In this video, 2023 CDB Scholar Arul Kolla continues the series of videos about creative problem solving by talking about working backward. Sometimes, we’re given the end state of a series of actions and are asked to find the initial state. How do we recognize these types of problems? And how do we solve them? In this third video, we see how to identify these types of problems and even more tips on how to approach creative problem-solving questions in general.

Creative Problem Solving Series

It seems that everyone today talks about creative problem-solving. Curriculum guides list problem-solving skills as key objectives at all levels, and professional organizations recommend that creative problem solving becomes the focus of school mathematics. Many people believe that the ability to solve problems develops automatically from mastery of computational skills. This is not necessarily true; problem-solving is itself a skill. A problem is more challenging than a typical exercise because the route to the solution is often not known beforehand, and requires some level of creativity.

In this video, 2023 CDB Scholar Arul Kolla continues the series of videos about creative problem solving by talking about changing your point of view. In many problems, we often get stuck after trying for a long time. How do we get “unstuck”? And how do we change our point of view and attack the question from a different angle? In this video, we see more tips on creative problem solving in general and how to find new ways to look at a problem.

Creative Problem Solving Series聽

It seems that everyone today talks about creative problem solving. Curriculum guides list problem solving skills as key objectives at all levels, and professional organisations recommend that creative problem solving becomes the focus of school mathematics. Many people believe that the ability to solve problems develops automatically from mastery of computational skills. This is not necessarily true; problem solving is itself a skill. A problem is more challenging than a typical exercise because the route to the solution is often not known beforehand, and requires some level of creativity.

Materials Needed:聽Pencil and Paper, Graph Paper (optional)

Link to Lesson 2: Math Time:聽

Link to Lesson 1: Introduction to Special Relativity:聽

Speaker: Umar Ahmed Badami, CDB Scholar

Materials Needed: Paper and pen or pencil

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQ_oe3m1puI&feature=youtu.be” title=”Virtual Learning Lab: Intro to Special Relativity”]

In the course of my fifteen years at the Institute for Educational Advancement at the helm of the Caroline D. Bradley (CDB) Scholarship program, I鈥檓 often asked, 鈥淲hat exactly do you do? What鈥檚 a typical workday?鈥� So I鈥檓 here to set the record straight and hopefully provide some answers. First of all, there is no 鈥渢ypical鈥� day which is precisely why I never get bored as the program director of CDB. In short, CDB runs year round with very little down time per se. The CDB team is comprised of myself and my extremely effective and efficient colleague, Mallory Aldrich. We are responsible for the approximately 150 CDB Scholars who are active within the program from 8th grade through high school, as well as maintaining contact with parents, CDB alumni, educators, organizing our CDB Selection Committees and the annual three day Bradley Seminar, collaborating with partner organizations who work with gifted students and assisting people interested in learning about and applying for the CDB Scholarship. Mallory and I are ably assisted by the 优蜜视频 team who help with our marketing, tuition payments, Finalist interviews, development, data collection and all manner of IT assistance.

We base our schedule around an academic calendar beginning anew for the year right after Labor Day in early September with the annual selection of new CDB Scholars. Roughly, the CDB year plays out as follows: the new class of Scholars is announced in early September which begins the cycle of 鈥渧irtually鈥� introducing the nationwide CDB rising 8th graders to each other and learning about them as the exceptional individuals they are. Then begins several months in the fall months of interactive research about high school programs and our follow up with each Scholar as they visit and apply to at least three high schools or programs that best suit their learning styles and academic goals. At the same time, we鈥檙e actively monitoring the transition from middle school to freshman year of high school for the entering 9th grade CDB class, making sure the returning high school Scholars are still well placed at their schools, working with the CDB high school seniors in their college application process, checking with the new class of CDB alumni as they enter college and begin work on the upcoming year鈥檚 CDB application and important program dates, organize our national selection committees who work with us to select that year鈥檚 CDB Finalists and begin sketching out the three day Bradley Seminar which encompasses travel, lodging, meals, activities, workshops and socializing for our entire CDB community of high school students, parents, guest speakers and educators with support from the entire 优蜜视频 team. All of the CDB Scholars are responsible for submitting their midterm and final term grades and teacher comments to the CDB team which is followed by individual feedback we proved to each Scholar. Within the new class, it鈥檚 rare that we are not in touch with them either by phone or email every two weeks to check in and get to know them and how their high school selection process is going.

Winter involves making sure all of the high school and college CDB applications have been completed and submitted within their deadlines, as well as personal recommendation letters and CDB information to all of the colleges being applied to by our college applicant Scholars. The new CDB application is online by now, so in addition to at least three webinars we conduct to provide information and answer questions, we are available to work with prospective applicants, recommenders and schools by phone or email. Plans for the Bradley Seminar are solidifying with the theme selected and agenda being meticulously planned out. Individual Scholars are inquiring about recommendations for summer internships that we will assist with. Winter term grades are coming in and holiday wishes extended back and forth. Scholars are hearing from their Early Decision and Early Action colleges, so that always brings a round of congratulations or calming messages about hanging in there and doing whatever we can to alleviate stress and anxiety on the part of our Scholars. This is also the time we work with any of our high school Scholars who are considering transferring for any number of reasons to a different high school program or looking for an alternate educational experience. One of the exceptional aspects of the CDB program is our flexibility to handle each individual鈥檚 ongoing academic requirements and to advocate for each Scholar should they seek to expand their horizons.

