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18 - Creativity in College Classrooms

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 June 2012

By
Diane F. Halpern
Edited by
Ronald A. Beghetto  and
James C. Kaufman
Diane F. Halpern
Affiliation:
Claremont McKenna College, USA
Ronald A. Beghetto
Affiliation:
University of Oregon
James C. Kaufman
Affiliation:
California State University, San Bernardino
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Summary

There is a long history of teaching for creative thinking but, unfortunately, it is not a glorious one; few, if any, studies used rigorous experimental designs, and the inconsistent use of measures of creativity across published studies makes it difficult to compare results from different studies. In this chapter, I consider how the mandate to assess learning outcomes in postsecondary education could have positive effects that help students develop their abilities to think critically and creatively. I discuss the similarities and differences in these two ways of thinking about thinking and provide examples of new ways of teaching that offer the possibility of creating more creative learners. As a way of linking how we could be enhancing creativity in university classrooms with what actually occurs, I describe an informal survey of what is occurring in higher education throughout North America as determined from a sample of exemplary course syllabi. Unfortunately, there appears to be a wide gap between what could be and what is. I end this chapter with a description of a multiyear project that requires a creative product.

THE MANDATE TO ASSESS STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES IS CAUSING COLLEGES TO RETHINK THE “WHY” QUESTION FOR HIGHER EDUCATION

Every college and university in the United States must assess student learning outcomes as part of their periodic review for regional accreditation.

Type
Chapter
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Nurturing Creativity in the Classroom , pp. 380 - 393
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2010

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