The Value of Teaching Creativity in Adult Education

Abstract

In today’s postmodern world, change is the only thing for sure. As a result, creative capacity is the key. Learning creative thinking in fact is a useful vehicle for adult learners to polish their abilities and orientate the world around them. This article attempts to review creativity-related literature and to provide some salient considerations for adult educators with the desire to promote creativity in the classrooms. To begin, the definition of creativity was disclosed. Then the process of creativity was reviewed. Following this line, several factors, including personality traits, knowledge and expertise, motivation and self-efficacy, learning style and thinking style, teaching approaches, assessment and reward, and environment, that might facilitate or stifle creativity were discussed. Finally, some suggestions for adult educators were provided.