An Innovative Summit for Educators
Over 150 educators and leading researchers from around the world gathered this summer in Philadelphia for the three-day Grit+Imagination: An Educator Summit, hosted by the Relay Graduate School of Education (Relay), Imagination Institute, and Character Lab.
The Summit explored the juxtaposition of grit, defined as passion and perseverance for long-term goals, and imagination, an essential component of creativity and innovation. While imagination offers the foresight to see beyond “what is” to “what could be,” grit is what turns that vision into a reality.
The Summit offered a space for educators and researchers to learn from each other’s expertise. Leading scholars in both grit and imagination, including Angela Duckworth, Martin Seligman, Scott Barry Kaufman, and Susan Engel, suggested ways to apply cutting edge research to the classroom to cultivate grit and imagination in students. Educators then had the opportunity to develop classroom practices that can ignite character-based growth.
Though grit and imagination are two important character traits for success, we often treat them as opposed to each other. However, many of the highest achievers find ways to incorporate both dreaming and doing into their work.
- Scott Barry Kaufman
Researchers also contributed to a series of videos, which will be released by Relay, Character Lab, and the Imagination Institute throughout the next several months. These videos will serve as a helpful resource for educators interested in character-based instruction. November’s videos feature Martin Seligman and Susan Engel, and links can be found below.
Dr. Martin Seligman:
Dr. Susan Engel:
