creative thinking

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(20 points) 

Your group met in class and chose a topic surrounding "social change" to work on for this team project and framed a question to solve. For those of you not in class today, someone from your group will send you the topic and question they came up with to solve. (A few groups were 100% no-shows, so you have to find ways to determine a group project to solve. The Sympl app you downloaded in class is one way to find times to meet. You can also write each other in group emails. If you don't receive an email from someone in your group, you may fall into this category.)

Attendance will be taken for the remainder of the class project and 10 points will be deducted from your grade each time you are a no-show without a medical excuse.

ASSIGNMENT: 

  1. RESEARCH THE TOPIC YOUR GROUP CHOSE EXACTLY AS EXPLAINED BELOW
  2. FRAME A NEW QUESTION FROM THE ONE CHOSEN IN CLASS WITH YOUR NEW UNDERSTANDING OF THE REALITIES SURROUNDING THE TOPIC

PART 1: RESEARCH

This assignment begins our group project to solve a complex problem, which is a type of problem that seems unsolvable, hence, it's desperately in need of a creative solution, one that has never been thought of before. That's where your group will come in, to try to find a way to lessen the impact of your chosen problem that will bring about social change. 

Why research the topic? The original question you framed in class during your group meeting ("How might we....?") is based on a hunch about how things actually are surrounding your social-change issue. t's critical that you learn about and understand a problem if you hope to come up with a realistic way to solve it. 

So, research the specific area you asked a question about that you thought you might like can try to solve. What are the realities? 

Your new knowledge on this topic will cause you to frame a better question. 

TYPES OF RESEARCH YOU MUST DO, AND HOW TO FORMAT IT FOR TURNING IN

Complete sections A and B. 

A. FACTS: 

Answer the eight questions below about your topic. Make sure you: 

  • Answer each question with at least five full sentences using your own words, no cutting and pasting.) 
  • Come up with two questions of your own.
  • If you found your answers answers online, YOU MUST include links to the source(s) used for each question below each answer. (not in a grouping at the end of your document).  If you interview an expert for some answers, provide their full name and contact information. 
  • Number each question and include the question before each answer

QUESTIONS TO ANSWER (with at least 5 sentences each)

  1. Why is this a problem?
  2. Who is impacted or hurt by this problem and why? 
  3. What is the history of the issue? 
  4. What have others done to address this problem?
  5. What numbers (i.e., demographics, incidents, etc.) can you find on this topic? Be specific.
  6. What are the costs involved?   
  7. You ask a question 
  8. You ask a question

B. HUNCHES: Provide TEN hunches and number them. 

WHAT IS  A HUNCH?

  • A hunch is something you, or someone else, BELIEVES to be a fact, but there is no data on it, such as “Students hate taking the bus on campus.” This may be true, but have they done a survey? I think not. So, t's a hunch, an opinion. What hunches do you have surrounding your topic?  
  •  Why do we care about hunches? A hunch can lead to a good solution. Hunches can later prove to be true, so they're worth investigating. 
  • An opinion: A view or judgment formed about something, not necessarily based on fact or knowledge, such as the beliefs or views of a large number or majority of people about a particular thing. Having a belief about something does not make it a fact. What are people’s feelings, attitudes, frustrations, behaviors, hearsay, and intuitions?

I EXPECT THOROUGHNESS IN YOUR RESEARCH

MSU LIBRARY: librarians are expert at helping find information. Here are links to some information about obesity in children from the MSU library website. 

 Don’t know how to research? Here are ways to gather information:

  • Electronic: Gathering information on Web sites, databases, etc.
  • Print materials: Background information available in books, newspapers, and periodicals
  • Primary: Direct observations, interviews, questionnaires
  • Informal: Organization files, conversations with knowledgeable people, informal surveys

PART 2: FIGURE OUT A PROBLEM TO SOLVE

Once you've completed your research, now it's time to come up with a better problem you'd like to tackle, to try and solve.

  • Make sure your problem is a complex problem, something that NO ONE HAS BEEN ABLE TO SOLVE.
  • Ask your question like this: "How might we ..."

NOTE: YOU MAY NOT ASK A QUESTION (OR COME UP WITH A SOLUTION LATER ON) THAT INVOLVES "RAISING AWARENESS".  Raising awareness is NOT a complex enough problem to solve and is not a solution in itself. For example, all you have to do is start an advertising campaign. So, for example, instead of asking (you may not use these question below for your assignment),

"How might we raise awareness about the addictive qualities of opioids",

ask something that seems to have NO solution like:

"How might we STOP opioid use?"

But that's a pretty broad question. It's too big to solve, like asking "How might we cure cancer?" Better to narrow it down to something manageable, like:

"How might we stop opioid use on campus?"

TO SUBMIT:

Put your question from Part 2 at the top of a document followed by your research answers. Separate your research with the labels FACTS and HUNCHES. Submit a document to the "Group project, Part 1: Research/Problem" dropbox. 

NOTE

  • BRING YOUR QUESTION TO THE NEXT CLASS TO SHARE WITH YOUR GROUP.
  • ATTENDANCE, WORTH TEN POINTS (FOR THE THREE GROUP SESSIONS IN CLASS TOTALING 30 POINTS), WILL BE TAKEN. 
  • DUE TO THE ABSENCE OF SO MANY STUDENTS, I AM ADDING THESE POINTS TO THE CLASS POINTS TOTAL TO ENSURE PARTICIPATION IN GROUP MEETINGS. IF YOU DO NOT ATTEND, YOU WILL LOSE POINTS OFF YOUR FINAL GRADE.