ESSAY

The twelve-minute method to unlock and structure creativity

Amikam Marbach [Authors’ info]

10 December 2024 – Vol 2, Issue 4.

This method invites students to identify and develop a research topic quickly – in only twelve minutes – relying solely on students’ intuition and insights. By giving students such a brief window, we help them disconnect from the habit of relying on external guidance or input from the teacher. Instead, they are compelled to consult their inner knowledge, which is both insightful and valuable. The method allows for a total of twelve minutes to:

• locate a topic,
• define the topic,
• explain the need for the work,
• suggest three main aspects (keywords).

‘The inner knowledge’, by AI and Gil Dekel. 2024.

Traditional academic methods often place students in a passive role, where they’re expected to absorb information fed by teachers or external sources (websites, books). I propose a reversed method – encouraging students to start from within themselves, and only then consult external sources. Students already have a wealth of inner knowledge to begin with. They only need support in connecting with these intrinsic creative ideas. Through ‘twelve-minute steps’, the students engage with internal insights, and can develop highly individualised works.

Traditional process.

Modern process: the Universal Bibliographic Control model (Keresztesi, 1982; Malley, 1984; Marland, 1981).

An effective learner-centred approach must begin with the learner’s “sense of purpose” (Hounsell, 1981). When the learning aligns with students’ intrinsic motivations, it becomes more impactful and memorable. This is why the model reverses the traditional process, which typically starts with consulting external sources. In the new model, students begin by identifying their internal skills and passion before consulting books or academic articles. The process helps them to connect with their authentic creative thinking, becoming highly engaged.

Once students choose a topic, in three minutes, they take another three minutes to define the topic, in one line. They articulate the topic’s essence using new words.

Then, they identify the need to conduct the research. In an academic context, research must explain a need, i.e. how it will contribute something new to knowledge. When the topic is crafted in students’ own words and aligned with their interests, they can focus on the subject without straying into unrelated areas. This clarity makes it easier to identify and articulate the need for their work. They do so in three minutes.

In a further three minutes, they identify three main aspects or keywords, each representing a core element of their topic.

The method is, at its core, a creative challenge designed to break down passive learning habits. It gradually transforms a spontaneous choice into a well-defined, multi-dimensional framework that serves as breakthrough thinking for further exploration.

Three minutes to choose a topic. Three minutes to write a definition of the topic. Three minutes to explain the need.  Three minutes to write 3 keywords.

The process can continue with subsequent sections – further sub-aspects, conclusions and an overall conclusion – as covered in full in my book (Marbach, 2001). For the purpose of this article, I will only focus on the short structure of four steps: the topic, its definition, the need, and three aspects (keywords).

Choosing a topic

In the classroom, students are asked to sit quietly, disconnect from external influences, and focus inwardly. They are encouraged to consult intuition, insights, memories, and personal interests in choosing a subject that resonates with them.

Students often ask, “How can we choose a topic in such a short time?” yet that’s precisely the point. The process cultivates a sense of ownership and independence, nudging students to trust their own insights and helping them to realise that their prior knowledge is accessible and worth exploring. When they only have three minutes, they are forced to let go of overthinking and the traditional dependency on books or a teacher’s direction. Instead, they start to see their personal knowledge as a valid and powerful foundation for inquiry.

Many students are so accustomed to external direction that looking inward for answers feels foreign to them. By providing a brief, structured time limit, we encourage them to break free from this pattern, showing that their internal knowledge is not only accessible but also foundational to academic work.

Defining the topic

In some cases, students may not fully understand the topic they have chosen. While they feel a strong inclination toward it, they might misunderstand its scope, overlook its nuances, or confuse it with another topic. This can lead to misdirection as they progress with their work. To address this issue, it is crucial to clarify the topic immediately after choosing it, taking three minutes to do so.

This exercise ensures that students reflect on and understand the topic (including each word in it) and articulate it in a new way using their own words and terms. The definition thus becomes a reference point for the topic, providing a new perspective for comparison.

