How can we re-imagine today's educational system to employ creative thinking and problem solving to further students' cognitive development?

1. NO RIGHT BRAIN
LEFT BEHIND
Injecting creativity into the US educational machine
A submission by: @JBatistaa - @ericmayille - @jsamps - @DemianRepucci - @sarfoodie

2. TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. The Current System
2. Aiming for Change
3. Right Now
4. It’s your Tomorrow

3. 1. THE CURRENT SYSTEM
Memorization, standardized testing and stifled creativity

4. THE CURRENT SYSTEM
Memorization, standardized testing and stifled creativity
School Today
The current system focuses on methods that
rely on memorization and standardized
test scores

5. THE CURRENT SYSTEM
Memorization, standardized testing and stifled creativity
Acceptable not Exceptional
In keeping up with trivial testing standards,
we’ve diminished creativity in schools

6. THE CURRENT SYSTEM
Memorization, standardized testing and stifled creativity
Wait, what?
This has directly resulted in producing students
that lack creative and critical thinking

7. 2. AIMING FOR CHANGE
Identifying opportunities for immediate action within the constraints of the modern
eduction system

8. AIMING FOR CHANGE
Tenets to leverage when creating solutions for change
Computing
Fuel engagement with platforms and products digital natives are familiar with
Community
Partner with local community leaders to identify key issues and leverage local
resources
Collaboration
Harness collective involvement by students, teachers and community leaders to build
consensus and work toward a common goal

9. COMPUTING
Fuel engagement with platforms and products digital natives are familiar with
Today’s Technology
Take advantage of the dynamic and
iterative nature of technology – leverage
ubiquitous computing and real-time
interactions

10. COMMUNITY
Partner with local community leaders to identify key issues and leverage local
resources
Think Local
Leverage community leaders to identify problems
and opportunities within local communities

11. COLLABORATION
Harness collective involvement by students, teachers and community leaders to build
consensus and work toward a common goal
Mutual Localization
Activate students, teachers, educators, and
local leaders to value cooperative
ventures and shift cultural norms to
focus on collectivism

12. 3. RIGHT NOW
Create a platform that aims to solve community problems that have yet to be answered

13. RIGHT NOW
Create a platform that aims to solve community problems that have yet to be answered
The Initiative
Present students with a challenge to solve a local community issue
The Platform
A digital product that facilitates connections amongst students, faculty and local
community leaders
The Result
Students are pushed to think creatively and produce real ideas that can be
implemented immediately

14. THE INITIATIVE
Present students with a challenge to solve a local community issue
Step One
Example issue:
Community
leaders “Current after-school
activities have low
identify key
attendance – leaving
local issues that many students home
need solutions alone for hours before
parents return from
work.”

15. THE INITIATIVE
Present students with a challenge to solve a local community issue
Step Two
Example brief statement:
Faculty reviews
“Create an after school
issues, selects one program that you
challenge and would enjoy taking part
creates a brief for in...”
students Also...
Brief would also include budgets,
restrictions, guides, etc.

16. THE INITIATIVE
Present students with a challenge to solve a local community issue
Step Three
Faculty break the Students collaborate
Students are briefed
students into small in school several
on the challenge
groups times a week

17. THE INITIATIVE
Present students with a challenge to solve a local community issue
Step Three
Faculty break the Students collaborate
Students are briefed
students into small in school several
on the challenge
groups times a week

18. THE INITIATIVE
Present students with a challenge to solve a local community issue
Step Three
Faculty break the Students collaborate
Students are briefed
students into small in school several
on the challenge
groups times a week

19. THE INITIATIVE
Present students with a challenge to solve a local community issue
Step Four
Winning plan is
Students present Faculty and
implemented by
plan to faculty and community leaders
entire participating
community leaders select a winner
student body

20. THE INITIATIVE
Present students with a challenge to solve a local community issue
Step Four
Winning plan is
Students present Faculty and
implemented by
plan to faculty and community leaders
entire participating
community leaders select a winner
student body

21. THE INITIATIVE
Present students with a challenge to solve a local community issue
Step Four
Winning plan is
Students present Faculty and
implemented by
plan to faculty and community leaders
entire participating
community leaders select a winner
student body

22. THE PLATFORM
A digital product that facilitates connections amongst students, faculty and local
community leaders
Local issues
Web / Mobile Application
Faculty review
IDEA FOR
Brief creation
IMPLEMENTATION
Brief distribution
Student
collaboration
Secondary Presence

23. THE RESULTS
Students are pushed to think creatively and produce real ideas that can be
implemented immediately
Text book learning Spark creative thinking

24. 4. IT’S YOUR THEIR TOMORROW
It’s not about scaling a program, it’s about scaling the people

25. 4. IT’S YOUR THEIR TOMORROW
It’s not about scaling a program, it’s about scaling the people
Shifting the Classroom Paradigm
By challenging students to create a solution
that doesn’t exist we are encouraging them to
think and ideate in ways that textbook
learning could never do

26. 4. IT’S YOUR THEIR TOMORROW
It’s not about scaling a program, it’s about scaling the people
Foster Growth
Instill an entrepreneurial spirit early to
encourage the development of our future’s
business, political and educational leaders

27. 4. IT’S YOUR THEIR TOMORROW
It’s not about scaling a program, it’s about scaling the people
Defining the Future
The job of tomorrow is the one that you create
for yourself

28. IT’S EVERYTHING
Let’s turn this thing around...