NETS-T Standard 1: Creativity

The first of the NETS-T standards is Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity. In order to fulfill this standard teachers must use their content knowledge, pedagogy knowledge, as well as their knowledge of technology to promote and assist student learning and creativity. Students have the opportunity to utilize their creativity using modern technology in order to challenge real-life occurrences. Students will work in collaboration with their peers to develop a well-organized, well-understood creation.

I feel strongly about this standard in particular, because I believe that it is very important to give students the opportunity as well as the responsibility to both collaborate with their peers as well as explore their own creativity. I believe that classes that I have taken in the past have given me the tools and resources to properly demonstrate examples of creative ideas utilizing technology to my students, and to help them in their journey of creativity and innovation. My strengths lie in my sport-related content knowledge as well as my pedagogical knowledge in collaboration with my limited knowledge of technology.

I came across an awesome article entitled Grow Creativity, by Candace Shively. In the article Shively lists what she calls the four dimensions used to describe creativity: fluency, flexibility, originality, and elaboration. She thoroughly describes each of the four dimensions and gives detailed examples as to how teachers can implement each of these concepts into their curriculum for a variety of subject areas. I highly recommend this article to any educator who is interested in facilitating and encouraging creativity among their students. 

Another eye-opening article that I stumbled upon, is an article entitled Fostering Creativity and Innovation through Technology, by Sheena Vaidyanathan. The author discuses art and creativity; she states that digital art is the way of the future. She explained that her students typically begin an assignment by attempting to copy the example that she provided them with, but eventually they start to put their own creative spin on things. She believes that children love computers as their canvases, because they have an infinite supply of paper, and they can easily correct their mistakes. She says, that for them, knowing anything can be fixed, gives them the reassurance that need to feel as though they can truly try to create anything. I think schools should offer more classes like her class to help students discover their creativity, well…their digital creativity. 

Shively, C. H. (2011). Grow creativity!. Learning and Leading with Technology, 10-15.

Vaidyanathan, S. (2012). Fostering creativity and innovation through technology. Learning and Leading with Technology, 24-27.