The Uses of Open-Ended Problem Solving in Regular Academic Subjects to Develop Students’ Creativity: An Analytical Review

The uses of open-ended problem solving to develop students’ creativity were investigated through an analytical review. Twenty studies with high-quality indicators were selected. Participants in all studies were 7707 students. The average time spent in all interventions was approximately 15 months. Students had observable improvement in 90% of the interventions. By using the analytic technique across all studies, the authors found that (a) in 55% of the interventions, elementary school students were included; (b) in 85% of the interventions, problem Types IV and V were used, and in 65% of the interventions problem Type VI was used; (c) in 50% of the interventions, open-ended problems were integrated with all academic subjects; (d) in 90% of the interventions, the perspective of creativity was creativity as process; and (e) in 50% of the studies, open-ended problems were measured using nontraditional instruments. Future researchers should focus on integrating problem finding (i.e. Type VI) and implementing open-ended problem solving in more academic subjects and with students in upper levels of school.