INNOVATION AND CREATIVITY DEVELOPMENT

A Short Term Course on “Innovation and Creativity Development in Teachers and Students” was organized by NITTTR, Chandigarh from 9th to 13th May 2016 under the supervision of course coordinator Dr. Rakesh K. Wats at its Chandigarh Campus. Ms. Priyanka Upadhyay, Assistant Professor of IT Department from Dronacharya Group of Institutions, Greater Noida attended the Course.

The objective of the course was to understand the importance of creativity in one’s life and how teachers can help students to think in an innovative manner.

Day 1 (09 / 05 / 16)

SESSION 1:

In the first session Dr. J.S. Saini, Professor and Dean (Rural Development) discussed about the challenges in Technical Education and need for creativity and innovation. He discussed about how the higher education in India lacks the standards to encourage students for creativity and innovation. The program of distance learning eliminates the process of creativity amongst the students and leads to no innovation.

SESSION 2:

In the second session Dr. Wats delivered a lecture on Innovation and Creativity. He explained the role of teachers to motivate the students towards critical thinking. He told that everyone needs to change their mindset of not being able to do something and rather do new something every day. He suggested how teachers can plan teaching to inculcate a creativity process amongst the students. The lecture ended with an activity on creativity which was very encouraging and worth performing.

Day 2 (10 / 05 / 16)

SESSION 1:

In the first session Dr. R. K. Wats discussed about the Creativity Process. He gave a few assignments to encourage creative thinking process. The various components in an individual’s creativity:

1. Construct new understanding

2. Solve problems

3. Make decisions

4. Develop products

5. Communicate

SESSION 2:

In the second session Dr. Wats delivered a lecture on Creative Problem Solving. He told that creative problem solving was to generate a new idea for an existing problem without any restriction. It is looking at something as everyone else and thinking something different.

SESSION 3:

The third session was taken by Dr. A. B. Gupta, Prof. and Head, Curriculum Development Centre. He discussed about how a curriculum should be designed in order to enhance creativity in students. He emphasized that teachers should develop the following three attributes in students:

1. Knowledge

2. Skill

3. Attitude

He discussed the process of curriculum development where the teacher must analyze the need of the curriculum, its implementation and its evaluation. A teacher should impart the imagination process in the curriculum and develop the interest of students. The session ended with the discussion on ability to acquire assimilate and apply knowledge.

Day 3 (11 / 05 / 16)

SESSION 1:

In the first session Dr. Daljit Singh, Director General of Doaba Group of Colleges discussed about the process of generating ideas. What factors influence the thinking process amongst the humans. How the teachers should motivate the students so as to develop the thinking process, and encourage them to ask why to each and everything they see around them. He discussed about the process of motivation, and the factors that demotivate an individual.

SESSION 2:

In the second session Dr. Sunil Dutt, Professor of Education and Educational Management delivered a lecture on Self - Motivation for creativity. He told that creative problem solving was to generate a new idea for an existing problem without any restriction. He quoted certain examples that you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink water. He explained to get what we’ve never had we need to do what we have never done. Every individual should not bother what others will think of ones actions.

He identified four elements that make up motivation:

1. Personal drive to achieve, the desire to improve or to meet certain standards;

2. Commitment to personal or organizational goals;

3. Initiative, which he defined as ‘readiness to act on opportunities’; and

4. Optimism, the ability to keep going and pursue goals in the face of setbacks.

Day 4 (12 / 05 / 16)

SESSION 1:

In the first session Dr. Vidhu Mohan, Consultant, Counselor, Prof of Psychology of Punjab University discussed about the Personality Hindrances in Creativity and Innovation. She discussed that the shift to knowledge economies has been abrupt and there is a flurry of interest in creativity and innovation in the workplace. Innovation is considered, quite simply, an imperative for organizational survival. An organizational culture that values innovation, where there is encouragement for personnel to think differently, take calculated risks, and challenge the status quo. Major forces such as leadership, attitudes to risk, budgeting, audit, performance measurement, recruitment, and open innovation are aligned in support. Management fosters coordination across these interconnections and stresses integration rather than compartmentalization. She conducted a few activities where problem on thinking differently was induced to make the participants creative.

SESSION 2:

In the second session Dr. Y.K. Anand, Professor, Curriculum Development Center discussed on Building Culture / Climate of creativity and innovations in Technical Institutions. He discussed creating a culture of entrepreneurship is in fact quite a challenge, depending on the nature and maturity of the enterprise. Such organizations are mostly populated by managers and no longer with leaders. In this situation, the culture of entrepreneurship and risk taking can only be driven top down, by example, repetition and leadership. Also, the culture of rewards has to be modified to match the desired culture of entrepreneurship. Organizations, like their people, must learn to repeatedly reinvent themselves, and not be set in permanent molds or cast in stone.

Day 5 (13 / 05 / 16)

SESSION 1:

In the first session Dr. Rakesh K. Wats discussed about Managing Excellence through creativity. He discussed Creativity is an act of turning new and imaginative ideas into reality. Creativity is characterized by the ability to perceive the world in new ways, to find hidden patterns, to make connections between seemingly unrelated phenomena, and to generate solutions. Creativity involves two processes: thinking, then producing. If you have ideas, but don’t act on them, you are imaginative but not creative. Creativity is the process of bringing something new into being. Creativity requires passion and commitment. It brings to our awareness what was previously hidden and points to new life.

SESSION 2:

The second session was conducted by Prof. P. K. Singla, Associate Professor, Curriculum Development Centre on Innovative Methods /Approaches for developing Creativity through Instruction and Project Work. He discussed Creativity, including imagination, insight and intuition are all involved in research, but are not necessarily acknowledged when teaching. It will introduce practical creative strategies for stimulating more creative thinking in both small and large group teaching, and explore opportunities for more creative assignments and assessments that involve and engage students in creative learning processes.

1. Discuss theories and philosophies of creativity and their applicability to Higher Education, and consider how creative teaching and learning strategies can contribute towards the development of a more ‘imaginative curriculum’ in their discipline.

2. Articulate their conceptions of creativity in teaching and learning in Higher Education.

3. Inform their teaching through critical awareness of the literature of creativity in teaching and learning.

4. Reflect on their own personal creative interests and skills and how these might be aligned with and feed in to their professional practice

5. Reflect on their teaching practice and make actionable changes to their practice, which enhance creative teaching and learning.

6. Engage with other teachers in Higher Education in critical discussion about the role of creativity in teaching and learning in the disciplines.

The session ended with real life examples on how a teacher and student react upon creativity and what things a teacher can do to make his students creative. In the Valedictory Session Dr. R. K. Wats and Prof P.K. Singla interacted with the participants on the feedback about the session and distributed the certificates.