Wedged between childhood and adulthood, adolescence is a stage of becoming. The onset of puberty, appearance of sexual features, wrestling between autonomy and dependence. Between wanting to stand out and belong to groups. Impressionable at one time and unresponsive at another. This definitely isn’t an easy terrain.
At SOLI Hub, we focus on this age-group. 11 to 15.
Our choice of this age-group is a pragmatic one. Primary school children are still too young to get into the serious business of innovation. While High Schoolers are under intense pressure to crack the board exams. All their energy and that of their parents and schools are focused on high academic performance. Something crucial for college admission and future career choices. So, middle-school is that sweet spot where there is some amount of free time and academics does not smother the life out of a child.
But there’s more. Something very interesting.
Adolescence is a period of great creativity. It involves an intensely creative process. And this has nothing to do with what we perceive as creative pursuits, like being involved in producing music, art, literature or tinkering.
Albert Rothenberg, an eminent psychiatrist who has conducted extensive research on the creative process notes of two processes integral to creativity. Homospatial process which involves enabling two or more discrete objects to exist in the same space which leads to the formation of new identities; and Janusian process which involves actively conceiving multiple opposites or antithesis simultaneously.
Both these processes are related to the developmental tasks of adolescence. Individuation and development of autonomy happen at this stage of human life. Adolescents seek to carve out their unique sense of identity, seek a separate identity from that of their parents or families. Concomitantly, they connect deeply with their peers, seeking validation from them. Deep friendships are forged. This push towards separation and connectedness alludes to the homospatial process.
Similarly, the so-called rebellious streak of adolescence can be seen from the Janusian perspective. The ideas or matters that they oppose or contest are related to the matter being opposed. For example, the act of breaking a rule is connected to the rule itself. So, the very act brings the rule and its non-compliance together. This thinking in opposites is characteristic of the Janusian process.
So, the Middle School years are rooted in creativity. A creative expression or delineation of identity.
According to Rothenberg this is the time when actual creativity sets in. This is determined by psychobiological functions and the way the brain functions at this stage. (The famous oft-quoted formulation by Land and … that creativity is at its peak in children and diminishes drastically in Middle School and beyond, calls for a separate discussion.) And he notes, “Experiencing creative success in adolescence also serves to consolidate identity in a coherent way. The development of a creative identity, the awareness of oneself as a creative person, tends to begin in adolescence and continue throughout life. This creative identity itself starts as a motivating factor for the development of skills and the pursuit of creative activities.”*
Our SOLI Hub projects thus, play a significant role in shaping the identity formation process of participants. It provides a space where individuation and connectedness can coexist. The process of collaboration ensures that participants bring their individual thoughts and ideas to the table and together, in a cohesive manner work on their project.
It channelizes rebelliousness. After all, they are going against the grain and coming up with innovative solutions.
Also, as Prerana, one of the participants put it, “This was not just any project for us. We learned a lot of things like patience, self-confidence, consistency and the whole process of understanding …We have the self-confidence that we can make it!”
*Albert Rothenberg, “Creativity in Adolescence” in Adolescence: Psychopathology, Normality and Creativity ed. Albert Rothenberg (Philadelphia: Saunders, 1990) 422.
