Creativity, Play, Engagement, Learning and Games ... with Aaron Dignan

Just had a really great interview with Undercurrent's Aaron Dignan, author of Game Frame. Lots of important implications for how we create/design engaging learning and work. We explored why we are so attracted to things like games, what a "game-like mindset" is, the difference between liking something and wanting something, the connection between boredom and flow, the importance of storytelling and narratives, how play is different (similar to!) addiction, and why engagement and gaming approaches are so important (and mostly lacking) in education. Check out the interview and let us know how you are applying game and mindsets to your learning efforts and work design.

Dahlberg to Moderate Teachers College Imagination Conversation

Teachers College Presents an Imagination Conversation, a Project of the Lincoln Center Institute, during its "Creativity, Play and the Imagination Across Disciplines" Conference

Join invited guests - including the creator of Imagination Conversations, Scott Noppe-Brandon - and explore with us the importance of imagination and creativity in education, gaming, design and the arts. Bring YOUR "imagination story," too! Now more than ever, we must nurture imagination in our schools, create environments for innovation in workplaces, and build cultures for creativity in our communities. Lincoln Center Institute is fueling the development of imaginative thinking through the Imagination Conversations, a series of moderated public panels being held in all 50 states. These bring together leaders from an array of fields to explore the importance of imagination in their professional lives and society. The Conversations are leading to a national gathering, America's Imagination Summit, at Lincoln Center in July. Learn more about Imagination Conversations at www.imaginationconversation.com.

1:30-3 p.m., Friday, May 27, 2011 – Teachers College, Columbia University

Guests Include:

• Scott Noppe-Brandon, Executive Director, Lincoln Center Institute; Co-Author, "Imagination First"
• Jonathan Batiste, Jazz Musician; Music Curator, National Jazz Museum in Harlem; Actor, HBO's "Treme"
• Donald Brinkman, Program Manager, Games for Learning, Digital Humanities, Digital Heritage; Microsoft Research
• Suzanne Enser-Ryan, Interim Education Director/Head of School, Teacher and Docent Programs, The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum
• Magdalena Gomez, Co-founder and Artistic Director, Teatro V!da
• Michael Lofton, Education Director, Pilobolus
• MODERATOR: Steven Dahlberg, Director, International Centre for Creativity and Imagination; Vice President of Innovation, Future Workplace; Faculty, University of Connecticut

Experiential Creativity Workshop Series at Arts & Ideas Festival - June in New Haven, Conn.

The International Festival of Arts and Ideas will feature “Unleash Your Creativity,” a series of three, experiential creativity workshops. The Festival runs from June 11 to 25, 2011, in New Haven, Conn. The workshops are June 18, 21 and 25.
The workshops will help participants explore their creativity, learn tools for new ways of thinking, find alternatives, get unstuck, discover others who value creativity, and engage creativity in the workplace. This series links the creativity of others with an in-depth opportunity to (re)discover and engage one’s own creativity and its applications to organizations and society. Full details about each workshop and its facilitators, along with registration information, can be found online (register here) or by email. The three workshops include:

• At Albertus Magnus College: “Embodying Creativity: Engaging Creative Collaboration Through Movement and Play,” 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sat., June 18. This workshop features facilitators from Pilobolus Dance Theatre, InterPlay Connecticut, Clifford Beers Child Guidance Clinic, and the Alexander Technique, as well as Irish poet Anne O’Reilly who will explore how play creates the space for creativity and transformation. No previous dance experience is necessary to participate in this day, but be prepared to move. This workshop is $99 and includes the all-day workshop, lunch and a ticket to Susan Marshall Dance Company’s “Adamantine” at 5 p.m. on June 18. MORE
• At Yale University School of Art: “Creativity in the Workplace: Engaging Creativity, Design and Innovation in Organizations,” 12 to 4 p.m. on Tues., June 21. This workshop features AIGA Connecticut President Rich Hollant, International Centre for Creativity and Imagination Director Steven Dahlberg, and Irish poet Anne O’Reilly. This workshop is $99 and includes the half-day workshop, a reception, Paul Bloom’s “Ideas: How Pleasure Works” lecture at 5:30 p.m., and a ticket to Jack Hitt’s “Making Up the Truth” at 8 p.m. on June 21. MORE
• At Albertus Magnus College: “Composing a Creative Life on Purpose: Engaging Meaning in Life and Work,” 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sat., June 25. This workshop features facilitators who will lead hands-on experiences – in arts therapy, education, creativity, art, spirituality and intuition – that will help participants engage their creativity on purpose and for purpose. This workshop is $99 and includes the all-day workshop, lunch and a ticket to David T. Little’s “Soldier Songs” at 5 p.m. on June 25.  MORE