Spring is the Bradley Seminar, a highlight of the CDB program for all involved and in April the due date for that year鈥檚 CDB applications when Mallory and I go into lockdown mode to process and read the hundreds of eligible applications that we receive. By early May, we have divided the top tier applications into groups of approximately 55-60 each that will be sent to the members of our mulitple selection committees for their evaluations. The end of May- early June involves Mallory, our 优蜜视频 president and my travel to meet with the selection committees to select that year鈥檚 CDB Finalists who we will spend the summer traveling throughout the United States to interview them as the next phase of the CDB selection process. Spring is also when our Scholars hear the results of their high school and college applications, so it is a time filled with tremendous emotions and a lot of support extended to our Scholars as we support and work with them to finalize their high school and college decisions.

Summer brings extensive travel for the CDB team as well as support from our SoCal staff in conducting local CDB Finalist interviews and helping organize our schedule that extends from June- August when we have the heady experience of meeting a group of awesome and awe-inspiring CDB Finalists and parents from coast to coast. The end of the summer brings the selection of that year鈥檚 CDB class.

Mallory and I function as connectors throughout the work we do during the year. We help new Scholars connect with high school Scholars when they visit new schools that have current CDB Scholars in attendance; we connect CDB alumni and parents with current CDB Scholars looking for potential mentors or having questions to ask of fellow community members regarding their careers, current occupations or life out in the 鈥渞eal world.鈥� We connect organizations interested in the work we do with 优蜜视频 programs and initiatives as well as attend local and national conferences and conduct webinars and monthly gifted support group meetings on site to inform interested people in what CDB and 优蜜视频 are about.

It is impossible to fall through the cracks, so to speak, as a CDB Scholar. Mallory and I simply won鈥檛 let that happen. We work very hard to develop ongoing trust-based relationships with all of our Scholars and communicate regularly with them as additional support systems or advocates when it comes to any issue they might be facing at school鈥攚ith their classes, teachers, peers– or as they navigate finding balance in their often very fully scheduled lives. We work to impart life lessons to the CDB community about being proactive when it comes to their own educational paths, seeking guidance and assistance from teachers and mentors when/as needed and strive to help them develop strategies and skills to alleviate the stresses, anxieties and expectations inherent in being teenagers in general and being at competitive academic environments in particular.

So going back to the first paragraph of this attempt to de-mystify CDB, Mallory and my day always encompasses reading and responding to MANY emails from our Scholars, their parents, admissions officers at the high schools we work with as well as introducing new schools to the CDB program and Scholars. We attend regular weekly meetings that are part of 优蜜视频 as well as appointments outside the office or with visitors by people interested in learning more about CDB who are visiting SoCal and stop by our office in Pasadena, CA. We spend time daily checking in with each other as collaborators in working with an incredibly diverse population of students in how best to support and assist them in areas as varied as course selection to confidence building when it comes to trying new activities or accelerated classes outside familiar comfort zones. We are ever-present cheerleaders, confidence builders and at times deliverers of wakeup calls when needed to help motivate Scholars to get back on track should their grades slip. CDB is a merit-based scholarship program with contractual guidelines that are monitored and enforced. That said, our motivation as the officers of the CDB program is to always work with our Scholars to enable them to be the prime movers on their own academic journeys, accounting for ups and downs as they occur. With many of our students who always expect super-human results from every test and each class grade and teacher comment, we work to 鈥渉umanize鈥� sometimes unrealistic goals and perfectionistic tendencies that can trip up even the most accomplished, high achievers among our cohort.

It is a tremendous pleasure and privilege to get to know and work with the CDB Scholar community and watch these young people develop their full potentials from the 鈥渘ewbies鈥� we meet as middle schoolers, through high school, college and beyond. With nine classes of CDB college graduates since the program鈥檚 inception in 2002, we now have CDB alums who are married, have their own future CDB Scholars and are well into their adult lives. It鈥檚 not many jobs or careers that afford its staff the incredible opportunity to change someone鈥檚 life for the better and to experience tremendous appreciation and gratitude for the largesse of all that the CDB Scholarship offers and the work we do in support of this program and these fabulous young people . I feel truly blessed to experience these rewards on an almost daily basis through my colleagues at 优蜜视频 and the CDB community at large. Perhaps I don鈥檛 skip into work every day, but I am so grateful for the work I get to do and the people I do it with.

Innovative schools are on the rise across the world and are transforming the way we think about K鈥�12 education. These schools are no longer following the traditional model of education. They are not tied to a standardized curriculum, traditional methods of assessment, or even a single location. New models are beginning to provide students with opportunities to work on collaborative, real-world projects鈥攕tudents start non-profits, design robots, complete specialized science research, and work in maker spaces to cut, drill, and laser print. Increasingly, students at these schools also have opportunities to engage in individualized learning through tech-driven curriculum. Teachers provide support and counseling by helping students pave their own educational pathway, choose their own curricula, and move at their own pace. Students in new models often take on additional responsibilities, planning their own days, weeks, and semesters. And schools become collaborative environments鈥攕paces where students can work together to tackle the 鈥渞eal world鈥� while gaining the skills they will need to operate successfully in a 21st century workplace.听,听, and聽聽are all examples of these schools.

