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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to illustrate how professors can motivate pre-service early childhood teachers to be more creative using the Discovering Intellectual Strengths and Capabilities while Observing Varied Ethnic Responses (DISCOVER) Model (Maker, 2005; Maker & Schiever, 2005; Schiever & Maker, 1991, 1997). The participants were 50 pre-service early childhood teachers from a private rural college in MiaoLi County, Taiwan. They were enrolled in a Children's Literature course in the Department of Child Care and Education. The picture book was used to increase the engagement and motivation of the participants through the DISCOVER Model's six problem-solving types. Tree choice, authenticity, problem solving, and creative ability were factors included in every task. The participants' creative work demonstrated the effectiveness of the method. Pedagogic ideas and methods for integrating the model into higher education are included in the recommendations.

Keywords

problem solving pre-service education creativity development

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Applying the DISCOVER Model to Nurture Creativity in Pre-Service Early Childhood Teachers

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