What is innovation? What is creativity? Often, we tend to take one for the other! Creativity, as the dictionary defines it, is the ‘use of imagination or original ideas to create something.’ It may be something that’s inspired, as well. In both cases, it leads to innovation. We can say that innovation is the application of creativity in the real world. Both can be developed and nurtured among students.
GIIS nurtures 21st century skills, including innovation and creativity, among its students. These skills help children develop into leaders, problem solvers and valued friends, neighbours and citizens. We encourage these skills as they bring joy and meaning to our students’ lives.
As a school, GIIS provides the tools and experiences they need to make this happen. Our students get to demonstrate these qualities in and outside of the classroom through various means. We encourage our students to develop creativity and become innovators in a variety of ways, including our curricula choices, on-site skills studios, co-curricular activities and more.
How does GIIS nurture creativity and innovation?
Skills-based learning opportunities
As a ‘School of the Future’, GIIS offers skills-based learning opportunities that help students develop their skills and learn how to be creative and innovative. The classrooms have Wi-Fi connectivity, audio-visual technology, smartboards and more for easy and quick access to information.
The skills-based studios include a Radio Studio, TV Studio, Culinary Studio, among others. Each studio is fully equipped with modern technology and latest equipment to help students learn and engage their creative minds while applying innovative ideas to each new skill.
Co-curricular activities and clubs
Co-curricular activities and clubs allow GIIS students to take a deeper dive into the skills they’re learning in the classroom. Through co-curricular activities, students are able to identify interests and passions that they can take with them into their future careers and hobbies.
They also strengthen their creative minds and develop their talents. Co-curricular activities and clubs include exploring arts and crafts, music, dance, writing, robotics, explorers club, etc. All activities and clubs are guided by our instructors.
Events and competitions
GIIS hosts a range of events and competitions to encourage students to test the limits of their thinking and develop their talents. One such example is our Real World Challenges Convention (RWCC) that encourages students to think deeper and creatively about challenges and share their ideas with others.
Hackathons, TEDx, and more such events and activities help our students not just explore their strengths but also excel.
School facilities
Our campus is designed to nurture creativity and innovation with state-of-the-art facilities, including collaboration spaces, nextgen studios, digital classrooms, sports facilities and more. In addition, students benefit from a learning environment designed to facilitate and encourage creative exploration of various skill sets.
GIIS students demonstrating innovation & creativity
The proof that GIIS fosters innovation and creativity is in our students. Below are some examples of successful demonstration of creativity and ingenuity by our students in a variety of skill sets.
Anti-scam app development: GIIS alumnus Ayush Garg is a tech prodigy who developed an anti-scam app that facilitates digital literacy among seniors. The app, called NoScam, is powered by a non-profit organisation called LionFrienders.
During the Digital for Life festival, the app was commended by President of Singapore, Halimah Yacob. Ayush says that GIIS’ emphasis on holistic development helped make his achievement possible. For more information about NoScam and Ayush Garg, listen to this podcast.
Green Domino social enterprise: The Green Domino social enterprise comprises a team of students from GIIS who are working to instil environmental awareness among young children. To do this, GIIS IBDP students Arohee Temurnikar, Shaivi Sheth, Jivika Bhat, and Omkar Dighe, have developed an eco-friendly board game.
The group won two prestigious awards at the Junior Achievement ‘Company of the Year’ competition in 2021. You can hear more about their initiative on this podcast.
Red Lotus project: Team Red Lotus, led by GIIS IBDP student, Atyantika Mookherjee, promotes awareness on sustainable menstrual waste. They have created a portable biodegradable envelope to encourage sustainable menstrual waste disposal.
They received the Bal Shakti Puraskar, which is given to Indian citizens under the age of 18 for outstanding achievement in innovation, scholastic achievements, social service, arts and culture, bravery or sports. The team also won the Global Resilience Award at the Global Social Leaders competition.
Curricula choices at GIIS
GIIS offers several curricula options, including early years education Global Montessori Plus (GMP) programme, the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme (IB PYP), the Cambridge Lower Secondary Programme (CLSP), the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE), and the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP). Apart from these international curricula choices, our students can also opt for the Indian Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) curriculum.
Each programme helps students develop and grow at every stage of learning. Our students are encouraged to think out of the box, think around corners and adapt to an ever-changing world. They learn to flex their learning styles and prepare themselves for institutions of higher learning.
Innovation and creativity go hand-in-hand. Students who are imbued with creativity and are able to apply it in innovative ways are in an excellent position to find success both inside and outside the classroom.
Also read: Nurturing creativity in your child through GIIS’ skills-based labs
At GIIS, we believe in nurturing these qualities as they help them succeed and allow them to have a good quality of life once they become adults. After all, creativity leads to problem-solving, success in the workforce and more.
To find out more about how GIIS nurtures 21st-century skills in students, book a campus tour today.
Shubhdarshani Mitra
Shubhdarshani has over 10 years of experience in content creation, curation and editing. She has worked for Indian newspapers, school magazines and international news websites where she worked closely with the leadership on the execution and communication of the content strategy. Aside from work, she’s a passionate B&W photographer and storyteller.
