14th International Conference on Thinking (2009 Malaysia)

Instructional strategies of intrinsic motivation and curiosity for developing creative thinking
Alkiyumi Mohammed Talib, Universiti Sains Malaysia, alkeumi@yahoo.com Abstract The personality approach is a vital method of studying and enhancing creative potential. In response, present paper identifies instructional strategies that may be used by teachers to enhance intrinsic motivation and curiosity for developing creative thinking. The proposed strategies have been coined from the nature of the intrinsic motivation and curiosity, and their relationship with creative thinking abilities. I review theories, models and latest researches that tried to relate these two traits with creativity. However, the challenge of how could we enhance these two personality traits among students through the learning process is still vigorous. These specified strategies may practically participate in solving this problem. Keywords: strategies, creativity, intrinsic motivation, curiosity, instruction 1.0 Introduction Education has always been a key public agenda items because the economy of any country requires changes in educational policies to match the changes in the economic growth. Integration of creativity in education field is away to help educators in their future journey. Therefore, the educational policies must be directed toward cultivating persons who will be able to cope with the future; those people who possess considerable creative potential. Creative thinking is largely concerned with the production of changes. Therefore, students must be informed that constant changes are vital to the society, and taught how to create the future (Fatt, 2000). Creative thinking is a mental process that leads to solutions, ideas, conceptualization, artistic forms, and theories of products that are unique and novel(Reber, 1985, p. 203). It is an important topic to study whether in the science or arts field, in the society as a whole or into the personal lives. This importance has been gained because of its connotation that focuses on producing something new and valuable. Creative thinking is classified as a high order thinking skills. Indeed, it involves high level of cognitive process that leads to generate creative problem solving and multiple solutions. In this way, true creativity has incalculable values both for individuals and societies (Alder, 2002). Torrance and Kathy (1990) coined concept of academic creativity as a discipline of thinking and learning creatively, and producing information through the subjects. All the living domains require new ways of thinking in order to adapt and exploit the constant changes. In Education, they have been much discussion of how we improve creative capacities among students. In their serious trials of answering cornerstones issue of from where creativity does come, Psychologists have appreciated that individuals traits are vital element to understand the creative behavior. Personality approach influences creative production by a way of impacts on cognitive styles and skills.

14th International Conference on Thinking (2009 Malaysia)

2.0 Literature Review 2.1 Intrinsic Motivation and Creative Thinking Theorists and researches in the motivation field have identified two classes of motivation, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Extrinsic motivation is the force that stimuli individual to achieve, these forces are processed outside individuals such as, rewards, punishment, evaluation, competition. On other hand, intrinsic motivation occurs inside individual regarding of his desire and willingness to achieve the task, whether it has some external payoffs or not. The two classes of motivation are important to enhance students learning achievement, Lahey (2007). Experimental evidences indicate that creative production requires high level of IM. The interesting evidences that are derived from the theories and empirical works indicate that creative persons engage into the task when they feel it is satisfying and enjoyable. Rogers and Dyamond (1954) assumed that creativity is motivated by peoples self actualization tendencies. In addition, they acclaimed that creativity is develop and flourish in environment where motivation comes from the inner of individuals which drive them to fulfill their potential. Torrance (in Sternberg, 1988), found that people who were doing what they loved were more creative in their pursuits. Csikszentmihalyi (1990), during their work on problem solving have identified three components that influence individuals to search for creative solutions. Gardner (1993) concluded his various researches on this topic that IM is a personal characteristic that contributes to creativity. Moreover, Sternberg and Lubart (1995) developed an investment theory in creativity (buy low and sale high), they adopted six resources of creativity, and IM is one of them. Sheldon (1995) has found that high subjects in creative personality scale and problem solving are greater in orientation motivation and self-concept and autonomy. Torrance, stressed that creative power in itself is a reward and it exceeds any other powers. Deci and Ryan (1985), consequently of their researches had observed that children with IM are inclined to seek situations that interest them and require the use of their creativity. In order to reach their creative potential, primarily, students must be intrinsically motivated at the task then they can engage in the creative activities for enjoyment rather than for other external goals. Hennessy (2003) have identified five sure fire killers of IM and creativity: expected rewards, expected evaluation, surveillance, time limits, and competition. 2.2 Curiosity and Creative Thinking Psychologists identified curiosity as the inner drive that motivates people to learn and investigate. It drives people to search information about an object, or idea through exploration. For example, Beetlestone (1998) assumed that learners try to find their own innate drive which leads them to deliver their curiosity toward an effective way of satisfaction. On the other hand, Kashdan (2002)

