The Innovation Generation

After reading the book Creating Innovators by Dr. Tony Wagner, I began to think of how the STEM classroom can become a catalyst for creating young innovators.  Dr. Wagner has created a category for the elementary school youth who are "digital natives" he calls the Innovation Generation.  These are the children ages eight to eighteen who on average spend more time on their electronic devices than they do in classrooms.  These young people often find the internet more compelling than the teacher standing in front of them.  This generation have by far the greatest interest in innovation and entrepreneurship than any generation in history.  Finally, Dr. Wagner says much of the Innovation Generation have an innate desire to put their mark on the world.


Dr. Wagner maintains if the following three elements are developed by parents, teachers and mentors an enormous difference can be make in the lives of young innovators.

• Play
• Passion 
• Purpose

 Play:
An child's imagination which explores different worlds, learning new ideas and reflecting on possibilities is a form of play.  The research about the importance of play spans many decades.  Maria Montessori, Lev Vygotsky and Jean Piaget have all done groundbreaking research on the importance of play.  Play is a part of human nature and an intrinsic motivator.

Passion:
Passion is the intrinsic motivation to explore something new, understand something more deeply and master something difficult.  In his book The Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell writes about the importance of working at something for ten thousand hours in order to achieve mastery.  Gladwell identifies famous innovators such as Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg.   Their time spent on their products was passion driven.

Purpose:
As much as passion drives young innovators, purpose is far more deeper and more sustainable.  This sense of purpose can take many forms, Dr. Wagner found the greatest purpose, the desire to somehow make a difference in the world. 

How does your STEM classroom foster play, passion and purpose?