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Title:: Finding Students Who Are Wise, = Practical, and=20 Creative.
Authors:: Sternberg, Robert = J.¹
Source:: Chronicle of Higher Education; = 7/6/2007, Vol. 53=20 Issue 44, pB11-B12, 2p, 1c
Document Type:: Article
Subject Terms:: *ACADEMIC achievement
*CHARACTER=20 tests
*CITIZENSHIP
*COLLEGE entrance achievement = tests
*CREATIVE=20 ability
*EDUCATION -- Aims & objectives
*EDUCATIONAL tests = &=20 measurements
*LEADERSHIP
*PERSONALITY tests
*STUDENTS -- = Rating=20 of
TUFTS University (Boston, Mass.)
Geographic = Terms:: MASSACHUSETTS
Abstract:: The article discusses the educational = model=20 WICS, an acronym for "wisdom, intelligence, and creativity, = synthesizes, which=20 was designed for college admission offices to use to assess a student = in a way=20 that is beyond just academics. It is suggested in the article that = when a=20 college is selecting a student to attend their institution attributes = like=20 good citizenship and positive leadership should be considered along = side=20 grades and test scores. WICS was developed by the Center for the = Psychology of=20 Abilities, Competencies, and Expertise, which was originally located = at Yale=20 University and is now at Tufts, as the PACE Center. An overview is = presented=20 of the assessments and testing that is involved with the WICS=20 model.
Author = Affiliations:: ¹Dean, School of Arts and = Sciences,=20 professor of psychology, and adjunct professor of education, Tufts=20 University
Full Text Word = Count:: 2478
ISSN:: 0009-5982
Accession = Number:: 25847215
Persistent link to this record:=20: http://search.ebscohost.com/log= in.aspx?direct=3Dtrue&db=3Daph&AN=3D25847215&site=3Dehost-liv= e
Cut and Paste:: <A=20 = href=3D"http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=3Dtrue&db=3Daph= &AN=3D25847215&site=3Dehost-live">Finding=20 Students Who Are Wise, Practical, and Creative.</A>
Database:: Academic Search = Premier

Finding Students Who Are Wise, Practical, and = Creative=20

One purpose of a college education is to = create active=20 and engaged citizens and future leaders. If we want students who have = the=20 potential to become such people, when we evaluate applicants we need to = keep in=20 mind the skills involved in good citizenship and positive = leadership.

Many of the leaders who have gotten the world = into its=20 current messes did well on admissions tests and attended prestigious = colleges=20 and universities. Jeffrey Skilling, a former CEO of Enron, graduated = from=20 Harvard University's business school, and Andrew Fastow, who was Enron's = CFO,=20 graduated from Tufts University. John Rigas, the founder of Adelphia=20 Communications, who was convicted of fraud in the company's demise, = received a=20 bachelor's degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

The problem is not that those leaders aren't = smart; they=20 are. The problem is that they lack -- and their colleges and graduate = schools=20 evidently did not teach them -- certain important skills, attitudes, and = values=20 involved in being good citizens and successful leaders.

How might the assessments colleges use in = admissions=20 decisions better reflect the kinds of qualities that matter not just = during a=20 student's education, but throughout life? At the Center for the = Psychology of=20 Abilities, Competencies, and Expertise, originally located at Yale = University=20 and now at Tufts, as the PACE Center, we have collaborated with teams = across the=20 country to develop assessments that measure some of the relevant skills. = The=20 model that underlies our assessments is called WICS, an acronym for = "wisdom,=20 intelligence, and creativity, synthesized" -- although wisdom was not = initially=20 part of my theory.

The basic idea of the model is that active and = engaged=20 citizenship -- as well as leadership -- requires individuals to = synthesize=20 creative skills, to produce a vision for how they intend to make the = world a=20 better place for everyone; analytical intellectual skills, to assess = their=20 vision and those of others; practical intellectual skills, to carry out = their=20 vision and persuade people of its value; and wisdom, to ensure that = their vision=20 is not a selfish one. Can we apply the model to assessments that can be = used in=20 college and university admissions?

