Dr. Wagner maintains if the following three elements are developed by parents, teachers and mentors an enormous difference can be make in the lives of young innovators.
- Play
- Passion
- Purpose
An child's imagination which explores different worlds, learning new ideas and reflecting on possibilities is a form of play. The research about the importance of play spans many decades. Maria Montessori, Lev Vygotsky and Jean Piaget have all done groundbreaking research on the importance of play. Play is a part of human nature and an intrinsic motivator.
Passion:
Passion is the intrinsic motivation to explore something new, understand something more deeply and master something difficult. In his book The Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell writes about the importance of working at something for ten thousand hours in order to achieve mastery. Gladwell identifies famous innovators such as Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg. Their time spent on their products was passion driven.
Purpose:
As much as passion drives young innovators, purpose is far more deeper and more sustainable. This sense of purpose can take many forms, Dr. Wagner found the greatest purpose, the desire to somehow make a difference in the world.
I hope you enjoy this TED talk from Tony Wagner:
How are you providing PASSION, PLAY and PURPOSE in your classroom?
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