creativity

Creativity, or being creative, is the ability to generate, articulate or apply inventive ideas, techniques and perspectives (Ferrari, 2009), often in a collaborative environment (Lucas and Hanson, 2016). In conjunction with critical thinking and problem-solving skills, to which it closely relates, creativity is a major component of purposeful thinking, i.e., a non-chaotic, orderly and organized thought process. Further, being creative is to a large extent connected to the learners’ cognitive abilities, including their analytic and evaluative skills (Sternberg, 2006). Ideational thought processes are fundamental to creative persons (Kozbelt et al., 2010), but creativity also intersects with social and personal management skills. Therefore, creativity, while also related to the arts, is a pre-condition to innovation and adaptive behaviours and solutions in all life settings, among them in learning settings and in the workplace (Partnership for 21st Century Learning, 2015). Creativity is linked to the effectiveness of other life skills, in particular critical thinking, problem identification (Sternberg, 2010), problem-solving (Torrance, 1977) and self-management.