Sowing the seeds for a more creative society

These are the main ideas from the presentation of Dr. Mitchel Resnick at the University of Costa Rica (Feb. 2008)

• "There is a growing gap between what is needed to be successful in today's society and the way we are preparing our children for life in that society.
• Kindergarten Learning Approach: "We need to make the rest of school (indeed, the rest of life) more like kindergarten. 
• Schools were not designed to help students develop as creative thinkers.
• The traditional kindergarten approach to learning is well-matched to the needs of the current society, and should be extended to all learners.
• For today's children, nothing is more important than learning to think creatively-learning to come up with innovative solutions to the unexpected situations that will continually arise in their live.
• The goal is not to nurture the next Mozart or Einstein, but to help everyone become more creative in the ways they deal with everyday problems.
• Children with different learning interests and different learning styles can all use the same materials (finger paint, wooden blocks, dramatic play puppets), but each in his or her own personal way.
• I believe that digital technologies, if properly designed and supported, can extend the kindergarten learning approach, so that learners of all ages can continue to learn in the kindergarten style-and, in the process, continue to develop as creative thinkers."