“Learning by doing” is a famous theory by American philosopher John Dewy, which clearly states that any learning should be relevant and practical, not just passive and theoretical. Students learn faster and remember more if they are engaged in learning and derive from the solution themselves. This is the idea of Creative Education / divergent thinking. Ignite an idea or throw up a complex problem to solve and let the learner, through his own imagination, derived from the solution. This will eventually lead to out-of-the-box thinking and ignite the creative spark in learners. This will also enhance retention in the learners.
- What is the Importance: With the current business dynamics and the way the world operates, the next generation has to be adept in critical thinking than just linear decision-making. Change is the key to success, then don’t we change the way we think as well. If we start thinking differently, we will have better ideas and solutions to the most complex problems. Moreover, some professions like Designing (graphic design, interior design, web design, social media etc), photography, film direction ect demand creative thinking and to ignite the creativity, they need to be put in an environment which elicits creativity out of them.
- How do we inculcate creative thinking– The space plays a major role in creative thinking? Just like the painter needs to be out in the nature to bring out the freshness in his painting, similarly creative learning can never materialize in a closed classroom environment where a teacher teaches and a student learns. The learner needs to have his open space to explore, experiment, fail and then learn again. Learning isn’t complete until the learner ceases the opportunity to get out and explore. Collaboration is also a part of creative and fun education. If you work in groups, you learn from your peers and learning increases and it brings out a differentness in each learner’s approach.
- Universities moving towards Creative learning: When universities or institutes move towards creative and fun education, they try to bring out the best out of the learner through the non-conventional ways of teaching. The initial conceptualization of the course would be done through expert faculties who have in-depth knowledge of the topic. Then, to increase the creative intelligence, the learner will go through a series of real-life emersions either virtually or literally. The critical, analytical, problem-solving behaviour would be derived from this phase of the course. Furthermore, subject matter experts, who have been working in the relevant field for years, would conduct some experiential lessons. They would share their real-life scenarios and problems that occurred and how they managed to come out of it through critical and creative thinking. Guest hosts from across the world would share experiences and learnings would be gathered out of those sessions.
Creative education teaches the learner to look at everything through a different vision. Only this level of education can enable a person’s ability to think beyond boundaries and to be able to transform ideas into visual reality.