The Teacher and the Poet

7. Creative Thinking

Creative thinking is an important element in today's world. A creative person is curious, experimental, playful.

Today no one has the complete set of skills needed to do the work Information technology has completely changed the balance thinking skills and physical skills.

Computerization not only automates it "informants". To use this new technology people must be able to respond flexibly and manipulate symbolic media using intellectual skills. There has been a real shift from physical skills to intellectual skills. Thus education needs to be based more and more on creative thinking.

This involves setting up problem solving and problem finding tasks in the classroom, which requires students to look at a situation from several points of view as if they were jumping from one ladder to another.

Take paradigm busting. A paradigm is a set of rules or a frame of reference. We use paradigms to define our world and see things more clearly, but they can obscure opportunities and new solutions. Paradigm busters are people who break through perceived boundaries in their search for new solutions. They examine situations from many angles and are able to make dramatic shifts in thinking called "paradigm shifts" to reach a solution or a compromise.

Emotional environment will be one of the key factors in determining success in the 21st century. Positive relationships among students are and will be critical. Dr. W. Edwards Deming, best known for promoting quality on the workplace once said, "The biggest problem is fear." Fear causes a "shutdown" on initiative and creativity. In the classroom where fear is used to keep people in line and get the most out of them, the opposite occurs. Students become immobilized by fear and care little for the quality of their work. This results in poor marks. What is going to be very important in the future is creating a positive learning environment. When there is a positive atmosphere, trust and joy in the classroom, people function better. They become hardworking, creative and willing to do whatever it takes to succeed.