Kindle edition, part 1.

References and Links

[6] Kurzweil, R. (2005). The Singularity is Near. Penguin Books, pp. 7-34,

335-336.

Ted Lecture: A University for the Coming singularity - Ray Kurzweil

[7 ]Sak, U. (2004). About Creativity, Giftedness, and Teaching the Creatively Gifted in the Classroom. Roeper Review, Vol. 26, No. 4, pp. 216-222.

:// . . . /~ / /http home anadolu edu tr usak documents AboutCreativityGift.ednespublishedinRR pdf

[8 ]Seelig, T. (2012). inGenius: A Crash Course on Creativity .HarperCollins Publishers, pp. 65-84.

[9 [deBono, E. (1970). Lateral Thinking: Creativity step by Step. Harper and Row Publishers, pp. 7-14.

Links

Activities for Children and Youth in The WeizmannInstitute

The Clore Garden - of Science The WeizmannInstitute

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi: , Flow the secret to happiness