Balancing Academic Rigor and Creative Thinking: A Transformational Approach to Teaching Senior Design.

Area of Science:

• Engineering Education
• Bioengineering Design
• Creativity Studies

Background:

• Innovation in engineering is often linked to creativity, yet traditional curricula seldom incorporate creative development.
• "Thinking outside the box" is recognized as crucial for engineering innovation and invention.
• There is a gap in integrating creative methodologies into rigorous engineering education.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the integration of theater-based creativity methods into bioengineering capstone design courses.
• To evaluate the impact of these methods on student outcomes and pedagogical processes.
• To identify and address tensions between academic rigor and creative exploration in engineering education.

Main Methods:

• Implementation of theater-based creativity methods in bioengineering capstone design projects starting in 2015.
• Iterative refinement of the pedagogical approach in subsequent years (2016, 2017).
• Observation and discussion of tensions encountered during the integration process.

Main Results:

• Initial evaluation of student outcomes from integrating theater-based methods was encouraging.
• Identified tensions between maintaining academic rigor and fostering student creativity.
• Observed resistance from some faculty and students viewing creative methods as "artsy" or lacking rigor.

Conclusions:

• Theater-based creativity methods show promise for enhancing bioengineering design education.
• Strategies are needed to mitigate perceived conflicts between creativity and academic rigor.
• Further development and expansion of successful integration models are warranted.