Abstract:

Assessment of students for college admissions and performance tends to emphasize memory and analytical skills – that is, one’s retrieval of acquired knowledge and one’s skill in analyzing that knowledge. But in everyday life, individuals need creative skills to generate new ideas, analytical skills to assess the value of those ideas, practical skills to implement the ideas and to persuade others of their value, and wisdom-based skills to ensure the ideas help achieve a common good. I discuss in this article a program for assessing the creative, practical, and wisdom-based skills that currently are neglected by many assessments, and provide data regarding the outcomes of the program.

Author: Robert J. Sternberg