Teach for America? Can they bring that Creativity We Need?

Something new that I came across when I went home was Teach for America. I discovered this because I was wondering why they were so many new really young teachers at my old public high school. One of my former teachers told me that allot of teachers from this program are teaching in deficient poor parts of the state since we are really short on teachers. They are people ranging from those who have just finished undergrad and have bachelor's degree to older more experienced people. When they finish the program, they have a really good chance of getting into some of the top graduate schools. They are paid during the program in order to pay off any loans and things they received during their undergraduate year. I was wondering does teach for america bring the creativity we need in our education system. Most of the teachers are very young and inexperienced, but get the hang of it after their second year of  teaching. Teach for america has a very high success rate, and I was wondering, is the high success rate due to an introduction of creativity, intrinsic motivation, or what?

Is it due to the creativity they bring or is it the intrinsic motivation they inspire in their students. I will speak more on this once I really figure it out. What do you think?

Now You See It Now You Don't

I didn't realize until I took this class the creativity that was absent in the first two years of my high school experience and that was present in the last two years of high school. I never realized how unique the MSMS (Mississippi School of Mathematics and Science) was from normal public high schools. In my public high school, I wasn't really challenged think differently or even think at all. All I had to do was listen and class and put those answers on the test, voila!, you have an A. They really didn't want us to think outside the box,but rather know these facts. We were constantly pressured by the superintendent and our teachers to score high on the state tests so we could become a level 4 or 5 school and receive money from the state. We lived for those state tests, and as long as we remembered the information our teachers taught us, we would pass those tests.

It wasn't until I got to MSMS that i realized all that I was missing. They did not place a big emphasis on the state test that was left to take, the U.S. History test, at MSMS. In fact, it was not even brought up until two weeks before then, but the teachers didn't really care what our score would be, just that we would pass it or not in order to graduate. Also, in the classrooms, they would not directly give us the answer in our classes. We would discuss it with each other before our teacher would tell us if we were right or wrong, and even then they wouldn't say right or wrong because they were no wrong answer, but would try to get us to realize the point he or she were trying to make. It was our job to come up with the answers and we would have to back why we felt that way. I  was excited about all of my classes (except math), because they cared about what I thought. We were encouraged to ask why and see the meaning behind everything. There was one thing I always remembered from my U.S. History and Economics teacher. In order to arrive at the right answer, you have to see every side of th problem from different perspectives, the right and wrong one. If all classes are taught like this, I believe that the value and quality of American education would greatly increase.

Creativity in NIKE

In order to get people to buy  their products, many companies make advertisements and commercials to promote these items, and it seems that no one knows how to do it better than Nike. Nike takes creativity novel and usefulness to a whole new level. Every ad comes back to the same point, just do it. These next three ads will show you the ingenuity and thought Nike puts in to making sure their products sell.

In this commercial, Nike tries to relate their product to the people by showing us that failure is scary and that it can lead to a whole different situation.They show different soccer players, like Wayne Rooney, lives if they lose the game or if they win and score the winning shot. Nike is telling the watchers that we have the power to write our own future. We have the power to succeed or fail.This was one of the most creative commercials I have seen that shows you what your life could be like. It made me really want to buy the product and write my future.

This one was really creative to me! I have never seen a poster created that looks like it came through the side of the building. In this ad, Nike creates the optical illusion that the runner has ran through a complete building.

It is something new and very useful in order to get people to buy their product.

These ads were my absolute favorite and the most creative in actually getting women to buy nike products. These parts of women are the parts that women feel very insecure about because of the standards society set on the body of a woman. Now and days women are trying to be stick thin and need to be the same size as a model, but nike is saying, hey, this is normal. Be proud of  your parts athletes. They are normal and alright. By making women feel safe and secure they will buy the product. It is a very creative approach to advertising. These are pretty effective ads.

Get With the Flow

Mihaly's chapter about the the flow of creativity was very intriguing to me..He says one thing all creative people have in common is that they take pleasure in what they do.They don't do it for the money or for the fame, but genuinely love their job whether it is being an advertisement agent, a painter, writer, musician, or architect. I would have to agree with Mihaly If you don't love what you do, then how can you be creative. If you hated your job, you wouldn't try and come up with new ideas. Mihaly also elaborates on what is enjoyment, how do you know you are enjoying it? Mihaly noticed when talking with people who have been creative, that "it was clear from talking to them that what kept them motivated was the quality of experience they felt when they were relaxing" (110). Mihaly goes on to say, "this optimal experience is what I have called flow, because many of the respondents described the feeling when things were going well as an almost automatic, effortless, yet highly focused state of consciousness"(110). I have experienced this flow many times in my life. In track, while I stand at th starting line on the track, I am very nervous and scared. But, once the gun fires, my mind just goes in to state of total concentration. I have one goal in my and that is to win. I don't think that i;m going to lose, but only that I can win. Nothing else matters except crossing the finish line. This flow powers creativity.I believe that to be a creative person, you have to get with the flow sometimes. Only then, will creativity fully blossom.

Can Children Show Creativity?

Can children show creativity? Csikszentmihaly  says " Children cannot be creative, but all creative adults were once children". In a way, Mihaly is right, but I believe there are some untruths to this statement. Maybe children are just learning to be creative in "little c" ways not "big c" ways. The definition of creativity is original and useful. Csikszentmihalyi says "Children can show tremendous talent, but they cannot be creative because creativity involves changing a way of doing things, or a way of thinking, and that in turn requires having mastered the old ways of doing or thinking" (155). Children may not be capable of "big c" creativity,changing society or the world,but they are more than capable of "little c" creativity. Saying children cannot be creative at all is an understatement. The little has the potential to become big one day.

Michelle's Creativity

Well... when i first started this class, my definition of creativity was TOTALLY different from that of Sawyer's book, Explaining Creativity.I always thought of creativity as something that is innate within everyone. Some people are able to communicate their creativity better than others. Everyone has the potential to be creative, but not everyone uses or knows how to use that potential. Creativity to me was thinking outside the box, coming up with an idea that's unique, original. An idea that is different from another's.


However, after taking this class,I have begun to form a new definition for creativity. To be creative something has to not only be original or novel, but is also has to be useful or acceptable. When you talk about creativity, there are two types you are talking about. "Big c" is solutions to difficult problems or significant works of genius, whereas you have "little C" which is creativity in activities you do every day.I also do believe though, that creativity cannot be defined and that is one of the greatest things about creativity. It cannot be  ENTIRELY defined.