Creativity, Critical Thinking & the New Common Core Standards

A Conversation with Colleagues

Including:Debra Conejo, Literacy and Language Arts Specialist, LAUSDLuiz Sampaio, Visual Arts Specialist, LAUSDJeanne Hoel, Senior Education Program Manager, MOCA

What’s your working definition of creativity?

Please take a few moments to look the picture in your folder.

Reflect on your picture in writing.

To be continued…

Debra ConejoLiteracy & Language Arts Specialist

LAUSD[see Conejo PowerPoint]

How do the Common Core (CCSS)

instructional shifts resonate with you?

Literacy Shifts

• Reading and writing that is grounded in text

• Complex tasks and academic vocabulary

• Building knowledge through non-fiction and informational texts [across all subjects]

What are texts?

What are the texts of the arts?

CCSS emphasizes SKILLS and PROCESSES

that can be carried across all subjects and areas of learning.

skills and processes

the arts

lang. arts

mathsocial

sciences

sciences

technologyengineering

history

meaningful work

life

Visual and media literacy apply to other content areas

and contexts: they are portable skill sets

Inquiry is a key teaching method through which

to support rigorous, evidence-based learning.

How can arts educators lead the push to teach in new,

21st century, meaningful ways?

What is creativity?

Observing details DescribingElaboratingSynthesizingResisting closure EvaluatingReflectingThinking flexiblyThinking independently Being originalExperimentingThinking divergentlyImagingAbstractingRecognizing patternsForming patternsAnalogizingBody thinkingEmpathizingThinking dimensionallyModelingPlayingTransformingThinking metacognitively

Collaborating Communicating: writing, articulating, listeningSelf-regulating PerseveringFocusingFinding satisfaction in learningSelf-organizing

What is critical thinking?

Observing details DescribingElaboratingSynthesizingResisting closure EvaluatingReflectingThinking flexiblyThinking independently Being originalExperimentingThinking divergentlyImagingAbstractingRecognizing patternsForming patternsAnalogizingBody thinkingEmpathizingThinking dimensionallyModelingPlayingTransformingThinking metacognitively

Staying open to new ideasDiscerningAnalyzingCombining divergent conceptsSynthesizingThinking flexiblyVisioningReflectingQuestioning assumptionsAssessing veracity of claimsUsing relevant evidence to support points of viewUnderstanding other perspectives and culturesSelf-directingPersisting

Collaborating Communicating: writing, articulating, listeningSelf-regulating PerseveringFocusingFinding satisfaction in learningSelf-organizing

Observing details DescribingElaboratingSynthesizingResisting closure EvaluatingReflectingThinking flexiblyThinking independently Being originalExperimentingThinking divergentlyImagingAbstractingRecognizing patternsForming patternsAnalogizingBody thinkingEmpathizingThinking dimensionallyModelingPlayingTransformingThinking metacognitively

Staying open to new ideasDiscerningAnalyzingCombining divergent conceptsSynthesizingThinking flexiblyVisioningReflectingQuestioning assumptionsAssessing veracity of claimsUsing relevant evidence to support points of viewUnderstanding other perspectives and culturesSelf-directingPersisting

Collaborating Communicating: writing, articulating, listeningSelf-regulating PerseveringFocusingFinding satisfaction in learningSelf-organizing

Observing details DescribingElaboratingSynthesizingResisting closure EvaluatingReflectingThinking flexiblyThinking independently Being originalExperimentingThinking divergentlyImagingAbstractingRecognizing patternsForming patternsAnalogizingBody thinkingEmpathizingThinking dimensionallyModelingPlayingTransformingThinking metacognitively

Staying open to new ideasDiscerningAnalyzingCombining divergent conceptsSynthesizingThinking flexiblyVisioningReflectingQuestioning assumptionsAssessing veracity of claimsUsing relevant evidence to support points of viewUnderstanding other perspectives and culturesSelf-directing Persisting

Collaborating Communicating: writing, articulating, listeningSelf-regulating PerseveringFocusingFinding satisfaction in learningSelf-organizing

21st century skills

Observing details DescribingElaboratingSynthesizingResisting closure EvaluatingReflectingThinking flexiblyThinking independently Being originalExperimentingThinking divergentlyImagingAbstractingRecognizing patternsForming patternsAnalogizingBody thinkingEmpathizingThinking dimensionallyModelingPlayingTransformingThinking metacognitively

Staying open to new ideasDiscerningAnalyzingCombining divergent conceptsSynthesizingThinking flexiblyVisioningReflectingQuestioning assumptionsAssessing veracity of claimsUsing relevant evidence to support points of viewUnderstanding other perspectives and culturesSelf-directingPersisting

