Using children’s search patterns to predict the quality of their creative problem solving
| Pages | 538-550 |
| Date | 17 September 2018 |
| Published date | 17 September 2018 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/AJIM-05-2018-0103 |
| Author | Cristian Olivares-Rodríguez,Mariluz Guenaga,Pablo Garaizar |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science,Information behaviour & retrieval,Information & knowledge management,Information management & governance,Information management |
Using children’s search patterns
to predict the quality of their
creative problem solving
Cristian Olivares-Rodríguez
Austral University of Chile, Valdivia, Chile, and
Mariluz Guenaga and Pablo Garaizar
Department of Engineering, University of Deusto, Bilbao, Spain
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to propose a computational model that implicitly predict the
children’s creative quality of solutions by analyzing the query pattern on a problem-solving-based lesson.
Design/methodology/approach –A search task related to the competencies acquired in the classroom was
applied to automatically measure children’creativity. A blind review process of the creative quality was
developed of 255 primary school students’solutions.
Findings –While there are many creativity training programs that have proven effective, many of these
programs require measuring creativity previously which involves time-consuming tasks conducted by
experienced reviewers, i.e. far from primaryschool classroom dynamics. The authorshave developed a model
that predictsthe creative quality ofthe given solution using the searchqueries pattern as input.This model has
been used to predict the creative quality of 255 primaryschool students’solutions with 80 percentsensitivity.
Research limitations/implications –Although the research was conducted with just one search task,
participants come from two different countries. Therefore, the authorshope that this model provides detection
of non-creative solutions to enable prompt intervention and improve the creative quality of solutions.
Originality/value –This is the first implicit classification model of query pattern in order to predict the
children’creative quality of solutions. This model is based on a conceptual relation between the concept
association of creative thinking and query chain model of information search.
Keywords Elementary education, Information searchbehaviour, Creative thinking,
Educational data mining, Children’s searchpatterns, Query pattern
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
The increasing automation of everyday tasks and the progressive growth of available
information make creative problem solving one of the most relevant skills of the twenty-first
century. In this context, creativity and efficiency align to achieve a creative and efficient
solution. However, students who are good at mathematics, science or language are not
necessarily good at creative problem solving (OECD, 2014). Fortunately, creativity is not an
innate ability but can be developed. There are many creativity training programs which
have proven effective (Mansfield et al., 1978; Scott et al., 2004).
Creative problem solving demands an active process of searching for alternatives, i.e.
information, to develop a novel and useful solution for a proposed challenge. Similarly,
concept association skills have proven essential for the generation of creative ideas, since
the greater the amount, diversity, originality and elaboration of associations, the better the
opportunity for creative ideas to emerge (Mednick, 1962; Torrance, 1966, 1974; Torrance and
Goff, 1990; Benedek and Neubauer, 2013).
Unfortunately, measuring creativity requires long procedures where experts on creativity
have to evaluate it manually. Also, creativity is often explicitly measured –which tends to
predispose individuals –through activities designed exclusively for the evaluation and
thus, external to the learning process. We propose a computational model that implicitly
predicts the children’s creative quality of solutions by analyzing the query pattern on a
problem-solving-based lesson.
Aslib Journal of Information
Management
Vol. 70 No. 5, 2018
pp. 538-550
© Emerald PublishingLimited
2050-3806
DOI 10.1108/AJIM-05-2018-0103
Received 21 May 2018
Revised 12 July 2018
Accepted 14 August 2018
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/2050-3806.htm
538
AJIM
70,5
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