Innovation 323 Lecture 01
The Practice of Innovation
Winter 2008
Saturday: 1:00PM, January 19, 26, February 2, 9, 23, March 8, 15, 29, April 5

 

 

Instructor:	Thomas Kenworthy
Office Location:	SH 478
Office Phone:
E-Mail:	Thomas_kenworthy@haskayne.ucalgary.ca
Web Page:
Office Hours:	By appointment

Course Description

Innovation 323 (INNO 323) is designed to inspire, stimulate and develop creativity by eliciting perception and playfulness.  The intellectual underpinnings of INNO 323 are derived from knowledge in the field of creativity.  The course is structured to stimulate imagination and enhance creative expression through participation in numerous creative contexts such as artistic performance (drumming, painting, and acting) and industrial design.  Logical and analytical thinking styles are purposely suppressed in order to (provide an environment that may) enhance idea generation and exploration skills.

 

INNO 323 students learn by linking theoretical aspects of creativity with practice/performance.  In this theory/self-discovery process, students use creativity tools to find problems.  Eventually, the free and divergent (and sometimes uncomfortable) process transitions into problem solving. 

 

From the first class onward, Innovation 323 students are immersed in a creative and flexible environment that includes 1) interaction with, and mentorship by, creative and innovative guests/experts[1] and 2) exposure to a variety of creative materials.  The guests (artists, entrepreneurs, designers and academics) will be involved to differing degrees; some will work with the entire class and some will be project-specific.  In this way, student learning occurs through trial and error with expert guidance.

 

 

Structure & Format: Innovation 323 is an experiential learning class focused on creativity and communication skill enhancement.  The course is designed to encourage free and lateral thinking by instilling comfort and confidence with respect to creative processes.

 

Innovation 323 is broken down into the following stages: 1) problem finding; 2) problem solving; 3) communication planning; and 4) communicating.  Each stage involves degrees of overlap with the others.

 

Stage 1

Theory: Students are introduced to the field of creativity and a variety of creativity enhancement tools.  They explore what creativity is, how it is demonstrated and the nature of its outcomes

 

Practice: Students begin problem finding through group brainstorming.  They are given a project focus on Day 1.

 

Stage 2

Theory: Students are briefly introduced to a variety of lenses for understanding the world.  Quantitative and qualitative methods are considered and ethnographic fieldwork techniques are discussed.

 

Practice: Students collect data thorough fieldwork techniques in order to develop greater understanding of their project ideas.  Then, they engage in the creative process with materials.

 

Stage 3

Theory: Students are introduced to methods of communicating

 

Practice: Students participate in painting and vocal / drama training exercises.  Then, they develop presentations (including skits) in order to present their ideas to an audience.  Group project work continues.

 

Stage 4

Practice: Students present their final ideas.

 

 

 

Objectives of the Course

One of the main expectations in the contemporary workplace and economy is the need for creative employees and entrepreneurs, respectively.  Employers argue the need for creative university graduates.  Scholars proclaim the importance of creativity for entrepreneurial business success.  However, there are many, many unanswered questions such as ‘can creativity be enhanced?' and ‘what are the key drivers of group creativity?'  In Innovation 323, the instructor takes the position that creative thinking styles are accessible (i.e. pre-existing, to varying degrees) to all students, but need to be fostered in some cases more than others. 

 

The Innovation 323 objectives are broken down into three levels: general, teaching and specific. 

 

The general objective is:

 

To provide a safe and comfortable environment for students to explore their creativity. 

 

The teaching objectives are:

 

• 1. To discuss the concept of creativity and its domains;
• 2. To expose students to current creativity knowledge and managerial implications; and,
• 3. To discuss the methods for enhancing creativity.

 

The specific objectives are broken down into content, skill and situational objectives:

 

Content:          Greater knowledge about creativity, individual and group

Skill:              Improved ability to generate ideas

                      Improved ability to conduct fieldwork (research) sessions

                      Improved ability to communicate and develop professional networks

Situational      Increased confidence, tolerance of ambiguity and comfort with uncertainty

                      Increased self-awareness regarding creative skills and intuition

 

 

Textbooks and Readings:

Reading materials will be provided in advance by the instructor.  If you do not receive them in class, extra copies will be available in the instructor's mailbox (ENTI Area, 4^th Floor of Scurfield hall)

Assignments and Evaluation

#         Nature                      Name                        Value (%)      Due

1	Individual	Product Feedback	20	January 30, 2008 (1PM)
2	Individual	Creativity Assignment	20	February 13, 2008 (1PM)
4	Individual	Observer Report	5	The Friday following each class
5	Group	Final Project	40	April 14, 2008 (3PM)
6	Group	Final Presentation	15	April 5, 2008 (1-5PM)

 

It is the student's responsibility to keep a copy of each submitted assignment.
Note: Please hand in your essays directly to your instructor if possible. If it is not possible to do so, the instructor's mailbox (ENTI Area, 4^th Floor of Scurfield Hall) is available.