O’Reilly is a special guest from Dublin, Ireland, whose readings and performances will be uniquely featured in all three workshops. Her participation is supported by Imagine Ireland. O’Reilly is the author of the book, Sacred Play: Soul Journeys in Contemporary Irish Theatre; a book of poetry, Singing from the Belly of the Whale; and a CD of her poems, Breathsong.

Additional facilitators include Renee Jaworski, Pilobolus dancer and associate artistic director; Lisa Laing, Certified InterPlay Leader; L'Ana Burton, director of CDC Creative Dance Continuum and teaching artist for the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism; Rachel Bernsen, Certified Teacher of The Alexander Technique; Carol Pollard, associate director of the Yale Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics; Dorie Shallcross, author of Intuition: An Inner Way of Knowing; Lisa Furman, artist and associate professor, Albertus Magnus College; Evie Lindemann, assistant professor/clinical coordinator master of arts in art therapy program, Albertus Magnus College; and Alice Forrester, executive director, Clifford Beers Child Guidance Clinic.

The “Unleashing Your Creativity” Series is curated by Steven Dahlberg, who heads the Connecticut-based International Centre for Creativity and Imagination and teaches “Creativity + Social Change” at the University of Connecticut. The centre is dedicated to applying creativity to improve the well-being of individuals, organizations and communities.

The series is presented by the International Centre for Creativity and Imagination, Albertus Magnus College, the Yale Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics, and Connecticut Creates, in partnership with International Festival of Arts & Ideas.

The mission of the International Festival of Arts and Ideas is to create an internationally renowned festival in New Haven, Conn., of the highest quality with world-class artists, thinkers and leaders, attracting and engaging a broad and diverse audience celebrating and building community and advancing economic development.

Reinvesting in Arts Education: Streaming Live May 6

Arts Education Partnership announces the live stream of the "Reinvesting in Arts Education" session at its annual forum this week.

Through the generosity of the National Endowment for the Arts and The President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, we are excited to announce that we will be able to offer a live webcast of the plenary session at the AEP Spring 2011 National Forum.

Reinvesting in Arts Education
Introduction: Melody Barnes, Domestic Policy Adviser to President Obama and Director, White House Domestic Policy Council
Overview: Mary Schmidt Campbell, Vice Chair of the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, Dean of NYU Tisch School of the Arts
Panelists:

• Kaya Henderson, Chancellor, DC Public Schools
• Forest Whitaker, Actor and Member, The President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities
• Ted Leonsis, Founder, AOL, and Entrepreneur
  

Moderator: Gene Wilhoit, Executive Director, Council of Chief State School Officers

As a part of fulfilling President Obama's Arts Policy Platform, at this session the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH) will announce and publicly release its report Reinvesting in Arts Education: Winning America's Future Through Creative Schools . The culmination of 18 months of research, meetings with stakeholders, and site visits all over the country, this report represents an in-depth review of the current condition of arts education, including an update of the current research base about arts education outcomes, and an analysis of the challenges and opportunities in the field that have emerged over the past decade. It also includes a set of recommendations to federal, state and local policymakers.  Drawing from the findings in the report, the panel will discuss from various perspectives how to build new allies for arts education and how to link arts education outcomes to the larger educational and economic debates that are occurring around the country.

For more information about the AEP Spring 2011 National Forum, please visit www.aep-arts.org/forums/DC2011.htm

To watch the webcast live at your computer simply follow the link below:
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/reinvesting-in-arts-education