Tweaking the Brain： Bringing the Creative Arts to the Conversation Class

Abstract

Modern research in the functioning of the human brain suggests that learning takes place when the individual is stimulated and challenged. Scientific studies suggest that the young mind is enriched through a variety of avenues such as reading, discussion, problem solving, physical activity and artistic creation. Educators familiar with these findings suggest that teachers should strive for variety in their classrooms, with a healthy emphasis upon activities that enable students to set the pace of their own learning through endeavors such as projects and presentations. If the research is so compelling, and the suggestions so relatively simple, why do so many instructors hesitate to take advantage of new and highly imaginative ways of teaching? Why do many of us continue to shy away from more imaginative ways of teaching/learning? Quite possibly, we fear that to branch out into new methods will result in those very things we fear: messiness, confusion and a loss of control. As this article demonstrates, these are unnecessary anxieties. Creativity in the classroom can still be encouraged within clearly defined formats. This paper demonstrates how the author achieved this by designing an assignment that encourages student creativity but nevertheless sets limits in the form of elaborated expectations.