The creative application of knowledge in university education: a case study

This paper documents a research project undertaken by the authors to investigate the recognized need for creativity based education at all levels. National and international bodies in business, politics and education have emphasized the need for creativity, recognising the importance of innovative and creative thinking in a wide range of human endeavors. Acknowledging the need to cope with constant change that will only increase in the future

Design as a catalyst for engaging students in creative problem solving

This project addressed an identified need to support academics in the design and redevelopment of curricula in which creativity is embedded and serves as a catalyst for engaging students in the creative problem solving process (CPS). Project aims The project aimed to achieve this through the design and development of a CPS framework and open source online CPS tools (Ingenium) to act as a scaffold for academics in the development and redevelopment of courses (Ingenium Teacher's Tool) and a CPS tool for students (Ingenium Student's Tool) to guide them through the creative problem solving process in their coursework. The project also aimed to develop guidelines for academics and students, trials of the use of CPS in courses across a range of disciplinary fields and a suite of resources available via the project site. Through an engaged dissemination approach, the project sought to have an impact on the wider higher education sector. Research approach A design-based research (DBR) approach was adopted to develop a CPS framework and open source suite of CPS tools for academics, students and researchers. The DBR approach involved an iterative approach incorporating design of the CPS tools, trialling the tools in courses, evaluating the academic and student experience in those courses and then redesigning the tools based on the formative feedback. The CPS tools were developed as open source applications to enable them to be adapted to different institutional contexts and to ensure long term sustainability through further developments by the open source community. Formative feedback was obtained from academics and students via an anonymous online survey identifying the benefits and challenges in following the creative problem solving approach as well as the usability of the tools developed for teachers and students (see Appendix A for copy of research instruments). The research method included interviews with academics who trialled the tools and resources at the conclusion of the project to identify guidelines to assist other academics wishing to embed CPS in their curriculum. These guidelines were also informed by analysis of the trials developed through the trials and the findings from focus groups conducted at an employers' forum facilitated by the Career Services Team from the Learning and Teaching Unit at the University of South Australia. The primary methods for evaluation of Ingenium were online and paper-based anonymous surveys for both the teachers and students participating in the trials, as well as teacher reflections on the experiences of their students and semi-structured interviews conducted with academics at the completion of the trials. The project website and CPS tools were also subjected to auditing for accessibility against the World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines to ensure compliance at Double AA standards. An independent summative evaluation was undertaken by Ms Deanne Gannaway, Manager of the Evaluation Unit, at The University of Queensland. This summative evaluation included review of the project site and deliverables, review of project documentation and communication and interviews conducted with project team members and academics participating in the trials. Ms Gannaway's recommendations have been incorporated into the recommendations section of this report

When I retire I'm going to...

These pop-ups were designed to get away from the usual presentations from financial businesses, using pop-up illustrations to engage the readers by involving their aspirations in an unexpected medium, to treasure and keep. The design won its class at the Adelaide Art Director's Club and is reproduced as an exemplar in publicity design books ( Icograda website)

The application of creative thinking methodologies to post graduate entrepreneurship education

Abstract not available

Design as a catalyst for engaging students in creative problem solving

The project responds to research demonstrating that whilst universities acknowledge the importance of creativity within the curriculum, (Mc William, 2007; Robinson, 1998) it is not being met due to a lack of explicit guidelines and a useful support system to guide academics in the process.

Biospectroscopy reveals the effect of varying water quality on tadpole tissues of the common frog (Rana temporaria)

Amphibians are undergoing large population declines in many regions around the world. As environmental pollution from both agricultural and urban sources has been implicated in such declines, there is a need for a biomonitoring approach to study potential impacts on this vulnerable class of organism. This study assessed the use of infrared (IR) spectroscopy as a tool to detect changes in several tissues (liver, muscle, kidney, heart and skin) of late-stage common frog (Rana temporaria) tadpoles collected from ponds with differing water quality. Small differences in spectral signatures were revealed between a rural agricultural pond and an urban pond receiving wastewater and landfill run-off; these were limited to the liver and heart, although large differences in body size were apparent, surprisingly with tadpoles from the urban site larger than those from the rural site. Large differences in liver spectra were found between tadpoles from the pesticide and nutrient impacted pond compared to the rural agricultural pond, particularly in regions associated with lipids. Liver mass and hepatosomatic indices were found to be significantly increased in tadpoles from the site impacted by pesticides and trace organic chemicals, suggestive of exposure to environmental contamination. Significant alterations were also found in muscle tissue between tadpoles from these two ponds in regions associated with glycogen, potentially indicative of a stress response. This study highlights the use of IR spectroscopy, a low-cost, rapid and reagent-free technique in the biomonitoring of a class of organisms susceptible to environmental degradation