Typical admissions assessments are useful but = narrow=20 measures of ability and achievement. For example, the SAT Reasoning and = Subject=20 Tests primarily evaluate students' remembered knowledge, and the = analytical=20 skills they can apply to that knowledge. Creativity, practical thinking, = and=20 wisdom are assessed minimally, if at all, on conventional standardized=20 tests.

My collaborators and I hoped to broaden the = scope of=20 high-stakes admissions assessments. In our Rainbow Project -- a study = supported=20 financially by the College Board -- we designed questions to measure = analytical,=20 creative, and practical thinking that could be used to supplement tests = such as=20 the SAT Reasoning Test, which measures analytical skills in the verbal = and=20 mathematical domains. We brought together a large, national team of=20 investigators with diverse points of view, including both supporters and = critics=20 of conventional college-admissions assessments. We tested 1,013 = high-school=20 students and college freshmen from 15 schools and colleges. We gave them = analytical questions much like those found on traditional standardized = tests,=20 but we also had them answer creative and practical questions.

The creative tests got students to stretch = their=20 imaginations. For example, they might be asked to write a creative story = to go=20 with a title like "The Octopus's Sneakers" or "3821." Or they might be = shown a=20 collage of pictures, perhaps of musicians or athletes, and be asked to = tell an=20 oral story based on the collage. Or they might be asked to think up a = caption=20 for an untitled cartoon.

The practical tests required students to solve = everyday=20 problems, presented in written form or in videos. One video showed a = student=20 approaching a professor to ask him to write a letter of recommendation, = but=20 stopping as the professor's blank expression indicated he did not know = who the=20 student was. The test was to decide what the student should do next. = Another=20 video showed a group of friends trying to figure out how to move a large = bed up=20 a winding staircase.

How can we evaluate answers to questions that = seem so=20 subjective? Our approach is to use well-developed rubrics. We assess = analytical=20 responses based on how sound, balanced, logical, and organized they are. = We=20 evaluate creative responses' originality, quality, and appropriateness = to the=20 task presented to the students. With practical responses, we look at = their=20 feasibility with respect to time, place, and human and material = resources. We=20 assess wisdom-based responses according to how much they promote a = common good=20 by balancing the student's and others' interests -- as well as larger=20 institutional or global interests -- in both the long and short terms, = through=20 the use of positive values.

The results of the Rainbow Project suggest = that we can=20 assess skills beyond those involved in critical reasoning. We had = predicted that=20 the tests would show how well students did at creative and practical = thinking;=20 we were right.

The data also demonstrated that solving = multiple-choice=20 problems is a stable skill. In other words, students who did better on = one=20 multiple-choice question tended to do better on others as well, no = matter what=20 the questions were supposed to measure. Thus, using a multiple-choice = format=20 consistently seems to benefit some students.

We found that using broader tests for = admissions made it=20 easier to measure students' probable academic success. Our tests' = predictions of=20 students' grades as college freshmen were twice as good as predictions = based on=20 the students' SAT scores alone, and 50 percent better than predictions = relying=20 on high-school grade-point averages combined with SAT scores. In other = words,=20 our tests were not quixotic ventures into esoteric realms.

In addition, we discovered that using our = tests=20 significantly reduced ethnic-group differences in scores. Different = groups=20 sometimes have different concepts of intelligence and socialize their = children=20 to be intelligent in different ways. For instance, on our tests, = American=20 Indians over all performed worse than members of most other groups on = analytical=20 assessments, but had the highest average score on questions that = involved oral=20 storytelling.

Using such tests could mean not only admitting = more=20 members of minority groups to selective colleges, but also improving the = academic quality of the student body -- not compromising academic = excellence.=20 Different groups excel, on average, in different ways, and giving = students a=20 chance to show how they excel also gives them the opportunity to show = that they=20 can succeed. Our results are consistent with those of Claude M. Steele = of=20 Stanford University, who has shown that students may score less well on = a=20 conventional test of ability or achievement if they feel the test = presumes low=20 performance by groups to which they belong, and if their own stereotype = about=20 their group is activated.

