Theme1

Theme 1 Main Page

also, see the Theme 1 Reading Discussion Page

1. Everyone Can Be a Creative Thinker


For this case, we are proposing that creative thinking is not a quality that simply belongs to some people and not others, but instead, it is something that can be accessed by everyone, perhaps as long as the right circumstances and support are available. One possible dimension of such circumstances asks us to play with a particular dichotomy: freedom and constraint. One one hand, having freedom may contribute to greater access to creative thinking. In this sense, freedom refers to having open space to explore or to draw interesting connections between diverse areas, freedom to seek directions and solutions that are unconventional and unexpected, and freedom from authority that seeks to control the creative process. On the other hand, we can also look at the role of constraint in supporting creative thinking. Here, constraint means that we don't have access to every possibility -- that we have certain limits. If we are short on time, or money, or certain kinds of resources or materials or information, we may need to be clever. We may need to make a lot out of a little, or re-appropriate what we do have in interesting ways, and shift our thinking and perspective to find novel possibilities.

In the spirit of finding the balance between freedom and constraint, imagine a "guidebook" to help you appreciate the idea that everyone can think creatively and to help you help others appreciate that idea. The Written/Creative Product for this theme might be viewed as drafts of entries to this guidebook, which might take the form of text, maps, curricula, mp3s, or something else. These entries might introduce and organize key resources, i.e., key concepts, issues and debates, references to research, quotes or paraphrases from those references, interactive activities and personal habits, people and organizations to take note of, appropriate stories, particularly drawing upon areas of literature and arts.

Some questions that might stimulate your inquiries:
  1. How do areas within literature and the arts translate to everyday creativity? How might individuals (who may NOT be professional writers, artists, or formal "creative types") gain from literature and the arts as they seek to recognize, appreciate, and develop their own creativity?
  2. What is actually meant by the terms used in the theme? What distinctions might be made between "creativity" and "creative thinking"? When we refer to "everyone", how can we account for such a group? (In your own exploration of the topic, it is ok if you end up focusing on a more narrow community, especially one where individuals don't particularly appreciate their own creative thinking).
  3. In what ways do freedom and constraint show up in literature and the arts (both in terms of what was experienced by the creators themselves, and in terms of the content of their stories, artworks, and other creative products)?
  4. Can we develop creative thinking, not just by improving practices of creativity, but by managing obstacles? What happens if we look at the overall process of guiding others to creativity as one where we seek a balance between removing, and adding, obstacles in just the right way (meaning, shaping the way that freedom and constraint affect people)?
  5. Can we establish the context/setting/environment in a way that makes sure that "everyone can be a creative thinker"? How can we help people to customize their own context to help bring out the best of their own capacity for creative thinking?
  6. To the extent that the creative process involves the capacity to manage, seek out, even welcome risk, struggle and failure, how can we feel more comfortable and supported in allowing failures to happen?
  7. What is there to support, or contradict, the idea that "everyone can think creatively"? In guiding those who believe that they are not creative thinkers, what steps might be taken to encourage them to at least explore the possibility?

The process towards the end products should involve reading and digesting as much as you can in the time available. Focus on topics that most grab your interest (that is, don't think like a textbook writer who has to cover everything). Entry points for readings are given by the following (note that these are NOT the required readings for the course but instead a few possible places to start your thinking, if you feel that some would be helpful; generally, you should explore and follow up on your own directions by finding other readings more specifically relevant to you):
Your explorations may, of course, lead you to more recent or more appropriate sources.