Symphony through Collaboration
Lisa Bloom and Sharon Dole
Summary: As we encounter political, educational, economic issues, global warming,
energy crises, war and terrorism, we hope that our graduates who inherit these
problems will be well equipped with the kinds of brain power that will bring a
brighter future. Additionally, technology and the way we do business continue to
change at a rapid pace. Creativity, innovation and problem solving are certainly in
high demand for solving world problems and competing in the job market. However,
with the heavy emphasis on high stakes assessment and increasing
commercialization of teaching practices in the public schools, little room is left in
the public school curriculum for nurturing and enhancing creativity and
innovation. We may be creating a generation of fact absorbers rather than problem
solvers and innovators. It is incumbent on higher education to fill in the gaps.
Jobs in the American economy that have traditionally utilized American middle class
workers use skills that are routine and require little creative thinking. Like the
problems on standardized tests, middle class jobs have typically involved known
solutions and standard procedures to complete the work. Hence, American
workers are easily replaced by automated devices and/or individuals in other
countries who are willing to perform routine jobs for much lower wages.
The kind of problem solving that will bring us closer to world peace, confront our
societal and global problems and help our graduates be competitive in the job
market will require symphony which, according to Pink (2006) is one of the
important activities of the creative mind. Symphony involves seeing relationships,
connecting the dots and using newly integrated information for creating new ideas
and solutions. College graduates will be required to do work where answers and
procedures are fluid and ambiguous and where innovation, creativity and
symphony will be highly sought. Pedagogies that engage students in collaborative
inquiry and problem and project based learning can help our graduates develop this
kind of thinking.