14th International Conference on Thinking (2009 Malaysia) considered curiosity as a selfregulatory mechanism that facilitates intrinsic goal effort, perseverance, personal growth, and creativity under right conditions. Curiosity is the human evolutionary drive to adapt and survive. The curious persons are naturally motivated to discover new ways of problem solving to adapt successfully and continually (Reio, Wisewll, Thongsukmag, 2006). Csikszentmihalyi (1996), in his discussion of flow process, he has declared that the cultivation of curiosity and interest is the first step in creative production because curiosity evokes skepticism of given information, and whet exploration to search of different perspectives especially novel and coined perspectives and it incite the mind to reformulate a problem to do progress when it will be solved. Undoubtedly, ambiguity problems or difficult situations need alternative and novel solutions which are driven by curiosity. In his primary theory of curiosity, Berlyne (1960) identified several stimulus prosperities that elicit curiosity such as, complexity, incongruity, novelty, surprising and uncertainty. Wentworth and Witryol (in Bornstein, Davidson, Keyes, Moore & Lawrence, 2003) in their comparative hierarchy between complexity, uncertainty, and novelty, argued that incontestably novelty has been the most frequently employed as a component of theoretical and operational definitions of curiosity in the individual differences studies. Creative thinkers emerge their curiosity within searching for different solutions of the problems. A creative person is eager to find plausible solutions to the problems. Furthermore, in creative thinking, curiosity about what will happen next is an important ingredient in motivation. Although, psychologists regard curiosity as the inner personality trait, they have various perspectives of how this trait affects creativity process. Voss and Keller (1983) have articulated that curiosity and exploration are essential traits that impact individual flexibility to change environmental conditions. Litman and Spielberg (2003) have identified curiosity as a desire to acquire new knowledge and new sensory experience that motivate exploratory behavior. 3.0 Methodology Generally, present paper based on deductive reasoning which is involves essentially arriving at specific conclusions based on general principles, observations, or experiences (Gay, Mills & Airasian, 2006.p4). The analysis approach is used to discern the patterns and formulate principles that might future action. Basically, this paper review the compelling theories, models and long-term studies to formulate the specific instructional strategies of intrinsic motivation and curiosity for developing creative potential of children through learning process. Amabile (1990) model of the relationship between intrinsic motivation versus extrinsic motivation and creativity, Hennessey (2000) model of self-determination and creativity which based on Deci and Ryan self-determination theory(1985), and flow theory of Csikszentmihalyi (1996) are the basic resources of the identified strategies. In addition, the researcher tracked the conducted studies by either the theorists and their colleagues or other researchers. The literature review and theories principles in addition with the studies findings are conducive to investigate and identify the specific instructional strategies.