For all their promise, however, innovative schools may still experience growing pains. In particular, students can face difficulties transitioning to a high school environment that departs from traditional designs. Rising high school freshmen just entering an innovative school have spent eight to eleven years in a traditional school. It can be extremely difficult to adjust to the new model of education, after being conditioned to learn through memorization, tests, and lectures.

To better understand the problems students face as they transition to innovative schools, I conducted research to document these challenges. I began my six-month intensive study by speaking with traditional middle schools across the United States to learn how they prepare eighth graders for high school. For the purpose of this research, I defined a traditional school as a school that utilizes lectures and whole-class, single-paced instruction as the primary learning approach, with little differentiation or project-based learning. For my interviews, I was careful to select a sample of parochial, private, and public traditional schools. I also spoke with several innovative high schools across the world, from Mumbai to Texas to Rabat, in order to become familiar with their programs and find out how their students adjust to a new model of education. Some of the schools I interviewed had just opened and had small inaugural classes, while others had been running for decades. I spoke with parents and administrators about each school鈥檚 educational philosophies, transition programs, admissions criteria (if applicable), academic and social challenges faced by students, and the ways each school addressed those problems.

Finally, I spoke with students. I talked with them about their middle school experiences, and their reasons for moving to an innovative model. We discussed the rewards and struggles associated with their new learning environments. Each student analyzed how their social relationships had changed, and how they had dealt with their new academic independence. I learned what students wished their schools had done to aid with the transition, and asked them to design their own transition programs.

Through my interviews, I discovered what students find appealing about innovative schools. For the most part, these students鈥� interest in innovative schools stemmed from their dissatisfaction with the traditional model. 鈥淸Traditional school] felt suffocating鈥︹�� said one girl. 鈥淸They tried to] burn everything into my memory,鈥� said another. 鈥淸They] always wanted us [to] move onto the next unit.鈥� Students also choose to switch schools because of their excitement about how innovative schools can give them independence and freedom to follow their specific interests and passions.

Still, students may struggle socially. Innovative schools are often smaller than their traditional counterparts. As a result, they can fail to create the micro-communities seen at larger high schools. Individualized learning can also lead to isolation, since opportunities for collaboration within academic subjects becomes restricted. This can hinder the effectiveness of collaborative projects and leave students feeling lonely.

Some innovative high schools do not appear to have completely grasped the social and academic shifts students are dealing with, or the requirements they鈥檒l need to succeed later in life. As a result, it can take significant time and effort for students to fully embrace and take advantage of all the opportunities an innovative model of education can have to offer.

Now, having spoken to educators and students from across the world, I have a better understanding of what is working and what can be improved upon in preparing students to thrive in new, innovative school environments. My research can provide a valuable student perspective to innovative schools as they consider how to better cater to their students鈥� interests and needs. The next three blog posts in this series will outline my findings and recommendations in the areas of聽, academics, and social experiences.

This post is part of a series originally published by the and has been reposted with permission. To read the originally published post or the rest of the series, visit the .听

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After an opening reception featuring cocktails and delicious hors d鈥檕euvres catered by Matt Roman, attendees enjoyed a guest lecture by 优蜜视频 parent and friend Dr. Steve Hindle. Dr. Hindle presented a comparative talk on the English and American Civil Wars, making parallels between the takeover of the British monarchy by Oliver Cromwell and the leadership of the confederacy under Jefferson Davis. Most interestingly, Dr. Hindle contrasted the memorialization of these national figures, noting the immense differences in which these notorious historical leaders have been remembered in their respective native lands. As a social and economic historian particularly interested in micro histories, Dr. Hindle was adept at keeping his audience interested and laughing while probing beneath the surface of any layman鈥檚 general knowledge of historical events. 优蜜视频 is grateful to have like-minded individuals like Dr. Hindle, who are eager to promote learning for the sake and love of learning, as members of our community.

We would like to extend our most sincere gratitude to the volunteers who helped make this evening possible: Dr. Steve Hindle, for his fascinating lecture; CDB Scholar Michelle for her musical performance on flute during the reception; CDB Scholar Jarett and Apprenticeship Alumnus James for their help throughout the event; Matt Roman for the wonderful hors d鈥檕euvres; and Kevin Malone for the excellent bar service.

If you were unable to attend the event but are interested in supporting the social, emotional, spiritual, physical, and intellectual growth of gifted youth, please consider making a donation to 优蜜视频 today. Your support will provide opportunities for more bright young minds to flourish and grow.

Thank you again to all of our donors, guests, and volunteers. Your participation in this event has played an integral part in our fundraising efforts for this year to help us continue to provide unique and valuable programs and services to bright young minds. We couldn鈥檛 do it without you!