The other day, after Mr Earp and I had been discussing how best to support next year’s Sixth Formers with their university preparations, I reviewed some notes I took during a related GDST training session four years ago. It was one of those training sessions that, for a number of reasons, has stuck with me as being particularly useful.

Something I had forgotten, however, was the emphasis the speakers placed on students developing what they called “divergent thinking”. In the light of technological developments in the intervening years, it’s an approach that seems to me to be all the more important to highlight.

So, as students are looking forward to a well-earned summer break, I want to explore what divergent thinking might mean and what students might be able to do to develop this outside school.

What is divergent thinking? Why does it matter?

Divergent thinking can be thought of as the ability to generate multiple ideas, solutions or perspectives when faced with a problem or question. Rather than seeking a single correct answer, an approach that encourages divergent thinking requires students to explore and entertain a wide range of possibilities without immediate judgment. Where divergent thinking might hold two or more approaches equally in the balance, convergent thinking would look to strip away alternatives quickly to arrive at a definitive conclusion.

In fields that demand creativity and innovation, it is perhaps evident that students will naturally be thinking in such a “divergent” way. It is a habit of mind, however, that students will need increasingly at university and in the world of work, wherever they go. World Economic Forum studies have regularly shown that employers consistently rank creativity and problem-solving among the most sought-after skills. By developing divergent thinking, students can prepare themselves for the unpredictable challenges of the future.

What can you do to develop it?

This kind of creative approach to learning underpins much of what we do at the High School. But it seems to me that the holidays (when they come!) are a particularly good time to try to develop this further, not least because there is more “slack” in the system that can allow students to be playful and creative, cultivating divergent thinking in a more relaxed context.

Here are some practical suggestions that students might want to consider:

• Journaling and reflective writing: You could keep a journal, responding to what you read, watch, listen to or simply experience in a fluid, non-directed way (there are no mark schemes and no Assessment Objectives for once!). This can help you explore multiple perspectives and/or solutions and allow you to make connections between disparate topics.
• Creative challenges: Set aside time for creative activities, such as writing stories, composing music, inventing games or building something from scratch. Limiting resources or imposing constraints can push you to think more imaginatively. Again, doing so in an undirected way with no practical end in mind can be a good way to consider multiple approaches.
• Ask “What If?” questions: Question the world around you. Pose hypothetical or open-ended questions about current events, technology or the arts, as you learn about them through listening to podcasts or Radio 4, for instance (or TikTok, if you must!). The world seems to be in flux; more than ever you can question why things are the way they are and consider multiple ways in which they could be different.

Concluding thoughts

By playing with ideas and allowing a creative engagement with the world, students will build a divergent way of thinking that will help them practically when preparing for university and beyond.