Commentary on Interest-Driven Creator theory: a US perspective on fostering interest, creativity, and habit in school

Abstract

In this commentary on Interest-Driven Creator (IDC) theory, the authors reflect on the proposed three-step cycles of (i) sparking students' interest, (ii) fostering individual creativity, and (iii) inculcating lifelong learning habits. Each component of IDC theory pulls together a wide span of prior research and emphasizes active roles for students. Although the context of IDC as a prototype for educational reform is K-12 Asian classrooms, we note that some US schools are also mired in a focus on test scores. This is especially true among the US most struggling, low-income schools, where a lack of electives and afterschool programs correspond to diminished student perceptions about their own autonomy as learners and their future creative potential. Thus, while IDC is an important provocation for curricular reform in Asia, there is also the need to broaden its scope and begin to explore the potential of IDC as a leadership tool beyond Asia. The wider learning sciences community, the commentary concludes, is uniquely suited to support such an extension, and there are many opportunities for productive international collaboration.

An interest-driven creator English course for developing Chinese private college students’ listening and speaking proficiency under a blended setting

“…The IDC curriculum anchored and linked real-world listening and speaking contexts of functional proficiency, enabling students to confidently engage in daily English events individually or in small groups. This learning approach (Roschelle & Burke, 2019), facilitated by learning creation, fostered a preference for teacher support during group activities. Self-efficacy played a significant role (Eggers et al, 2021) when summative teacher support replaced the detailed version, as learning creation gradually aligned with listening and speaking proficiency in daily routines, setting the stage for the formation of learning habits.…”

Interest-Driven Creator Course in a Blended Setting to Develop Chinese College Students’ Adaptive Learning Skills

“…The adaptive environment (Chatterjee, 2022) facilitates learners to self-regulate their learning and enable them to enhance their affective, psychological, cognitive and social development by learning to master their performance orientation and academic selfhandicap strategies. Their acceptance of the utility of technology should enhance their academic efficacy, personal achievement, goal orientation, academic-related perceptions, beliefs, and strategies (Roschelle & Burke, 2019;Strekalova-Hughes et al, 2021).…”

Replies to commentaries on IDC Theory in practice

“…It serves as a conceptual framework in the desire to serve as a model for educational transformation in response to the articulated education problems manifested in Asia. In this regard, we also note the perspective of Roschelle et al (2019) using IDC as a leadership tool to engage school and education leaders in postulating the future of education, both within and beyond their jurisdiction. The explainable prediction part of IDC (what will be the empirical outcomes of curriculum design and teaching and learning based on the IDC Theory) needs to be worked on in future research on IDC interventions.…”

“…For this reason, it makes sense that the actual learning process occurs during creation (Chan et al, 2019). Roschelle and Burke (2019) aptly describe that for learning to occur, educators must first cater to student interest as launching points for student-centred learning that will augment students to immerse more profoundly in their interest.…”