Thinking tools
CoRT Tools
‘There are those who believe that creativity is not for them but for artists, designers and inventors. This is a dangerous and limited attitude.
Just as the ability to use reverse gear should be part of every driver’s driving ability, the ability to use creative thinking should be part of every thinker’s thinking skill. Creative thinking is definitely not limited to special people or special occasions. The logic of perception demands the ability to think creatively so anyone who has to do any thinking must develop this ability’.
Taken from The Journal for Quality and Participation, Vol. 11-3. © The Association for Quality and Participation.
In real life, information is not really put in front of you for you to access. You have to go and get the information, design a plan, and take action. The purpose of the CoRT tools is to make this thinking more focused, more structured and more organised.
Once learned and applied the tools will bring the following rewards, they help the user:
- Avoid impulsive behaviour and snap judgements.
- See alternatives where others see only difficulties, confusion or impossible dilemmas.
- Improve decision making and idea generating skills.
- Increase their ability to consider the consequences before taking action.
- Work more productively when working with others in a group.
CoRT 1
The specific purpose of the CoRT1 tools is to broaden perception so that in any thinking situation we can see beyond the obvious, immediate and egocentric. Experience has shown that students who have been through the lessons develop a much broader view of situations.
CoRT Thinking allows us to focus attention directly on different aspects of thinking and crystallise these processes into definite concepts and tools that can be used deliberately to move our thinking along. CoRT1 is sometimes described as Directional Thinking, as well as Breadth Thinking.
CoRT 4 & Creativity
Experience builds up patterns of perception and patterns of action. For the most part these are very useful and life would be impossible without them.
We can even say that the main asset of the brain is that it is “brilliantly uncreative”. It creates fixed patterns out of chaos of experience and then looks at the world through these fixed patterns.
This gives order and meaning to life. But now and then these patterns need changing. Creativity must take its place as an essential part of thinking along with other skills.
The CoRT1 tools
- Plus, minus, interesting
- Consider all factors
- Consequences & sequel
- Aims, goals & objectives
- First important priorities
- Alternative, possibilities & choices
- Other people’s views
The CoRT4 tools
- Combination
- Define the problem
- Remove faults
- Evaluation
- Requirements
- Random input
- Yes,No & PO
- Stepping stone
- Dominant idea
- Concept challenge