Have you ever assigned a project to students, asked them to be creative, but not know exactly how to mark for creativity? We all know what it means to be creative (or, at least, what it looks like). When it comes to creativity in a science class, we struggle – even though the creative process in art and science class are the same. Thus, many struggling science teachers give a creativity mark for something that is superficial (ex. The quality of the video, poster, powerpoint, etc.). We know creativity is an important aspect of science. Some of the greatest inventions in the world were a result of scientists developing a “creative” solution to a problem. But, how do we assess creativity in a science class – where content and skills are the name of the game?

Back in post #45, I wrote about the myths surrounding creativity and how we can incorporate creativity into science education. In the post, I mentioned research where creativity could be cultivated and practiced – much like a skill. I also mentioned the need to assess creativity – for both the creative process and the product that results from creative work. Without assessment or feedback, how would students know where to improve or whether or not what they’re doing is right. We outline below where to start if you’re looking to assess creativity in your science class. We also offer some sample projects where creativity can be incorporated and assessed. Handouts are available for download at the end of the post.

Simple steps to assess creativity in science

Step 1: Check whether creativity is even necessary

Before you assign a science activity where you want students to be creative, you have to ask whether the assignment/project at hand is conducive to creativity? Let’s face it, if the activity is a simple worksheet where the answers are found in the textbook, then you’re not going to assess creativity in the assignment. Same for problem sets where students need to use a specific process to solve the problems. And, the same for experiments from the textbook and poster projects where wikipedia is heavily used. However, if the activity requires students to produce something novel/original and of high quality, then you’ll need to assess creativity.

Step 2: Define what creativity means for the assignment

In other words, what does creativity mean for you and what does it look like? According to Collard and Looney (2014), creativity is both individual dispositions (ie. soft skills) students can cultivate/practice as well as creative processes and products (ie. what students produce). With regards to creative dispositions, creative individuals can be curious, persistent, able to generate a variety of ideas, question and reflect critically, and more. With regards to creative products, besides being novel, creative products have students “produce new ideas or reorganize existing ideas in a new way” (Brookhart, 2013). However, besides just coming up with new ideas, Collard and Looney (2014) also note that creative products are also the best solutions to a problem (and not just the wackiest).

This brings up an important point that Brookhart (2013) points out: creativity is not just about giving students choice. Creativity is not about assigning a project and giving students free reign as to how to do it. More importantly, it’s allowing “student choice in matters related to what the student is supposed to learn…in the area under study”. Thus, in a science class, giving “creativity marks” for a student assignment because they made a video or Prezi or Podcast misses the point of relating creativity to the area of study. More importantly, if you are to mark the video or Prezi or podcast for creativity, perhaps ask how the medium used provides a new way of seeing or understanding the subject at hand.

Step 3: Have students help develop the Rubric you’ll use to assess creativity

At this step, it’s time to put pen to paper and develop a rubric with the help of students that will be used to assess creativity. Have students develop a rubric for both creative dispositions and creative products.

As a starting point for creative dispositions, consider the rubric designed by Lucas, Claxton and Spencer (2013), who distilled creative dispositions and learner progression to five essential habits of mind (inquisitive, persistent, imaginative, collaborative and disciplined) as well as three sub-dispositions within each of these categories (see image below). With regards to what qualities or descriptions should occupy each level of the rubric, I avoid that altogether and opt for a Likert scale from 1 to 5, where 1 stands for strongly disagree and 5 stands for strongly agree.

As for creative products, refer to Brookhart’s (2013) rubric (image below) as a starting point. However, I recommend developing a rubric that is similar to the one mentioned in post #21. First, have students come up with descriptors of a creative product (one that is both novel and is the best solution to the problem). Then, have students come up with descriptions that are exactly the opposite. When using a rubric developed in this manner, teachers can mark on a line to show a student’s progress from not creative to creative instead of checking off or circling a box.

Collard and Looney also provide the following as potential rubrics to assess creative work: Consensual Assessment Technique, or CAT; Creative Product Semantic Scale, and the Student Product Assessment Form.

Step 4: Give regular feedback instead of a single assessment at the end

It is incredibly difficult to generate a mark from a rubric if it is used only once. According to Brookhart, “Generating a grade is not the intended purpose of the rubric for creativity. Rubrics help clarify criteria for success and show what the continuum of performance looks like, from low to high, from imitative to very creative….For that reason, rubrics are useful for sharing with students what they’re aiming for, where they are now, and what they should do next.”

If you are to generate a mark, then generate a mark by looking at both the growth a student has shown with regards to creative dispositions along with how creative the final product.

BONUS STEP: Train students to evaluate their own work (and the work of others)

This will help improve student creative work since (1) they’ll be able to judge for themselves whether their product/disposition shows creativity, and (2) they’ll be able to help others judge creativity too. Also, feedback from other students can also give you a better idea as to what a students creativity mark should be since it provides you with a bigger picture to look at.

Sample Science Projects to Assess Creativity

1. Hypothesis writing, Experimental Design

According to Brookhart, “Science teachers who have students brainstorm a list of hypotheses to test can give feedback on the originality of ideas as well as their suitability for the experiment that the students will design. For example, a teacher might mention that her coffee cools too quickly in the cup and then ask students to brainstorm a list of things that might slow down the cooling process, write a hypothesis about each one, and design an experiment to test one hypothesis.”

2. “The Cell is like…”, DNA or Bohr model Design

Science teachers who have students build models (of DNA, of a cell, of an atom) can give feedback on how well the parts used to build the models represent the real object itself. For example, if a student made a DNA model using Gummi bears, ask why Gummi bears were used. If the answer is because it was pretty, then the student needs to use something more representative. However, if a student made a DNA model out of several zippers (to represent how parts of the DNA strand can unzip during transcription and replication), then that is a more creative model of DNA. In other words, a zipper model is more novel and a better way to represent DNA.

Wrap Up

Is there an exact way to assess creativity in science? No, there isn’t. Creativity is abstract and obscure. And, what creativity looks like differs between individuals. However, we can try to assess creativity by creating rubrics for the components of creativity (dispositions and processes/products). And, we can define what it means to be creative (ie. creative individuals are persistent and curious; creative products are novel and the best solution to problem). Click the link below to download our handouts (a cheat sheet to assess creativity as well as the sample rubrics). Please share our resources with your colleagues.

Until next time, keep it REAL.

Resources

Handout(s): 47 – Assessing Creativity (Cheat sheet)

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References

Blamires, M., & Peterson, A. (2014). Can creativity be assessed? Towards an evidence-informed framework for assessing and planning progress in creativity. Cambridge Journal of Education, 44(2), 147-162. doi:10.1080/0305764x.2013.860081

Brookhart, S. M. (2013). Assessing Creativity. Educational Leadership, 70(5), 28-34.

Collard, P., & Looney, J. (2014). Nurturing Creativity in Education. European Journal of Education, 49(3), 348-364. doi:10.1111/ejed.12090

Lucas, B., G. Claxton & E. Spencer (2013) Progression in student creativity inschool: first steps towards new forms of formative assessments. OECD Education Working Paper No. 86 (Paris, OECD)