Mastering Creativity

COURSE OBJECTIVE

Our future is an open question. While more and more people struggle with adequate orientation on reality, seemingly abstract forces such as climate change, digitalisation and human flow challenge us to innovate: to develop new ways of thinking, learning and living. In order to imagine these new ways and to discover possible "other worlds", creativity plays an indispensable role. As de Bildung Academie (DBA), it is our opinion that an interdisciplinary approach on this human trait is essential as it will help you: 

• Understand and use your own creativity 
• Apply this to develop both personally and professionally 
• Become a more versatile and adaptable individual 
• To enjoy and create something beautiful, something amazing or disturbing, or just something new, stimulating the forming of your ideas 

De Bildung Academie (DBA) is an academical platform that builds education programmes with a focus on social and personal development. DBA and The School of Business and Economics (SBE) collaborated to form this course. Besides learning about the theoretical view on creativity, DBA and SBE think that practicing creativity in the fields of form (f.i. film, writing, performing) and in the field of ideas (f.i. a business plan or a solution to a specific social problem) increases your flexibility in doing, thinking and communicating.

COURSE CONTENT

This course is designed to "master your own creativity". It is set up threefold: 

• theoretical lectures discussing different perspectives on creativity 
• practical reflection sessions 
• close observation of creative masters, leading figures of practicing creativity in their work in the field of art, politics, entrepreneurship and science. 

The lectures on Tuesdays serve to help you develop a broad understanding of the concept of creativity. On Thursdays, practical reflection sessions will let you and your fellow students connect and relate these perspectives to your own life, and try out different creative forms. In this way you learn how to apply, choose from, and combine different perspectives. By meeting with, talking to and observing the creative masters, their work and lives may be of use to you as inspiration and comparison for your own creative process.
Ultimately, to complete the course you and your fellow students will materialize your findings into an end product. The final result of this will be presented during a Studium Generale about creativity in the International Theatre of Amsterdam.

TEACHING METHODS

Every Tuesday evening you will follow a lecture, either by an academic or a practical expert. 

Every Thursday morning will be a session to reflect on the discussed theories and the master-tracks and put your findings into a practical and personal context. 

Thursday morning also is the time where we do practical creative exercises.

TYPE OF ASSESSMENT

As our aim is for our students to form their own vision on creativity, it is not fit to grade this subject in a classical way. You will pass this course if you have complied with the requirements. The requirements are 85% attendance and the fulfillment of all weekly assignments stated in the curriculum and the personal work as stated above. 

For the flipped classroom and the Studium Generale we will judge students based on PGO (probleemgestuurd onderwijs, English: problem based education). We do not work from a problem, but utilize this testing method. What is leading in this method is to let students formulate their own learning objectives, and give feedback on those during the assignments. Students and their peers will give themselves and each other the final appraisal. In order to let this appraisal be grounded, we let the student keep a log about their progress and that of others.