14th International Conference on Thinking (2009 Malaysia)

It should be noted that the determined strategies are differentiated according of learning environment diverse and characteristics of the learners and such facilities. Therefore, there are alternative suggested strategies for either intrinsic motivation or curiosity. 4.0 Findings 4.1 Instructional Strategies of Intrinsic Motivation In terms of the learning process, the students learn smoother and faster when the energy comes from their inner, and when students learn because they want to, if so, the learning process will last for ever. Students' proclivities of IM are essential such as, feeling that academic experience challenge their skills, and if they predict that their effort will be payoff. Practically, IM is vital in solving illstructured problem that are presented to adolescent (Mackinnon, 1999). Brian, Ellen, and James (1993) have added conditions to cultivate IM such as, task ought to include clear goals, provide reasonable challenge that urge persons engaging their own skills and abilities, and offer immediate feedback to progress. The independence atmosphere that is given for task holders to give them confident conditions is important in this way, moreover, the task holders must be provided by reasonable information and resources to help them do well. Gregory (1990) revealed that general feeling of self worth was related to perception of the physical appearance and athletic ability instead of scholastic competencies. He had recommended that students self image must be enhanced by using challenging obtainable goals and objectives encouraging self and directed learning. Needs for autonomy, competence, and self mastery are three conditions of developing IM. Psychologists have developed different techniques for enhancing IM among students. For instance, Vaicunas (1998) coined five principles for fostering IM in children: 1- Home environment must be novel and varied; 2- Children must be exposed to frequent experiences in order to affect their environment; 3- Learning environment must be responsive to children actions; 4- Teachers and parents must respond positively toward students curiously questions in such cases; 5-Praise children using appropriate reward that gives them a feeling of competence. Following are some suggested instructional strategies for enhancing curiosity in students through learning process. There are five strategies, each one includes sub-strategies Challenge Strategies: challenge refers to the direct effect on the amount of persistence directed toward a task. The sub-strategies are: Provide opportunities for students to find the problems through the content, situation, devices, etc al. in this way, the problem means something missing, ambiguity, needs transfer from current position to the desired position. In general, this situation needs development. Decidedly, when the student discovers problems, he\she is automatically stimulated to find the solutions. This method is a kind of the effective learning motivation, because student

14th International Conference on Thinking (2009 Malaysia) cannot stop on the discovered problem, instead he\she is going further to find appropriate solutions, practically he \she will practice divergent thinking to find and try many solutions for the problem. Supply the content discussion with students by increasing levels of difficulty or ill-defined problems. There are two types of problems; well defined (need routine solutions) and illdefined problem which requires creative solutions. While a student encounter difficult problems, his challenge is increased regularly and the challenge stimulates the student to solve such problems. The creative thinking processing with difficult problems instead of simple problems which need traditional solution, hence, the problems that provided by teachers must be, ambiguity, need persistence to solve it, and the solutions are unknown yet. This situation stimulates the students to be a pioneer in discovering the solutions. Incontestably, the student will think creatively to find the solutions. Provide problem that related with students in the real world. Hence, students feel that this problem is an own problem and he\she must solve it. This extraordinary feeling that force student to find information about the problem and try alternative solutions for it. Practically, this situation makes student to perceive the problem, and construct awareness about the importance of solving it. Moreover, he\she has a sense that solving the real problems will reflect on his life and the community continues development. Use remote analogies as approach of dealing with problem, whether familiar or strange (Keller, 1987). When the two situations are analogous to each other, the solver could retrieve the base analogy by the target problem. Think of this problem; destroying the tumor of the patient stomach, contradictory high intensity of the ray will destroy the stomach tissue, and low intensity wont effect. In both cases the patient will die. How could the doctor solve this problem and avoiding two dangerous situations? In these cases, the students have a challenge and think persistently to find adequate solutions without harming of the pertinent aspects.

Relevance Strategies: refers to the goal directed activities that relate to the personal goals or motives. The sub-strategies are Find out the learners interests and relate them with instruction. Wise teachers are knowledgeable of what the learners are enjoying in a kind of context, situations, and activities. Consequently, he constructs some ill-defined problems through to be solved creatively. Ask learners to determine their own goals. The students should participate to determine the instructional aims. The determined goals mean that are interested, enjoyable to study by majority of students. This method offers positive opportunities to the students to expand their interest to be studied. The most interested goals will be out of the content restrictions, because students seek something different that offer them opportunities to generate their own ideas.