Furthermore, the tests do not benefit only = members of=20 ethnic minorities. Many students who come from the majority group -- = even from=20 well-off families -- learn in ways that are different from those = assessed by=20 conventional standardized tests. Although those students may well have = the=20 abilities they need to succeed in college and throughout life, that fact = may not=20 be reflected in their scores on such tests. Our tests measure such = students'=20 aptitudes more comprehensively.

In 2005 I moved from Yale University to Tufts=20 University, where I became dean of the School of Arts and Sciences. = Tufts has=20 strongly emphasized the role of active citizenship in education, so it = seemed=20 like an ideal setting to put into practice some of the ideas from the = Rainbow=20 Project. In collaboration with Lee Coffin, dean of undergraduate = admissions, who=20 had primary responsibility for executing the project, and with the = cooperation=20 of Linda Abriola, dean of engineering, I began Project Kaleidoscope. It = puts=20 into use the earlier project's ideas and also assesses the construct of=20 wisdom.

On the 2006-7 application for the two = undergraduate=20 schools at Tufts -- arts and sciences, and engineering -- we introduced = optional=20 extended-response questions designed to measure creative, analytical, = practical,=20 and wise thinking. The 15,381 applicants for the Class of 2011 were = invited to=20 answer any one of the questions, thus allowing students to highlight one = of=20 their strengths and avoiding the usual pressure inherent in high-stakes = tests=20 that require students to answer many complex questions in very short = amounts of=20 time.

One creative question asked students to write = a story=20 with the title "Confessions of a Middle-School Bully"; in another = example,=20 students were asked to design an advertisement for a new product. One = practical=20 question asked students to describe how they had persuaded friends to = share an=20 unpopular belief. A wisdom question asked students how they could use a = passion=20 of theirs to benefit other people.

We also evaluated applicants in a new way. We = not only=20 looked at each student's academic achievement, talent, and personal = qualities,=20 but we also considered his or her wisdom, creativity, and practical = intellectual=20 abilities.

The preliminary results under Project = Kaleidoscope for=20 the Tufts Class of 2011 are very promising. The quality of applicants on = the=20 whole rose substantially, as measured by the traditional indicators of = grades,=20 class rank, standardized-test scores, and curricular rigor. Considered = by any=20 standard that we have used, both the academic and the personal = credentials of=20 the applicant pool were the best we have seen.

The mean SAT scores of accepted students are = at an=20 all-time high for Tufts. The new assessments are not negatively = correlated with=20 SAT scores; rather, they are not much correlated at all. Thus, adopting = the new=20 measurements does not result in less-qualified applicants being = admitted.=20 Indeed, the applicants admitted to Tufts during this pilot program are = more=20 qualified, considered in broader terms. Perhaps most rewarding were the = comments=20 from many applicants that our application, unlike typical forms, had = given them=20 a chance to show their true strengths.

With regard to diversity, it appears that = Project=20 Kaleidoscope helped us identify and admit substantially more qualified = students=20 of color. For example, we admitted roughly 30 percent more = African-American=20 students than the year before, and 15 percent more Hispanic students. = Greatly=20 increased financial-aid resources, made possible as a result of the = generosity=20 of our alumni donors, contributed to enabling those students to = matriculate.

As was the case with the Rainbow Project, we = showed that=20 it is possible to increase academic quality -- defined in multiple ways = -- and=20 diversity simultaneously. Furthermore, we have now done so for an entire = undergraduate class at a major university, not just for samples of = students at a=20 small number of colleges. We hope that next year's results will match = this=20 year's.

Moreover, we have sent an important message to = students,=20 parents, high-school guidance counselors, and others: We believe that = there is=20 more to a person than just the narrow spectrum of skills assessed by = traditional=20 standardized tests. Many colleges, including Tufts, have sought to admit = students on the basis of broader skills; Project Kaleidoscope allowed us = to=20 highlight the additional skills and to assess them in a quantifiable = way.

