BREADTH AND WIDTH OF THOUGHT ENVIRONS FOR LEARNER: Inventive engineers have the unique ability to look at one

set of the problems and come up with a solution, which is invisible to others. Possibly because of thinking out the box. One of the qualities of creative thinkers is their perseverance in solving a pro blem. Another factor in the inventing process is the ability to work collaborat ively. Innovation and invention are the semantic cousins of creativity. While genius and creativity are the innate abilities, collaboration and diligence are learned. Can creativity can be taught? It is possible to simply turn on to switch and ma ke a creative engineer? Yes, by providing the environment which fosters creativ e thought. Some engineering schools attempt to give students opportunities to f lex their creative muscle in design classes and through special PROJECTS. Engineering Creativity: Creativity and innovation are the hallmarks of a proper education. An engineering education should impart to the students basic scientific skills, tools and principles. Students will then find ways or use those scientific principles of creativity. In fact engineering is the creative application of scientific principles, and an engineering education without real creative course work is a disservice to the students and the profession. There is a need for extreme freedom of thought. T here is a need for an emphasis of creative thinking, A steady of immigrating of new minds, A risk taking creative culture with no stigma attached to trying and failing, A knowledge of financial markets, venture capital system and global projects. What are the skill sets that maximize creative potential? How to identify, students who are innately more creative, relative to others. Hence Creativity must be tempered with Critical thinking. Learning to Fail: 1. There is a need to make students aware of the role of risk taking in the Creative process. 2. While trying new solutions we must look for the failures as a part of th e process. 3. The attitude should be to seek not one right answer but considering many Right answers. 4. Students should be allowed to come up with ideas, some also be allowed t o keep talking first in an effort to clarify his or her thinking. 5. They should not be allowed to be afraid of committing mistakes. 6. They should be willing to fail. 7. Encourage open-ended problem solving techniques. 8. Failures must be enhanced, not avoided. Some of the examples may be, list creative people and their professions, list in telligently people and intelligent professions, listing of painters, writers, en tertainment personalities and artists etc. There are no heroes among engineers like in physics. Studying lives of engineers who have succeeded in creative invention must be, a part of the process of teaching creativity. Ask students to keep design notebooks, personal journals and sketch books. These tools must be used to observe human behaviors and think of the ways to imp rove them. Also teach them to think about every day experiences and how to improve them. Learning creative Design is an art not a science. Creative Team Work: Working in teams is an essential part of creative process wherein students can e

xplore different solutions to problems. All humans have some sort of creative skills. Generally we know that left brain functions control of conscious thought, logica l analysis, language, and other awarenesses. The right brain functions control of intuitiveness, creativity, subconscious tho ught and inner awareness. Engineers need both sides of the brain working in synchrony. Inventive minds have a degree of autonomy, superior general intelligence, some w hat detached attitude in interpersonal relationships and high degree of control over personal department. Creative thinker must have the lone wolf mentality, l ocking themselves in a room and waiting for an idea to generate. Socialization is also important part of creative process. It may be noted the Edisons laboratory was based on many creative minds and Einst ein used to talk to all people with a huge science of social involvement. Lenhard written several books in process of Inventing, Engineers of ingenuity. How Inventive Minds Work: There are five stages of creative process. 1. Arrival of the idea. 2. Making the idea public (4 stages). A) Exposing the idea to criticism by close friends. B) Hard work and analysis, flushing out and testing the idea, without falsifying the data and misleading unethically. C) Learning to teach to others. D) Inventor would take the idea to the public. It may be noted that writings are available about the tension between needs for intellectual companionships and isolation. Lawrence Carlson says it is possible to allow students to be creative but it is n ot like learning a formula. You give them open ended opportunities and allow students to fail. On the walls of Colorado ITL Labs:- In order to ----I hear, I forget, I see, I remember. I do, and I understand Confucius.

In Teaching Creativity: Begin with open ended questions, with a healthy dose of self analysis. Students must be asked to keep a role model (scientist, past or present), in the ir minds. Exercises in cognitive abilities like free association and divergent thinking can cause students to think in different ways. Team building and a collaborative environment also enhances creativity. In the beginning minor or routine improvements to existing systems may be guided ; further new principles to perform the primary function of the existing system has to be made. One must focus on problem solving without a fair of failure. In brief, inorder to broaden and widen the mind students must be asked to offer questions and solutions without any hesitation even if it is a stupid question; they must be appreciated for the initiative. Give the participants an assurance that they are capable of tackling tough and complex problems. Then their mind opens, they are not afraid. We must develop a system that balances analysis wit h innovation. They should be asked to open the mind with ideas as to how to improve the system s. They should be taught to fail to succeed sooner.