14th International Conference on Thinking (2009 Malaysia)

Provide opportunities for responsibility, authority and interpersonal influences. The student ought to feel that he\she is responsible of what they are learning; in addition, acquired learning has influenced on their personality immediately or in the future. This sense motivates them intrinsically to learn, and create something new. Enhance the positive self-image and self-esteem of the students to encounter challenge and make them less sensitive of criticism (Song & Grabowski, 2006). There are many studies had proven that positive self-image immunizes the persons from the external constraints. Consequently, it drives them to think divergently better than the person who feels that he has negative image of his self. Positive selfimage Negative selfimage

Intrinsic motivation Conducive

Extrinsic motivation undermine

Creative production

Creative production

Self Determination: refers to that the optimal level of students learning is resulting from interest in learning and confidence in their own capabilities, and due feeling good about oneself. The substrategies are: Students should feel independent in the learning environment. Through learning process when the student feels free to ask questions, generate such ideas, dramatically he releases the learning constraints and his interest toward learning process is aroused. This climate offers chances to generate novel and creative ideas. Particularly, the creativeness grows through free environment in contrast with restricted situations. Encourage students to believe of their abilities and drive them to achieve their learning goals through frequent steps (Deci, & Ryan, 2008). The confidence in the abilities and skills to do some tasks, drives the students interests, and let them intrinsically motivated. Furthermore, this feeling enable them to avoid such criticism. Decidedly, this state means that I trust my abilities to overcome the problems and achieve well. There are many studies have investigated the positive relationship between confidence in abilities and creativity.

14th International Conference on Thinking (2009 Malaysia) Have students learn new skills under low risk conditions, but practice performance of welllearned tasks under realistic conditions. As far as the condition is real and concrete, the students must enjoy it and interested in it, in contrast with the abstract condition. In fact, the reality of the task and students skills motivate them to be interested and achieve well in that specific task.

Autonomy strategies: refers to that the students feel free in their learning without external reinforcements. The sub-strategies are: - Provide open-ended problem. This kind of situations make students feel that partial problem are unlimited, the final solution is not yet, and the problem can be dealt with from such trends. This situation let students intrinsically motivated to find such solutions, provide different ideas, and try several suggestions. As well as the problem is open-ended, the thinking is unlimited (divergent thinking). - Dont criticize the solution immediately because if the student is intrinsically motivated to do the task, and then you deny his ideas or criticize them immediately, this motivation is decreased because the critics stifle their creativity. Brainstorming: this strategy is developed by Osborn in 1953. Briefly, the teacher divides the students into groups and gives them open-ended problems to solve. Each group has a leader to register the ideas and make sense of following the disciplines. The students are free to generate any ideas without criticism. Eventually, the teacher gathers the ideas and decides the most effective ones as novel and appropriate solutions. (Osborn, 1963). Quantity seeking, for each problem teacher seeks many possible solutions to the problem, he\she must welcomes any ideas. The quantity is desired. This situation enforces student to give more ideas. Ultimately, they can judge them to choose the best solutions.

4.2 Instructional Strategies of Curiosity As educationalists or parents we have to create the environment in which students are able to experience the problematic nature of information use and evaluation. Teachers can observe this ability when students ask questions like: what is that? What does this do? How does it work? And why do that? (Oberst, 2002). To promote childrens curiosity, teachers have to present to them funny activities such as computer games, fantasy play, or puzzles. These kinds of activities children are engaged in to enjoy the challenge. Teachers must recognize the two types of curiosity, sensory and cognitive. Sensory curiosity is promoted by audio, music and animation. Cognitive curiosity motivates students to understand what they dont already know, and avoid inconsistencies in the learners knowledge (Matheson & Spranger, 2001).Teaching is successful if it fosters individual curiosity toward the searching of divisive information which leads students to understand the world and enhances individuals creativity to put the information into use.

