Cultivating Innovation: Pedagogical Strategies for Enhancing Critical and Creative Thinking

The objective of this study is to assess the level of critical and creative thinking of the foundation students of University Utara Malaysia (UUM) in the class AALK0013 Critical Thinking and to identify the problems faced and solutions deployed while doing a product innovation and invention project. The work is based on the quantitative research method, and the data is analyzed using descriptive analysis of the questionnaires administered. The instrument developed from the Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT, Torrence, 1982) and the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal (WGCTA, Watson and Glaser, 1980) comprises forty items and is subdivided into seven constructs. The study involved 59 students as the sample of participants. Quantitative data was analyze using on the SPSS statistical tool to calculate the mean and standard deviation of the results of the critical and creative thinking abilities of the students besides providing an idea of the difficulties encountered in completion of the project. The specific objectives of the study are: To assess: (i) the changes in the critical and creative thinking abilities of students after the application of the product innovation and invention project, (ii) the challenges faced by the students during the project and (iii) the ways in which the challenges were dealt with by students. The results show improvements in the evaluation of cognitive abilities, identify gaps in knowledge and skills, issues of time management, shortage of resources as well as team and prototyping problems and present solutions to these shortcomings. It therefore becomes important to incorporate aspects of product innovation, invention activities in the curriculum to ensure they enhance the thinking skills and problem-solving qualities of every learner.