The Jan05_05 issue of the International Journal of Instrucctional Technology & Distance Learning" has an interesting article on 'Encouraging Creativity in Online Courses
One of the sections that caught my eye was this one about "elements of learning activities that most engage students intellectually" :
"...they echo key attributes of creativity:
- finding interests and problems
- looking in new ways
- communicating personal ideas
- creating new products and solutions to problems.
- Students help define content of course
- Students had time to wonder/determining a particular direction that interests them
- Topics had a "strange" quality - something this is common but seen in a new way to evoke lingering questions
- Teachers encouraged different forms of expression and respected students' views
- Teachers were passionate about their work. The most meaningful activities were "invented" by the teacher or student.
- Students did something.
- Students sensed that results of their work were not fully predictable."