14th International Conference on Thinking (2009 Malaysia) Following are some suggested instructional strategies that enhance curiosity: Through the learning process, wise teachers discuss the knowledge that attribute as ambiguity, novelty, and complexity. These features force students to process the solutions in a variety ways, and let them imagine the pertinent information because they feel eager to know the solutions. They can discuss the problem in depth, and each step in that discourse arise their curiosity of exploration. In this process the students feel free to going deeply in the discussion and suggest alternative solutions. Ultimately, his curiosity to explore the final solutions leads him to some solutions or products. Situation Ambiguity Complex state Curiosity Outcomes Creative production

The good teachers provide the information to their students as incongruity knowledge. Thus, students seek to solve this situation and reach the optimal solution. The incongruity knowledge offer great opportunity to arouse students curiosity to reconcile with such information. Consequently, he probes deeply in the information and question, gathers information, and provides multiple solutions. The most important thing that teacher must provide the information which need novel solutions. The traditional and routine solutions are available through the curriculum; in contrast when the students feel that the needed solutions are novel, unknown, and origin, dramatically his curiosity is aroused to investigate such solutions especially when he feels free to generate whatever the solutions are. To evoke the perceptual curiosity, good teachers provide novel events that change dramatically. For example, sky raining, sunrise and sunset, wind, human movies, facial expressions. These events motivate students to ask various questions, let them curious to know the hidden reasons behind the event, the causes of the changes, its unitary, and the changes between places and within human kinds. These probe questions lead to investigate something new, novel, and creative. For example, let your students imagine this situation and suggest the possible results. Imagine that facial expressions are the same for all persons. The students curiosity is evoked through the interested situations. The students are interested if the situation is realistic and reflect of the living aspects, environment and students personalities, contemporary, understandable by all of the students. My interested thing means that thing I need to know any thing of it. This state lets students feel curious to seek missing information to satisfy their curiosity. Decidedly, this process leads to explore something new.

14th International Conference on Thinking (2009 Malaysia)

The students curiosity is evoked through the interested situations. The students are interested if the situation is realistic and reflect of the living aspects, environment and students personalities, contemporary, understandable by all of the students. My interested thing means that thing I need to know any thing of it. This state lets students feel curious to seek missing information to satisfy their curiosity. Decidedly, this process leads to explore something new. Roman and Kay (2007) have described the good teacher like therapist. Good teacher attempts to discover the roadblocks of learning through instilling curiosity. Good teacher establishes the learning context as a therapist establishes save environment of therapeutic relationship. Organizing rich discussion is salient way to provoke intellectual or scientific curiosity. Rich discussion needs variety of documented and reliable resources that provide valid information, while the students gather deep information; the curiosity state is increased, aroused new knowledgeable horizons are intellectual expanded (Roman, & Kay, 2007). When students discover something new, they automatically stimulate to search for others. Imagine that students encounter this problem. How the plane engine is processing through the take-off. Or what enforce the group birds to immigrate between the seasons. There are unlimited of investigated information. As far as the experience is real; the students curiosity is stimulated much well than abstract experiences. Therefore, teachers must transfer the abstract knowledge to be concrete. For example, they may bring some natural materials to the classroom or visit places, using visible techniques (films, videos, magazine.etc al). This procedure offers salient opportunity for students to observe and discover. For bored and disengaged students, teachers in different periods pose new questions or may provide concrete experiences to propel students to see the familiar in a new way. Teachers also may avoid the abstract and going to be closer and closer with the students environment. Ultimately, the teachers must appreciate that there are individual differences between students in their styles of curiosity. Some explore using only their minds, others use more physical ways, touching, smelling, tasting, and climbing.

References Alder, H. (2002). CQ: Boost your creative intelligence. London: Kogan Page Ltd. Beetlestone, F. (1998). Creative children, imaginative teaching. Buckingham: Open University Press. Berlyne, E. D. (1960). Conflict, arousal, and curiosity. New York: McGraw- Hill.

