Decisions, decisions.

Decision Making and its role in students’ creativity, learning, motivation and autonomy.

Baird and Mitchell (1986) observed that inadequate learning is due to inadequate decision making and that learning outcomes are determined by decisions made by the learner. The learner’s decision to have a positive attitude towards their learning determines if the student learns with understanding. Misconceptions are difficult to unlearn. When the intellectual control of the learning event is shared with the student, decisions can be made with plenty opportunities for choice and independent decision making (Merrotsy, 2017).

Creative thinking may begin with the student’s decision regarding how they will express their creativity. Sternberg’s propulsion theory of creative contributions (Sternberg, 1999) proposed that creativity is a propulsion of ideas. How the ideas are propelled depends on the creator’s decision-making process. The output may depend on decisions about creative contributions – the student may choose to replicate existing artwork, follow directions or exercise divergent thinking and create unique artwork.

How artwork is envisioned and enacted relies on a series of decisions. Preparation and planning are intertwined with the initial ideas. These ideas may change as part of the decision-making process as as the artwork evolves.

Investment theory explores the idea that a creative individual persists with their ideas in the face of resistance. The important factor is the decision: ‘Creativity, according to the investment theory, is in the large part a decision. The view of creativity as a decision suggests that creativity can be developed. Simply requesting that students be more creative can render them more creative if they believe that the decision to be creative will be rewarded rather than punished’ (Sternberg, p.90)

Which leads to the connection between decision making and motivation. If one believes in one’s ideas firmly, the intrinsic motivation is present to see the inherent value in the ideas, which leads to the decision to proceed with the project. To be creative, one must first decide to generate new ideas. Once the decision has been made to follow one’s ideas into fruition, autonomy is born. A sense of self is divested into the artwork.

In relation to decision making as a teacher of Art, I take great encouragement from the words of Sternberg:

‘I have proposed a number of different decisions by which one can develop one’s own creativity as a decision (Sternberg, 2001): (a) redefine problems, (b) question and analyze assumptions, (c) do not assume that creative ideas sell themselves, (d) encourage the generation of ideas, (e) recognize that knowledge can both help and hinder creativity, (f) identify and surmount obstacles, (g) take sensible risks, (h) tolerate ambiguity, (i) believe in oneself (self-efficacy), (j) find what one loves to do, (k) delay gratification, (l) role-model creativity, (m) cross-fertilize ideas, (n) reward creativity, (o) allow mistakes, (p) encourage collaboration, (q) see things from others’ points of view, (r) take responsibility for successes and failures, (s) maximize person–environment fit, (t) continue to allow intellectual growth.’ (p. 91).

References:

Baird, J. R. & Mitchell, I. J. (1986). Improving the quality of teaching and learning. Melbourne, Australia: PEEL Publishing.

Merrotsy, P. (2017). Pedagogy for Creative Problem Solving, Routledge, New York, NY.

Sternberg, R. J. (2006). The Nature of Creativity, Creativity Research Journal, 18:1, 87-98, DOI: 10.1207/s15326934crj1801_10 To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1207/s15326934crj1801_10