Arts and Creativity Literacy
"Definition and Importance"
What is Art and Creativity Literacy?
Art-infused education is an engaging technique to assist children in learning. Students are more engaged when art is included throughout the curriculum. Art fosters 21st-century readiness by encouraging the development of the four Cs: creativity, critical thinking, communication, and collaboration.
Arts literacy helps students develop design, thinking, creativity, and critical thinking—all skills said to be important for the future workforce. They use arts-specific vocabulary, metaphors, embodiment, and other more demanding ways to express themselves through their art.
In recent decades, the majority of schools have nearly eliminated art, music, theatre, dance, and even recess due to the desire for higher standardized test scores. Social studies were also neglected as teachers concentrated on improving reading and math test scores. In a recent survey, 85 percent of respondents felt that creative thinking is essential for career-related problem-solving. With the challenges our global economy, ecology, and society face today, there has never been a greater need for innovative ideas.
Employers currently value creativity more than any other skill. It is noteworthy to observe that modern employers continue to want us to produce students with abilities in creativity, cooperation, entrepreneurship, innovation, problem-solving, and critical thinking, yet schools continue to provide a restricted curriculum devoid of arts and creativity.
Creativity is an important ability. When developing learning experiences, teachers can plan and structure curricula and equip students with tools that give them alternatives, voice, and choices to foster creativity.
The following are strategies and cognitive frameworks that teachers can utilize for students to develop creativity.
Framework for creative Thinking and Problem Solving (Torrance, 1979)
Torrance (1979) describes a typical framework for the creative thought process (1979). According to him, there are four aspects of creative thinking:
Fluency
Refers to the production of concepts that demonstrate a wide range of possibilities or mental domains. This activity entails looking at things from several perspectives and employing a variety of ways and strategies.
Originality
Involves the creation of original or unconventional thoughts. Requires synthesis or reassembling facts on a topic in a new way.
Elaboration
Is an approach for improving ideas by adding more details. Additional information and clarity enhance interest in and comprehension of the subject.
Scamper Thinking and Design Technique
SCAMPER is an acronym for a series of thought-starters or provocations that assist you in innovating on an existing product, service, or issue by viewing it through different lenses. The SCAMPER approach has seven provocation lenses:
Substitute
The substitute technique is concerned with the parts of a product, service, or solution that can be replaced with another. During this section of the discussion, the emphasis is on making decisions to replace one aspect of the process with another.
Combine
The combine technique examines the feasibility of combining two ideas, steps of a process, or products into a single more efficient output. In some circumstances, combining two unique ideas might result in a new product or technology that gains market share.
Adapt
Adapt refers to a brainstorming process with the goal of adjusting or tweaking a product or service for a better outcome. This modification might range from simple alterations to drastic changes to the entire project.
Modify
Modify (also Magnify and Minify). The alter technique refers to modifying a process in order to unleash new innovative possibilities or resolve issues. This modification is more than just an adjustment, as it focuses on the process as a whole.
Put to another use
This strategy addresses how to repurpose an existing product or process or how to leverage an existing product to solve difficulties. This technique can be used, for instance, to determine how to move an existing product to a different market group or user type.
Eliminate
As its name suggests, this technique seeks to find process components that can be eliminated to improve the product or service of the process. It also helps to explore the project's unnecessary components.
Reverse
Finally, the reverse or rearrange technique intends to explore the innovative possibilities of rearranging the order of processes in a manufacturing line. Reversing the process or a portion of it can aid in issue resolution or provide more innovative results.
De Bono’s 6 Thinking Hats
Six thinking hats is a simple and effective parallel thinking approach that enables people to be more productive, focused, and immersed in their work. Each thinking role is represented by a different colored symbolic "thinking hat."
The White Hat asks for known or needed information. "Just the facts, nothing more."
The yellow hat is a sign of hope and brightness. You investigate the positives and look for value and benefit while wearing this hat.
The Black Hat is judgment - advocating for the devil or explaining why something might not succeed. Identify the obstacles and risks; where things could go wrong. Probably the most potent and effective of the Hats, although its misuse is problematic.
The Red Hat represents feelings, intuition, and hunches. When wearing this hat, you can convey your emotions and feelings, as well as your worries, likes, dislikes, loves, and dislikes.
The Green Hat is all about options, choices, and fresh ideas. It's an opportunity to convey new ideas and perspectives.
Importance of Arts and Creativity Literacy
Creative literacy can also encourage reluctant readers, build confidence, and help teach practical skills. They found it aided sustained learning as the children made strong connections between reading, writing, and their work in the creative arts.
Bringing creativity and literacy together in the classroom can be a wonderful teaching tool. It allows children to participate in literacy activities such as acting out plays using characters they've created or creating props. It gives students the opportunity to use their imaginations.
It promotes learner engagement, brings a subject to life, piques students' curiosity, and promotes knowledge retention. It may also develop speaking and listening skills, stimulate team building, and be made practical, making it suitable for people who may struggle with some traditional methods of education, such as dyslexic children. Creative literacy can also be used to motivate reluctant readers, boost confidence, and teach practical skills.
References:
Chapter 4 arts and creativity literacy. (n.d.). Scribd. https://www.scribd.com/presentation/520492395/Chapter-4-Arts-and-Creativity-Literacy
Arts-creativity-LITERACY. (n.d.). Scribd. https://www.scribd.com/presentation/515730306/ARTS-CREATIVITY-LITERACY
Photos from:
https://www.eschoolnews.com/2017/10/02/incorporate-creativity-schools/