TeachIngenuity.com » » inventors « TeachIngenuity.com http://www.teachingenuity.com Developing the power of creative imagination in young people Sun, 15 Mar 2020 22:56:24 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.2.38 Understanding the “Designed World” http://www.teachingenuity.com/2011/10/22/understanding-the-designed-world/ http://www.teachingenuity.com/2011/10/22/understanding-the-designed-world/#comments Sat, 22 Oct 2011 14:53:47 +0000 http://www.teachingenuity.com/2011/10/22/understanding-the-designed-world/ A young person’s ingenuity starts with a basic understanding that the “designed world,” comprised of the human designed and made products that fill our lives, does not appear magically. They are designed and made with a specific purpose in mind, to meet some specific human desire or need. In the case of commercial and industrial [...]]]> A young person’s ingenuity starts with a basic understanding that the “designed world,” comprised of the human designed and made products that fill our lives, does not appear magically. They are designed and made with a specific purpose in mind, to meet some specific human desire or need. In the case of commercial and industrial products, they are thoughtfully and thoroughly researched, analyzed, and optimized by engineers, designers, manufacturers, an others. What you see that you might otherwise take for granted is the result of oftentimes thousands of hours of time on task in research and development.

Young people need to know that technology is not magic. They need to begin to appreciate the designed world beginning at a very young age. This is not only for the future engineers among us. This core appreciation and understanding will help all people be informed consumers and creators of new technologies.

How do you begin to build this understanding? Have young children take things apart and explore their inner workings. Before you toss that broken Wii remote in the garbage, help a young person carefully and safely explore its insides.

Ask them questions about the toys and games that fill their lives. Where do you think that board game was made? Who do you think invented it? What is it made of? Was it made in a factory?

Asking questions and encouraging inquiry and hands-on activity at a young age will begin to develop the kind of lifelong learning and abilities that will ensure the future success of young individuals and our society. And, in some cases, it will lead to the next great inventors, engineers, entrepreneurs, and designers.

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]]> http://www.teachingenuity.com/2011/10/22/understanding-the-designed-world/feed/ 0 The Ingenuity Series: Q&A with Richard Worzel http://www.teachingenuity.com/2011/06/12/the-ingenuity-series-qa-with-richard-worzel/ http://www.teachingenuity.com/2011/06/12/the-ingenuity-series-qa-with-richard-worzel/#comments Sun, 12 Jun 2011 20:25:13 +0000 http://www.teachingenuity.com/?p=114 Last week, I posed a question to author and leading futurist Richard Worzel in a Facebook Q&A session sponsored by Canada’s The Mark News. Below is the excerpt from the conversation.

Janosz: What and how do we need to teach our young people to best prepare them for the future?

Worzel: Well, I can tell [...]]]> Last week, I posed a question to author and leading futurist Richard Worzel in a Facebook Q&A session sponsored by Canada’s The Mark News.  Below is the excerpt from the conversation.

Janosz: What and how do we need to teach our young people to best prepare them for the future?

Worzel: Well, I can tell you what they don’t need: they don’t need to be force-fed facts to memorize and regurgitate on a test, only to have them forgotten quickly thereafter. Yet this is what our education system specializes in today, even though kids can do it faster and more effectively online. Yet, there are things they need to know so they can research and assemble knowledge systematically, and that’s what we need to point towards.

Yet, what parents often mean when they ask this question is “What path can I set my child on that will guarantee their employment, financial security, and welfare until they retire?” The answer to this question is: there ain’t no such animal. But your question is still worthwhile, and is not being asked very seriously by our education system, specifically by the various ministries and departments of education.

Today’s education system should teach two things, both difficult: it should teach mental skills, such as critical thinking, creativity, research, and the ability to apprehend new areas of knowledge quickly; and secondly, it needs to teach context or understanding, also known as wisdom. This is hard.

How would I go about it? I’ve discussed that at great length in various columns I’ve written over the past 15 years in “Teach” magazine. I was going to provide a link to a relevant column, but something has just fowled up my website server. If you come back a little later, hopefully I’ll be able to point you to such an article. Sorry about that.

In summary, though, what learners need is to have their interest piqued, and their talents, interests and skills identified, and then put on a path to pursue those interests AS A MEANS OF educating them in the broader fields of knowledge. If we can capture a learner’s interest, then we won’t have to force them to go to school, they’ll drag us behind them because they will be so eager to learn. As it is, we force them through 12-13 years of servitude and boredom, killing much of their native curiosity.

Worzel continues: OK, my website server is back up, so here are some links:

http://www.futuresearch.com/futureblog/2010/09/14/follow-the-red-brick-road/

http://www.futuresearch.com/futureblog/2010/09/01/why-education-must-change/

There are more, but this is a start.

Janosz: To The Ingenuity Series: Thank you for the opportunity to ask the question. To Mr. Worzel: Thank you for the thoughtful response!

May I repost the comments up to my blog at TeachIngenuity.com along with a link to this discussion?

Some additional thoughts…
Interesting that you point to creativity as one of the desirable personal qualities to be garnered by way of their formal education. I’ve reflected on this term a great deal over my career and now favor the use of the term ingenuity, hence the name of my blog. I find that creativity is inherent in ingenuity, but that ingenuity is what we really want to develop because it evokes the APPLICATION of one’s creativity. The way I see it, a person’s ingenuity, a personal quality, is key to any uncertainty of their future lives and careers.

Worzel: First, go ahead and repost the comments on your blog, and thanks for the interest.

Second, no argument from me on ingenuity as a critical issue. I believe all related techniques are desirable, and teachable as well. We’ve been raised to believe that only “artists” are creative, and only “inventors” are ingenious, yet I believe everyone has these qualities. They can be trained and practised, just like any other mental muscle.

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