Collaborating Communicating: writing, articulating, listeningSelf-regulating PerseveringFocusingFinding satisfaction in learningSelf-organizing

Being creativeThinking criticallyInnovatingProblem solvingProblem findingThinking flexiblyCommunicatingCollaboratingAdaptingSelf-directingBeing accountableLeading

Observing details DescribingElaboratingSynthesizingResisting closure EvaluatingReflectingThinking flexiblyThinking independently Being originalExperimentingThinking divergentlyImagingAbstractingRecognizing patternsForming patternsAnalogizingBody thinkingEmpathizingThinking dimensionallyModelingPlayingTransformingThinking metacognitively

Staying open to new ideasDiscerningAnalyzingCombining divergent conceptsSynthesizingThinking flexiblyVisioningReflectingQuestioning assumptionsAssessing veracity of claimsUsing relevant evidence to support points of viewUnderstanding other perspectives and culturesSelf-directingPersisting

Collaborating Communicating: writing, articulating, listeningSelf-regulating PerseveringFocusingFinding satisfaction in learningSelf-organizing

Being creativeThinking criticallyInnovatingProblem solvingProblem findingThinking flexiblyCommunicatingCollaboratingAdaptingSelf-directingBeing accountableLeading

Being creativeThinking criticallyInnovatingProblem solvingProblem findingThinking flexiblyCommunicatingCollaboratingAdaptingSelf-directingBeing accountableLeading

Observing details DescribingElaboratingSynthesizingResisting closure EvaluatingReflectingThinking flexiblyThinking independently Being originalExperimentingThinking divergentlyImagingAbstractingRecognizing patternsForming patternsAnalogizingBody thinkingEmpathizingThinking dimensionallyModelingPlayingTransformingThinking metacognitively

Staying open to new ideasDiscerningAnalyzingCombining divergent conceptsSynthesizingThinking flexiblyVisioningReflectingQuestioning assumptionsAssessing veracity of claimsUsing relevant evidence to support points of viewUnderstanding other perspectives and culturesSelf-directing Persisting

Collaborating Communicating: writing, articulating, listeningSelf-regulating PerseveringFocusingFinding satisfaction in learningSelf-organizing

21c

CreativityCritical Thinking

Experiments at MOCA

Being creativeThinking criticallyInnovatingProblem solvingProblem findingThinking flexiblyCommunicatingCollaboratingAdaptingSelf-directingBeing accountableLeading

Observing details DescribingElaboratingSynthesizingResisting closure EvaluatingReflectingThinking flexiblyThinking independently Being originalExperimentingThinking divergentlyImagingAbstractingRecognizing patternsForming patternsAnalogizingBody thinkingEmpathizingThinking dimensionallyModelingPlayingTransformingThinking metacognitively

Staying open to new ideasDiscerningAnalyzingCombining divergent conceptsSynthesizingThinking flexiblyVisioningReflectingQuestioning assumptionsAssessing veracity of claimsUsing relevant evidence to support points of viewUnderstanding other perspectives and culturesSelf-directing Persisting

Collaborating Communicating: writing, articulating, listeningSelf-regulating PerseveringFocusingFinding satisfaction in learningSelf-organizing

21c

CreativityCritical Thinking

MOCA + LAUSDCreativity Labs

Key findings

• There isn’t one, fixed definition of creativity.

• Structures for supporting and assessing creative thinking have to be extremely well planned.

Key findings

Outcomes(What would you like your students to take away from this activity?)

Activity How does the activity help them learn this?

Steps

How will you assess what students have learned?

• Technical instruction still largely dominates arts instruction and lesson design.

Key findings

• Measurable qualities need to be identified very specifically.

Key findings

• Sometimes art teachers aren’t that creative.

Key findings

The arts embrace living experience and can breathe life into standards and education more generally.

Continuing work of Creativity Labs

• Pilot group participants are training 85 elementary arts teachers during 2011-12.

• Lessons learned are driving further assessment research at MOCA + LAUSD Arts Ed Branch.

Next steps?

• More cross-institutional partnering for professional development.

• Bring more people into the conversation about the relevancy of arts pedagogy to Common Core instruction.

Next steps

• Who continues the work?

• How do we keep the collaboration meaningful?

• Has your definition of creativity changed since you walked into this auditorium?

Questions

Your exit ticket

What outcomes can we work toward together?

Luiz Sampaioluiz.sampaio@lausd.net

Jeanne Hoeljhoel@moca.org