Intra-Group Evaluations

 

At the conclusion of the course, each student will be provided a form with which they will evaluate their fellow group member's performances. The evaluations may be used to adjust (up or down) the grades of individual students.

 

Policy for Late Assignments

Assignments submitted after the deadline may be penalized with the loss of a grade (e.g.: A- to B+) for each day late.  Please see each assignment for details.

Writing Skills Statement

Faculty policy directs that all written assignments (including, although to a lesser extent, written exam responses) will be assessed at least partly on writing skills. For details see www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/info. Writing skills include not only surface correctness (grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, etc) but also general clarity and organization. Research papers must be properly documented.

If you need help with your writing, you may use the Writing Centre.  Visit the website for more details: www.efwr.ucalgary.ca

Grading System

The following grading system is used in the Faculty of Communication and Culture:

A+ (96-100); A (92-95); A- (86-91); B+ (81-85); B (77-80); B- (71-76);
C+ (65-70); C (62-64); C- (59-61); D+ (55-58); D (50-54); F (0-49)

 

Plagiarism

Using any source whatsoever without clearly documenting it is a serious academic offense. Consequences include failure on the assignment, failure in the course and possibly suspension or expulsion from the university.

You must document not only direct quotations but also paraphrases and ideas where they appear in your text. A reference list at the end is insufficient by itself. Readers must be able to tell exactly where your words and ideas end and other people's words and ideas begin. This includes assignments submitted in non-traditional formats such as Web pages or visual media, and material taken from such sources.

Please consult your instructor or the Writing Centre (SS 106, efwr.ucalgary.ca) if you have any questions regarding how to document sources.

Students with Disabilities

If you are a student with a disability who may require academic accommodation, it is your responsibility to register with the Disability Resource Centre (220-8237) and discuss your needs with your instructor no later than fourteen (14) days after the start of the course.

Students' Union

For details about the current Students' Union contacts for the Faculty of Communication and Culture see www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/su

"SAFEWALK" Program -- 220-5333

Campus Security will escort individuals day or night -- call 220-5333 for assistance. Use any campus phone, emergency phone or the yellow phone located at most parking lot booths.

Ethics

Whenever you perform research with human participants (i.e. surveys, interviews, observation) as part of your university studies, you are responsible for following university research ethics guidelines.  Your instructor must review and approve of your research plans and supervise your research.  For more information about your research ethics responsibilities, see the U of C Research Ethics "Information for Applicants," sections 3.0 to 9.0, inclusive: http://www.ucalgary.ca/UofC/research/html/ethics/info_undergrad.html

Schedule of Lectures and Readings

 

 

Class 1 (Jan 19)

The class begins with course and instructor introductions, questions and course expectations (from students and the instructor).  The class project will be discussed.  The creative momentum will begin with an ice-breaker activity.

 

Workshop - Group creativity exercise ("Design a ....")

 

Practice - Student begin group work.

 

Readings for assignments #1 and 2 will be handed out and/or links will be placed on Blackboard (extras will be placed in my mailbox in the ENTI Area, 4^th Floor of Scurfield Hall)

 

Class 2 (Jan 26)

Students sit at their group desks upon entering the classroom.  The instructor will field any questions or comments and welcome new students (if necessary).

 

Lecture - Brief discussion of creativity theory and research

 

Video - IDEO video (industrial design firm).  The video serves to give students an understanding of the types of group work that they will experience.

 

Practice - Students engage in another creativity exercise and then, continue project brainstorming

 

Class 3 (Feb 2)

Guest Presenter

 

Lecture - Discussion of group brainstorming and decision-making tools, as well as fieldwork tips and tools.  Explicit instructions regarding data collection will be provided such that each group can effectively analyze the results on February 23.

 

Practice - Groups work on project ideas and submit a signed ‘Project Direction and Fieldwork Duties' document at the end of the class.  Groups should be making use of supplied objects such as markers, easel pads, sticky notes and so on.

 

Class 4 (Feb 9)

Practice - Student groups conduct fieldwork when and where they see fit

 

 

 

 

Class 5 (Feb 23)

Special Guest Workshop - Making sense of fieldwork data (potentially led by a special guest).

 

Practice - Groups discuss and interpret findings from fieldwork and continue to work on projects.

 

Class 6 (Mar 8)

Special Guests Workshop - Slam Poetry

 

Practice - Groups continue to work on projects.  At this stage, the groups should be seeking out materials to construct mock-ups.

 

Class 7 (Mar 15)

Special Guest Workshop - Introduction to Vocal training and Acting 

 

Practice - Groups work on projects

 

Class 8 (Mar 29)

Practice - Group project work

 

 

 

Class 9 (Apr 5)

Each presentation will include a skit and a professional discussion of the product/service idea(s).  It will be useful to explain the originality of the group outcome and its value.

 

 

 

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[1] Participation is tentative and based on the availabilities of guests.