The New Smart: How Nurturing Creativity Will Help Children Thrive

In their world, neither static definitions of intelligence nor traditional ideas of training stand us in good stead. Rather, we need to reframe the question given what lies before us and come to terms with a different answer posited in a different language.

These, then, are those who will thrive in the 21st Century:

• They will blend multiple intelligences in a way that might be described as synthetic or even symphonic
• They will be ambitious and focused without being self-obsessed
• They will value asynchrony and even seek it out
• They will use their own marginality to generate novel perspective and new work
• They will exhibit a steadfast resilience in all phases of life
• They will be measured by what they produce over the course of a lifetime, not by any static notion of capacity or quotient

In the fractured environment of the 21st century, true success will be unique and unexpected—the result of a creative response to complex, shifting challenges. So, how do we prepare? How do we educate ourselves and our children for life in 2050?

"Terry Roberts offers educators and the schools they love a road map away from the standardized testing for standardized minds agenda. Using both research on cognitive development and examples from actual schools, accessible to parents, educators, and even students, this volume should become an owner's manual for the schools we need both today and tomorrow."―George Wood, author of Schools That Work

“Noted educator and novelist Terry Roberts performs in The New Smart a high-wire trifecta: sketching an insightful/persuasive portrait of life in the mid-21st century; identifying traits and skills essential to navigating that transformed world; and listing the educational moves we must make now to enable today’s young people to thrive a generation or two hence.  This indispensable book will be required reading on my syllabus―and that of many other college and high-school educators who teach classes on society, politics, education, and culture.” – Provost of Wake Forest University