14th International Conference on Thinking (2009 Malaysia) Brian, P., Ellen, S., & James, C. (1993). What motivates children's behavior and emotion? Joint effects of perceived control and autonomy in the academic domain. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65(4), 781-791. Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990). Flow: The psychology of optimal experience. New York: HarperCollins. Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1996). Creativity. New York: Harper Collin Publisher Deci, E., & Ryan, R. (1985). Intrinsic motivation and self-determination in human behavior. New York: Plenum Press. Deci, E., & Ryan, R. (2008). Self-Determination theory: Amacrotheory of human behavior. New York: Plenum Press. Fatt, J. P. (2000). Fostering creativity in education. ProQuest educational Journal, 744-757. Gay, L., Mills, G., & Airasian, P. (2006). Educational Research: Competencies for analysis and application (Eighth ed.). New Jersey: Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall. Gardner, H. (1993b). Creating minds. New York: Basic Books. Gregory, M. J. (1990). Intrinsic Motivation, Self-Perception, and Their Effects on Black Urban Elementary Students. Kashdan, T. (2002). Social anxiety dimensions, neuroticism and the contours of positive psychological functioning. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 26, 789-810. Keller, J. (1987). Strategies for stimulating the motivation to learn. Journal of performance and instruction, 26 (8), 1-7. Hennessey, B. (2003). The social psychology of creativity. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 47(3), 253-271. Lahey, B. B. (2007). Psychology: an introduction (9th ed.). New York: Mc Graw Hill. Litman, J., & Spielberger, C. (2003). Measuring epistemic curiosity and its diversive and specific components. Journal of Personality Assessment, 80(1), 75-86. MacKinnon, M. J. (1999). CORE elements of student motivation in problem-based learning. New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 78, 49-58. Matheson, D., & Spranger, K. (2001). Content analysis of the use of fantasy, challenge, and curiosity in school-based nutrition education programs. Journal of Nutrition Education,

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14th International Conference on Thinking (2009 Malaysia) 33(1), 10-16. Oberst, K. (2002). The forces of creativity: Curiosity. [Online]. [ Accessed 26th February 2007] Available from World Wide Web: http://www.quotelady.com/writings/creativitycuriosity.html Osborn, A. (1963). Applied imagination, principles and procedures of creative problem (3rd ed). New York. Reber, A. S. (Ed.) (1985).The penguin dictionary of psychology. Harmondsworth: Middlesex: Penguin. Reio, T., & Petrosko, J., Wiswell, A., & Thongsukmag, J. (2006). The measurement and conceptualization of curiosity. The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 167(2), 117-135. Rogers, C., & Dymond, R. (1954). Psychotherapy and personality. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Roman, B., & Kay, J. (2007). Fostering curiosity: Using the educator-learner relationship to promote a facilitative environment. Psychiatery, 70 (3), 205-208. Sheldon, K. M. (1995). Creativity and self-determination in personality. Creativity Research Journal, 8(1), 25-36. Song, H., Grabowski, B. (2006). Stimulating intrinsic motivation for problem solving using Goaloriented contexts and peer group composition. Educational Technology, Research and development, 54(5), 445-466. Sternberg, R., & Lubart. T. (1995). Defying the crowd: cultivating creativity in a culture of conformity. New York: Free Press. Torrance, P. (1988). The nature of creativity as manifest in its testing. In R. Sternberg (Ed.), The nature of creativity (pp. 43-75). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Torrance, P., & Kathy, G. (1990). Fostering academic creativity in gifted students. (ERIC Document Full-text Reproduction Service No t#E484). Vaicunas, J. (Ed.). (1998). Educational Psychology: A developmental approach: McGraw - Hill. Voss, H., & Keller., H. (1983). Curiosity and exploration: Theories and results. New York: Academic Press.

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