///Creativity In Action!

There are several assumptions about the field of creativity.  Some theories assume that you are just born with innate genes to be creative.  Other assumptions indicate that you can create an environment and thus influence the creativity of individuals.  When one observes a small child when he/she enters a school building for the first time, one observes an individual uncontaminated by many previous assumptions.  In most cases, students who are ready for first grade are intrinsically motivated by the many different stimuli that they encounter in a learning environment.  For the most part, many students are eager to learn and eager to try new and interesting ventures.

Public schools are not established to deal with this kind of creative thinking and sometimes unrelated learning.  Schools are designed to teach a highly structured myopic view of the world and to teach it in a confining, stable environment.  By the time the bright child reaches the third grade, they have learned that creativity is generally not rewarded and in most cases not tolerated in the classroom.  Therefore, the student conforms to school related norms and proceeds with his/her life.

The next major change in the student’s life is when he or she leaves the elementary grades and enters the high school grades.  Here again, the learning environment is structured around disciplines.  Very little cross-disciplinary activity takes place.  The student learns a concept or idea within the framework of a particular course and not in the framework of the world environment.  The student adapts and finally moves on to the university.  The university has the possibility of providing the student with an interdisciplinary approach to learning.  But, in most cases, it does not do so.  The student learns to solve problems frequently in a one-dimensional arena and learns facts and figures.

At last, the student finishes his/her formal education and enters the work world.  He/she may take a job with a Fortune 500 company, with an international company, and/or with a mom and pop organization or may start their own business.  Now, not only is the individual faced with the structure and culture of a new company but also with government regulations and bureaucratic structures.

Most of the people in the U.S. come out of this type of learning environment.  If so, where will the new innovative and creative ideas come from in the next 10 to 20 years?  What new inventions can we expect and what kind of organizational structures will be developed?  Can we actually develop learning environments that can change the mindset of individuals? The following cases/learning vignettes may provide some stimulation to encourage creative and entrepreneurial thinking.

These learning exercises are designed to help create learning environment that will encourage creative thinking and thus lead to entrepreneurship. Our work is driven by the desire to maximize life by developing self-sufficient, self-determination and individuals that have a passion for new venture creation. These cases are thus designed to set the stage for future ventures. The storylines are taken from many different groups of students who have been in some way a part of the Entrepreneurs in Action! program which is a part of the Forum of Entrepreneurship Education at Vanderbilt University. The storylines come from real life experiences and credit is given to those persons who have contributed, however, the editor/developer assumes all responsibility for all cases. Cases/vignettes under development are as follows:

Grease Monkey

Lifecare Family Services: An Elder Day Care for Organizations

The Seat Selection Kiosk

Brown Bag Workshops: Parenting for Professionals

Oven - Refrigerator

Teacher Performance Evaluation: A Proposal for Privatization

Organizational Metaphors

Duo-Cam: The Convenience Camera of Choice

A US President Looks for a Job

The Case of the Missing Mutual Fund

Expanding Efficiency to Greater Limits

Although these cases/scenarios are under development, they still can be used to stimulate and encourage creative thinking. Cases can be used in the following ways: 1) As short projects for individuals or small groups, 2) As an in-class discussion activity and 3) As a starting place for more in-depth study of humor and creativity. From time to time new cases will be added and some case will be updated or deleted. This learning approach is a part of the problem based learning (PBL) concept. Before using the cases, the reader may want read the paper on this web site about PBL.

The cases listed above are mostly from classes offered at Vanderbilt University. Other schools are invited to use the cases and to suggest other cases. Please contact R. Wilburn Clouse, PhD at wil.clouse@vanderbilt.edu for more information.