Creative Classroom Techniques

The 21st century will require creative minds to produce solutions to complex problems facing society; therefore, the cultivation of creativity is essential to prepare students to meet the challenges of the 21st century. Classrooms with teachers who value creativity and celebrate flights of fantasy, random insights, and off-beat analysis that force one to reconsider the wisdom of convention provide a safe haven for students to explore, thus nurturing creativity. This entry presents some techniques that can be used in classrooms to encourage creative thinking.

Paul Torrance's work defines and expands the identification of giftedness to include students who are creatively talented and have the ability to generate many different ideas. The Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking provide a scaled score to measure fluency, generation of numerous ...