Once students are admitted through such a = program, they=20 should be taught in ways that match their strengths. Otherwise, their = diverse=20 learning skills may not serve them well in college. At Tufts, we have = created a=20 new center that offers seminars for faculty members on teaching, aimed = at the=20 same skills we highlighted in the admissions process. Those who = participated in=20 the seminar's first year gave it, on average, an almost-perfect = rating.

In a related research project in which I = collaborated at=20 Yale -- with Steven Stemler, Elena L. Grigorenko, and Linda Jarvin, and=20 supported by the Educational Testing Service and the College Board -- we = applied=20 the same principles to high-stakes achievement testing used for college=20 admissions and placement. We modified advanced-placement tests in = psychology and=20 statistics additionally to assess analytical, creative, and practical=20 skills.

In psychology, for instance, we gave students = four ways=20 to discuss sleep. After a brief introduction ("A variety of explanations = have=20 been proposed to account for why people sleep."), we presented four = tasks (the=20 type of task is indicated in parentheses): *

Describe the restorative theory of sleep = (memory).

* An alternative theory is an evolutionary = theory of=20 sleep, sometimes referred to as the "preservation and protection" = theory.=20 Describe this theory and compare and contrast it with the restorative = theory.=20 State what you see as two strong points and two weak points of this = theory=20 compared to the restorative theory (analytical).

* How might you design an experiment to test = the=20 restorative theory of sleep? Briefly describe the experiment, including = the=20 participants, materials, procedures, and design (creative).

* A friend informs you that she is having = trouble=20 sleeping. Based on your knowledge of sleep, what kinds of helpful -- and = health-promoting -- suggestions might you give her to help her fall = asleep at=20 night (practical)?

We found that by asking such questions, as in = the other=20 studies, we were able to both increase the range of skills we tested and = substantially reduce ethnic-group differences in test scores.

The ways in which we assess students' = knowledge and=20 skills have not changed much over the past 100 years. Perhaps such = assessments=20 met the cognitive demands placed on students a century ago, but they do = not meet=20 the cognitive demands of the world today. Active and engaged citizens = now must=20 be able to: be flexible, responding to rapid changes in the environment; = think=20 critically about what they are told in the media, whether by = newscasters,=20 politicians, advertisers, scientists, or others; carry out their ideas = and=20 persuade others of their value; and, most of all, have the wisdom to = avoid=20 becoming bad leaders.

It is time for assessments, as well as = instruction, that=20 reflect the demands of the current era.

The assessments I have described do not = measure all the=20 skills required for success in everyday life. For example, although I = assess=20 teamwork in courses I teach, the assessments mentioned here do not = measure that=20 skill -- at least, not directly. Moreover, making the assessments usable = on a=20 statewide or nationwide basis would no doubt present new challenges. = And,=20 naturally, expanded assessments would cost more time and money.

But when we consider the benefits of = broadening the=20 horizons of students -- of both genders and all ethnic backgrounds -- = who learn=20 and think in different ways, the costs no longer seem too large. Our = society=20 does not only need people who can analyze and memorize well; even more = important=20 are citizens and leaders who are also creative, practical, and wise. One = way to=20 develop those talents is to consider in college admissions and = instruction the=20 broad range of skills behind good citizenship and leadership.

PHOTO (COLOR)

~~~~~~~~

By Robert J. Sternberg

Robert J. Sternberg is dean of the School of = Arts and=20 Sciences, a professor of psychology, and an adjunct professor of = education at=20 Tufts University. His books include Wisdom, Intelligence, and Creativity = Synthesized (Cambridge University Press, 2003).

The Chronicle of Higher Education:=20 (http://chronicle.com) 1-800-728-2803 Copyright of Chronicle of Higher = Education=20 is the property of Chronicle of Higher Education and its content may not = be=20 copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the=20 copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, = download, or email articles for individual use.

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