A framework for developing innovative problem-solving and creativity skills for engineering undergraduates

Abstract

Background and Purpose Problem-solving and creativity skills are a set of skills that are highly looked for in today’s engineers. Globalization and the rapid pace of technology growth, including awareness on sustainability, have created the needs for such skills. However, the traditional method of rote teaching does not facilitate these skills well, especially in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Hence, a framework is proposed that encompasses the content, delivery method, and assessment, in the hope of instilling these skills in engineering undergraduates. The framework is developed for the MENA region but is generic enough to be applicable to other regions. Design of Framework Emphasis will be given on three areas—namely, content, delivery, and assessment. For the content, Teoriya Resheniya Izobretatelskikh Zadatch (TRIZ) will be used as the cognitive tool. This tool will be used to educate students about problem-solving skills by using problem-based learning (delivery method) as a pedagogy tool. The complexity of problem solving and creative solutions makes the role of students in preparing the solutions and academics in assessing the outcome fuzzy and complicated. Since problem-solving skills are very subjective due to their open-endedness, assessing them should be on a more qualitative scheme rather than quantitative. Hence, rubrics are used as an assessment tool. Anticipations The proposed framework will be easy to implement and focused on outcome. Besides this, the number of patents generated by undergraduates should increase, creating confidence and removing any sort of physiological inertia towards creativity and problem solving. In particular to the MENA region, the proposed framework is easy to implement and is relevant. Conclusions The proposed framework encompasses content, delivery, and assessment means for instilling problem-solving and creativity skills. The proposed framework will most likely improve the level and quality of solution and reduce the time to generate solutions among undergraduates. This can be used as a basis to translate the findings to secondary and primary schools to start teaching creativity and problem solving at a younger age.