Learning with YouTube Day 16: The Case for Divergent Thinking @EAkcali #busedu #31daysofPD #personalizedPD

I was thinking about the trend for "divergent thinking" today so searched for a talk about that. This is by Elif Akcali who teaches an innovative 'Divergent Thinking' course at UF from TEDx UF.

She began by talking about asking people to create an image of a women with some specific qualities (which she has done in her classroom, providing magazines and scissors for the visualization of this) and showing some examples. She talked about writing a six word memoirs, looking at a photograph for 15 seconds and sketching, doing a subject/actor/coach activity... things where thinking is unfamiliar and doing is uncomfortable to encourage them to open themselves up to new experiences.

Elif discussed a time in her life when she decided to "go for it" and say yes to new things for a year. She went to an art workshop where she learned that if she continued working on this art that unfamiliar became familiar. She learned new ways of thinking and doing and embraced a new "tribe" of people.

Each yes put her in an uncomfortable experience and put her in an uncomfortable place. Each yes lead her to question her own ways of doing and thinking. So, she starting asking her engineering students to do divergent things... interpretive dances, poems, mind maps, etc. Certainly, they questioned WHY, often because there was not a right answer. She wanted them to have new experiences and to think outside of the box.

PERSONAL NOTES: She invited us to be uncomfortable. This is obviously not something most of us embrace. In the classroom, a teacher never really wants to feel that way, but we need to push students to want to think (as opposed to "just" wanting to get done or just get a grade). I discovered this great article with 30 ways to inspire divergent thinking, including fast, frequent failures, finding connections, brainwriting, starting with provocative statements, and disproving. They also mentioned the "Six Thinking Hats" that I've read about before. Much to think about. I'd really like to push students out of the comfort zone to think differently this year.