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In this article, we explore the intersection of creativity, education, and technology, with a focus on the impact of Generative AI (GenAI). We delve into the transformative potential of GenAI in redefining educational and creative processes and challenging our existing notions of learning and creativity. Through a conversation with renowned creativity researcher Dr. Ronald Beghetto, we thematically explore how GenAI redefines educational and creative processes and challenges conventional notions of learning and creativity. Dr. Beghetto's work highlights a shift from fearing failure to embracing possibility thinking, advocating for a mindset that views creativity as a dynamic interplay of potential and adaptability. His recent work with GenAI tools illustrates their role as catalysts for possibility thinking, pushing the boundaries towards future-oriented thought and innovation. GenAI can function in multiple ways--including as a reflection of human intellect and values, and as a collaborative partner that enriches human creativity with its unpredictability and generative capabilities. We emphasize the importance of direct, critical, and creative engagement with GenAI in educational settings, cautioning against its passive or uncritical use, and advocating for a balanced approach that leverages its strengths while remaining aware of its limitations. Sharing several possibility thinking tools he has created, Dr. Beghetto offers readers a nuanced perspective on the role of GenAI in education and creativity, advocating for a future where these tools are used responsibly and creatively to unlock new possibilities and enhance human potential.

In this study, we followed three faculty members' experiences with designing and teaching online courses for the first time. In order to complete the activity, the faculty members had to work collaboratively with others across the university. Activity theory provided a framework within which to study faculty members' collaborative activities with members of different activity systems that had different goals, tools, divisions of labor and accountabilities. In concordance with activity theory, such differences led to contradictions, disturbances, and transformations in thinking and work activities. The results of the study have implications for individuals and systems undertaking technology integration in teaching.

The popular press is rife with examples of how students in the United States and around the globe are learning to program, make, and tinker. The Hour of Code, maker-education, and similar efforts are advocating that more students be exposed to principles found within computer science. We propose an expansion beyond simply teaching computational thinking skills, by including an aesthetic framework that highlights the beauty and elegance inherent within the craft of coding. This approach not only introduces students to authentic experiences of computational work, but can result in higher levels of retention and achievement. Delivering science content through an aesthetic lens has been successful in other areas of science education. Such an approach in programming extends the possibility of reaching students that previously may not have been interested in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports the results of an experimental study on multimedia learning environments, which investigated the impact of increasing the social behaviors of a pedagogical agent on students' perceptions of social presence, their perceptions of the learning experience, and learning. Paradoxically, in this experiment students detected higher degrees of social presence in both the text only and the fully animated social agent conditions than students in the voice only and the static image of the agent with voice conditions. Furthermore, students had more positive perceptions of the learning experience in the text only condition. The results support the careful design of social behaviors for animated pedagogical agents if they are to be of educational value, otherwise, the use of agent technology can actually detract from the learning experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]