The students are asked to sit quietly, disconnect from external influences, and focus only on the main words in their topic. They are to connect with the words, maybe even ‘feel’ them, and draw a definition, a clarity over each word. With this clarify, they then formulate a one-line definition of the topic.

Definitions are subjective and often reflect the individual’s perspective. For example, in one class a student chose the topic ‘soldier in the army’. Before she presented her definition, I conducted a quick survey in the class, asking each student how they would define the word ‘soldier’. Unsurprisingly, many of the students used terms like ‘a military person’, ‘fighter’, or ‘warrior’. After the round of definitions, I asked the student for her definition. She defined the term ‘soldier’ simply as ‘son’, a definition that no one else had considered. The student explained that her son was enlisting in the army the next day, and she was anxious. Her definition was personal. The next step would be to define ‘army’ and then develop a one-line definition for the topic ‘soldier in the army’, for example:

The definition that students arrive at serves as an alternative title for the topic, with a very personal and focused meaning.

Defining the need

The next step is to define the need for the research (or for creating the artwork). Any project in an academic context needs to explain how it will add benefits to the academic community. The need could be imbued with the learners’ personal interest and motivation, yet must also be based on the topic itself – the inherent need, the existing issue, or lack – known in research terminology as the research problem. This is a problem that has not yet been fully solved within the scope of the topic and requires further research. The problem serves as a guiding marker for the students in developing the work. The work must contribute meaningfully to the scientific community by adding a new layer to the accumulated research knowledge.

At this stage, many learners feel they lack the authority to define the justification of their chosen topic before reading the professional academic literature. However, as they engage in a topic that is most relevant or interesting to them, we can assume that they have some insights about its importance and need, based on their pre-knowledge (later on they will consult the literature, but not at this stage). We give students three minutes to suggest a need/problem. In the example of ‘Soldier in the army’, the need could be an issue, i.e. ‘experiencing a sudden void in motherhood’.

Three key aspects

After defining the need, the next step is to break the topic down into three main aspects or themes (keywords), taking three minutes total; one minute per aspect.

Each aspect should be broad enough to encompass significant ideas yet specific enough to allow focused analysis.

For instance, continuing with the ‘soldier’ example, a student might identify the three aspects of personal identity, military culture, and family dynamics. Each of these themes provides a unique direction for examining the subject. By dividing the topic in this way, students create a framework, helping them to visualise and lay out their thoughts in a coherent format.

Through this twelve-minute method, laid out in a table, students have now mapped their personal insight or interest, and can see how their unique ideas connect coherently. The student now has a structure, a coherent framework, that they can develop further into articles or artworks (in a new process which will include a literature review).

At a Glance:

Insight = Topic identification (definition, need, three keywords).

Connecting with insight allows us to identify a meaningful topic, define its essence, address the academic need for research, and develop three key aspects.

© Journal of Creativity and Inspiration.

About the author

Dr. Amikam Marbach is an expert in the processes of developing academic thinking and creative teaching. Author of three books and numerous academic articles, he teaches innovative methods that inspire students to develop intuitive knowledge backed up by academic literature.

References

Hounsell , D. (1981). Teaching and learning information skills: A Sense of Purpose. In: Fox. P. (ed.) Second international conference on library user education. Keble College Oxford , 7-10

Keresztesi , M. (1982). The science of bibliography: theoretical implications for bibliographic instruction. In: Oberman , C. and Strauch , K. (eds.). Theories of bibliographic education, pp. 1-26. New York: Bowker.

Malley, I. (1984). The basics of information skills teaching. London: Clive and Bing ley.

Marbach, A. (2001). The Process of Academic Thinking. Tel Aviv: Mofet Institute.

Marland , M. (ed.) (1981). Information skills in the secondary curriculum. (Schools Council Curriculum Bulletin 9). London: Metuchen Educational.