Creative thinking is a key focus in twenty-first century higher education, yet engineering students are often seen as lacking creativity due to traditional training approaches. To address this issue, this study examines the effectiveness of project-based learning (PBL) integrated with Scamper--a creative thinking tool--and Trello--a project…

Industry and authors of 21st Century Skill Frameworks are calling for student proficiency in creativity, problem-solving, innovation, collaboration, and communication skills. This project involved 13 fifth grade gifted students in inventing products for a specified audience with a set of given materials, time limit, and topic constraints. The…

People tend to think that inventions must be complex and sophisticated. Yet, some of the most useful inventions have been simple, or elegant, like Velcro, zippers, and Post-it[R] notes. Kitchen utensil drawers are filled with all sorts of great inventions, and in this article, the author discusses a challenge that allows students to develop their…