Resumen de Creative problem solving as teaching competence, the discourse of teachers

Efraín Duarte Briceño, María Teresa Díaz Mohedo

• There is an increasing awareness of the importance of fostering creative problem solving in higher education; and its benefits have also been increasingly recognized, as well as its key role in the information age. In spite of this recognition, there has been little research exploring creative problem solving as teaching competence. Twelve Mexican professors were interviewed and the data were submitted to content analysis with a qualitative approach, to address the examining professors’ view of the importance attributed to creative problem solving in higher education. The outcomes indicate that all professors consider creative problem solving very important due to its role in the production of knowledge from an innovative perspective; they agree as well in recognizing the connection between using creative strategies and students’ motivation. Different suggestions are made in order to enhance professors and students’ use of creative problem solving in higher education institutions