This article highlights studies conducted before 1950 that attempted to provide insights into varying aspects of human ability such as genius and giftedness. Particular attention is given to a 1767 publication on the qualities of original genius written by William Duff and the relevance of Duff's thoughts to the current examination of creativity.…

This study compared the performance of 112 ninth-grade students on two parallel divergent thinking tests: The Verbal Forms of the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking (a domain independent measure) and the Creativity in History Test (a content specific measure). Results indicated that both content-specific and task-specific factors have significant…

The purpose of the conference presentation upon which this paper is inspired was to present an innovative approach to motivate students to write in a second language during a first-year Spanish class. Usually, students comply with writing exercises that convey basic thoughts, due to constrained vocabulary and limited knowledge of grammatical…

As Web 2.0 tools and technologies increase in popularity in consumer markets, enterprises are seeking ways to take advantage of the rich social knowledge exchanges that these tools offer. The problem this study addresses is that it remains unknown whether employees perceive that these tools offer value to the organization and therefore will be…

The author has written this latest volume to help parents and educators understand children's cognitive development and provide suggestions on how to nurture children to their full potential. A companion to "The Adolescent Brain", this rich resource: (1) Examines the neurobiology of childhood, explaining the body/brain systems that develop during…

This article argues that Vygotsky's analysis of children's play and of the ways it can serve as a powerful matrix for learning and development has two important implications that are not always fully appreciated. First, children's social pretend play can promote development both in the domains of cognition and language "and" in…

The technological complexity and richness of a child's environment today is far beyond what any adults today experienced when they were growing up. For example, no adult today knows what it is like to be a four-year-old using his or her first iPhone app or Webkinz account. Therefore, we seek ways to understand what children need in today's new…

Significant efforts have now been made to identify the generic competencies required to succeed across different workplace contexts. The aims of this paper were to: (i) outline factors that contributed to the increased demand for generic competencies seen over the last three decades; and (ii) review the early generic competency frameworks…

Since independent study groups can be important in providing spaces for students in creative disciplines to develop a critically reflexive approach to their creative practice, tutors in an Australian university introduced independent group learning to students studying in creative disciplines. However, student responses to the experience of…

Teaching and the student experience are interlocked. This paper takes a personal look at the pleasures and pressures of teaching in contemporary higher education. In doing so it adds to the definition of teachers' work in higher education, surveys some of the creative and positive sides of University teaching and shines a light upon the impact of…

As long as there have been public schools, there have been reformers of public schools. All too often, they have insisted on sweeping changes; enamored of their bold, new idea, they haven't considered whether anything established ought to endure. The result? A century of faddish ideas, but little real progress. Among today's most vocal reformers…

Creativity is increasingly understood as a social phenomenon, especially in organizational contexts. This article offers a conceptual framework for social creativity that integrates perspectives from published literature. The foundational questions that structured the literature review are twofold. First, because both individuals and entities,…

In principle, education depends upon the understanding of human beings. Ecological studies can give us opportunities to understand humans more clearly (or scientifically). This truth emphasizes the importance of ecological education. In ecology, a human being is a part of nature. This is because all living beings are members of ecological…

The Mini Rat (Remote Associates Test) was developed in response to the need for creativity measures with which one could study the consequences of elementary school teaching on the students' creative potential. It is an associative measure with 20 items in which children are asked to give verbal responses to word doublets in the form of third…

The author proposes a four-step plan for identifying and facilitating creative potential in children. (SBH)