Students’ Innovative Thinking and Their Perceptions About the Ideal Learning Environment

Abstract

The goal of this study was twofold: to examine how undergraduate students’ perceive themselves as innovative thinkers and to examine the way they express innovative ideas when asked to illustrate the ideal learning environment. The research was conducted among undergraduate students in two higher education institutes (N = 202). The ‘mixed methods research’ model was employed in the analysis and interpretation of data that was collected by two research tools: the Innovative Thinking survey and the Reflective Drawings analysis. Findings indicated that most students perceived their innovative thinking as average. Two groups of students expressed the highest inclination to be innovative: young students and experts in ICTs, suggesting that innovative thinkers are most likely to become experts in the use of advanced technologies. The analysis of students’ drawings of the ‘ideal learning environment’, indicated that only few illustrated innovative scenarios. Findings showed that although most of the students made a shift from desktops to mobile computers, their drawings did not reflect the added value of ubiquity learning. This finding indicates that most of the students still adhere to traditional learning environments, and are not able to imagine learning in any other way.