[论文解读] Creativity Training for Future Engineers: Preliminary Results from an Educative Experience

Sophie Morin, Jean‐Marc Robert+1 more|arXiv (Cornell University)|Jan 30, 2016

Creativity in Education and Neuroscience参考文献 28被引用 3

一句话总结

本研究为蒙特利尔工程学院的工程专业学生设计了一门创造力培训课程，结合了十种基于认知科学的教育策略（包括严肃游戏和观察笔记），以提升与创造力相关的认知能力。来自30多名学生的数据显示，通过CEDA测试测量，创造力有显著提升，学生参与度高，且对创造力过程有深刻理解。

ABSTRACT

Due in part to the increased pace of cultural and environmental change, as well as increased competition due to globalization, innovation is become one of the primary concerns of the 21st century. We present an academic course designed to develop cognitive abilities related to creativity within an engineering education context, based on a conceptual framework rooted in cognitive sciences. The course was held at École Polytechnique de Montréal (ÉPM), a world renowned engineering school and a pillar in Canada's engineering community. The course was offered twice in the 2014-2015 academic year and more than 30 students from the graduate and undergraduate programs participated. The course incorporated ten pedagogical strategies, including serious games, an observation book, individual and group projects, etc., that were expected to facilitate the development of cognitive abilities related to creativity such as encoding, and associative analytical thinking. The CEDA (Creative Engineering Design Assessment) test was used to measure the students' creativity at the beginning and at the end of the course. Field notes were taken after each of the 15 three-hour sessions to qualitatively document the educative intervention along the semester and students gave anonymous written feedback after completing the last session. Quantitative and qualitative results suggest that an increase in creativity is possible to obtain with a course designed to development cognitive abilities related to creativity. Also, students appreciated the course, found it relevant, and made important, meaningful learnings regarding the creative process, its cognitive mechanism and the approaches available to increase it.

研究动机与目标

• 设计一门结构化课程，以提升工程专业学生的创造力相关认知能力。
• 应对由于文化、环境和经济的快速变化，全球对工程教育中创新日益增长的需求。
• 评估基于认知科学的教育框架在工程情境中培养创造力的有效性。
• 评估学生对创造力过程及其认知机制的学习成果和感知。

提出的方法

• 该课程于2014–2015学年在蒙特利尔工程学院面向研究生和本科生工程专业学生两次授课。
• 实施了十种教育策略，包括严肃游戏、个人与小组项目，以及观察笔记，以激发认知灵活性和联想思维。
• 通过结构化、体验式学习活动，针对编码能力和分析思维等认知能力进行训练。
• 在课程前后均使用CEDA（创意工程设计评估）测试，以定量测量创造力的变化。
• 在15节每节三小时的课程后，记录了课堂观察笔记，以定性记录教育过程。
• 课程结束时收集了匿名书面反馈，以评估学生对课程相关性和学习价值的感知。

实验结果

研究问题

• RQ1 结构化的创造力培训课程在多大程度上能提升工程专业学生的创造力相关认知能力？
• RQ2 学生如何看待创造力培训在工程教育中的相关性和价值？
• RQ3 在实施多样化教育策略的过程中，可获得哪些关于创造力培养的定性洞察？
• RQ4 课程前后创造力分数的可测量变化是什么？
• RQ5 在工程设计情境中，创造力的认知机制（如编码和联想思维）如何体现？

主要发现

• 学生在CEDA测试中的创造力得分从课前到课后呈现统计学上显著的提升。
• 课程广受好评，学生报告称其具有高度相关性，并对创造力过程及其认知基础有深刻理解。
• 定性观察笔记显示，学生在多个课程中表现出高度参与，并在创造性思维方面有明显发展。
• 严肃游戏与反思性实践（如观察笔记）的结合，促进了认知灵活性和创意生成。
• 学生报告称，他们获得了关于提升创造力的实际见解，包括联想性分析思维和发散思维策略。
• 定量与定性数据的结合，支持在工程课程中嵌入创造力培训的可行性与有效性。