DOUBLE TEXT READING INTO WRITING ACTIVITY
TEXT 1
CREATIVITY IS COLLECTIVE
Digital copy: CREATIVE COMMUNITIES ARE KEY TO INNOVATION
“More than an expression of individuality, creativity takes shape in a
social context”
By: S. Alexander Haslam,
Inmaculada Adarves- Yorno and Tom Postmes
Published: Scientific
American Mind, July – August 2014
Level of difficulty:
****
BEFORE YOU READ
·
Would you describe yourself as creative? Do you
know any creative people?
·
Do you think creativity is an innate, individual
characteristic or do you think it has a social dimension? Explain and provide
examples.
·
Can one learn to be more creative? Can
creativity be fostered by education or an appropriate work atmosphere?
QUESTIONS
1. What
widely held belief does the writer dispute? The fact that………………………………………..
2. Which
sentence in paragraph 2 best expresses the writers view concerning creativity?
3. The
importance of social context for creativity is proved by the fact
that………………………..
4. The
examples of Bruce Springsteen and Domenico Cimarosa prove that………………………..
5. An
individual’s behavior will be influenced by society to the extent
that………………………….
6. The
example of the way Picasso painted supports the view that………………………………………
7. Read
the 2007 experiment with the college students. In the second phase of the
experiment, why were the participants’ creations in line with the earlier
established group norm?
8. It
is wrong to think that groups foster conformity and ‘groupthink’
becauase………………………..
9. Team
work can produce creative ideas because members of a team …………………………………….
10. Read
the study involving the innovative municipal childcare center. The group that
managed to stay motivated and engaged in the project were able to do so thanks
to…………………………….
11. Read
the 2012 alcohol experiment. This experiment disproves the fact that…………………………
12. The
cases of van Gogh and Yoshisuke Ueda prove the importance of……………………………………
13. The
way people perceive creativity in other people is closely linked to whether the
person in question has:
·
Shared nationality with this individual
·
A shared language with the person in question
·
Familiarity with the person in question
·
A family relationship with the person in
question
·
All of the above
·
None of the above
14. The
fact that American and Chinese students judged creativity in different ways
shows that …………………………………is involved in creativity.
15. The
success of this blog among students of this university proves that the blogger
……………
16. Innovators
need admirers or followers to be able to propell………………………………………………
TEXT 2
THE AHA! MOMENT
“A step by step guide to your
next creative breakthrough”
Digital copy:
STEP BY STEP GUIDE TO YOUR NEXT CREATIVE BREAKTHROUGH
“Psychologists
have demystified the aha moment”
By: Nessa Victoria Bryce
Published: Scientific American Mind, July – August 2014
Level of Difficulty: ****
QUESTIONS
1. An
‘Aha’ moment can be described as ………………………………………………………………………………..
2. Understanding
the way of thinking of innovative individuals will enable other aspiring
individuals to………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
3. Read
the section titled “Explore”. Ernest Hemingway is famous for describing first
hand experience and observation of areas, activities and people. To do this he
soaked up experience. According to researchers of creativity, by doing so
Hemingway was……………..
4. Read
the section titled “Focus”.
·
What is the prerequisite for innovative ideas?
·
How is the innovative solution hit upon?
5. Read
the section titled “Incubate”.
·
The section stresses that ………………………….by sleeping
or doing something different help develop creative solutions.
·
Samuel Taylor Colleridge wrote his beautiful
poem “The Legend of Kupla Khan” after day dreaming for a while. This shows that
…………………………..is a good way to get the creative juices flowing.
6. Read
the section titled “Insight”.
·
Consciously pushing your right brain to describe
teaching as transfer of information or a four poster bed as a table with two
sets of four legs on eithersurface is a good mental exercise
as……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
·
When writing questions, I sometimes come to a
section of the text where I can’t hit on the right question. When this happens,
I move to my large, comfortable armchair, close my eyes and listen to music for
a while. This helps and the right question pops into my mind. Why does it help?
7. When
I have written a set of questions which I think are perfect, I always run them
past a colleague. Why is it a good idea for me to do this?
8. Hemingway
said that his intense curiosity and interest made him a happier person an
enabled him to live life to the full. Why is this so? Because such an
attitude………………………
WRITING TASK
Bring the information from both texts, the individual and the social
aspects, to write about creativity.
KEYS AND TEACHERS’ NOTES
These wonderful texts elaborate on
the all the factors, both social and individual, that lead to creativity. They
are beautifully analytical and very well written. They lead to a very well
organized writing task but at this level, I am not providing any more guidance.
TEXT
1: CREATIVITY IS COLLECTIVE- KEY
1. The
notion of group creativity is an oxymoron
2. It
is problematic and unhelpful to separate the creativity of individual minds
from the community in which they flourish.
3. Scolars
have failed to identify characteristics that powerfully predict which young
people will go on to become creative geniuses.
4. The
nature and significance of innovation depend on the interaction between an
individual’s ideas and the time and culture in which he or she lives.
5. A
particular social identity is psychologically salient
6. The
way a person evaluates an action, regardless whether it is his or her own, will
reflect shared understandings of that group.
7. Because
social identities also grant people a shared perspective as well as the ability
and motivation to engage in mutual social influence.
8. Group
standards shape only one facet of an individual’s creativity.
9. Bounce
ideas off one another
10. Solidarity
and conformity; OR, social identity
bolstering enthusiasm
11. Being
solidly comitted to the group makes a person blind to its faults.
12. Groups
in the appreciation of ground breaking achievement
13. None
of the above; they are too specific and not general enough. If this was an open
ended question, the answer would be “ingroup”.
14. Cultural
identity
15. Has
a strong sense of the audience and gears her solutions to the perceived needs
and values of that group.
16. Cultural change
TEXT
TWO: THE AHA! MOMENT- KEY
1. The
brain spontaneously reinterpreting information to reach a novel , nonobvious
conclusion
2. Recreate
the process
3. Priming
his brain for creativity
4. Advance
research, by applying experience to new domains
5. Stepping
away from a problem, forcing your brain to shift gears or look within
6. It
might help prime your brain to forge connections between distant concepts;
because my brain is less involved in processing visual information.
7. Insight
comes with a lot of conviction so you can’t be objective
8. Provides
you with an opportunity to discover new interests, explore unfamiliar
territory, develop expertise and take breaks
