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Creativity is inherent in people. It unfolds when circumstances allow it. (Carl Rogers) |
Goals of flex-based learning
Creativity and problem-solving skills are key qualifications for shaping tomorrow’s world in an innovative, resource-saving and sustainable way.
FLEX-BASED LEARNING was developed at the Upper Austrian University of Education (PH OÖ) in order to impart these skills to young people. It contains a collection of innovative teaching techniques for science lessons, the focus of which lies in the promotion of intellectual and experimental flexibility
Techniques in flex-based learning
All the following techniques have been published in numerous textbooks of the series Expedition Chemie, Expedition-Physik and Expedition Biology by E.Dornerverlag.
Think-flex
THINK-FLEX tasks specifically train the change of perspective and promote skills such as “finding hypotheses”, “drawing conclusions” and “recognizing opportunities and risks”.
You can find an example here.
Woseco
As an abbreviation for word-sentence constructions, young people train their linguistic creativity when performing Woseco’s. Given technical terms have to be brought together in a new, meaningful context.
You can find an example here.
Nano Live Act & Modeling
Forming analogies is a central element of creative development processes. In addition to applying existing analogies, students are encouraged to develop real, practical models based on scientific phenomena.
You can find an example here.
Memorization techniques
Memorization techniques challenge the imagination and lead to the storage of complex specialist knowledge by means of flexible thinking strategies.
You can find an example here.
flex experiments
flex experiments train experimental, creative problem solving. Students are trained to find as many different ideas as possible for solving scientific problems and to implement them in an experimental setting. The selection of certain everyday materials encourages the misuse of materials and thus trains lateral thinking.
flex experiments promote not only the independent planning, implementation and presentation of solutions but also the development of a positive error culture and the cultivation of an increased expectation of self-efficacy.
You can find an example here.
flex-BOX
Innovative material collections were developed for the subjects chemistry and physics for all flex experiments. As a so-called flex-box, it can be used as a mobile experimental laboratory and is available from the teaching materials company Conatex GmbH.
A description of the flex-boxes can be found here in the Conatex catalogue.