“What qualities of a problem invite the possibility of elegant solutions?”
Core Concept
Elegant Problems
A problem-based approach to curriculum design that engages the imagination and invites creative thought.
Across decades of educational practice and research, Dr. Kay observed that highly creative individuals often pursued problems that were personally meaningful long before they produced extraordinary work. Research on creative expertise frequently celebrated elegant solutions but offered comparatively little guidance about the kinds of problems that invite those solutions.
While studying the work of eminent creative thinkers—including Charles Darwin and Jean Piaget—Howard Gruber noted their pursuit of elegant solutions.
Dr. Kay's work asks a complementary question: What kinds of problems invite the possibility of elegant solutions?
How do we define Elegant Problems?
Elegant Problems invite sustained creative engagement because they are meaningful, generative, and worthy of pursuit. They provide room for multiple approaches and levels of expertise while inviting the possibility of an elegant solution.
An elegant solution is never guaranteed. The purpose is to create conditions in which one becomes possible—and in which learners can develop the creative and aesthetic capacities needed to recognize, appreciate, and pursue such solutions.
Origins
From Elegant Solutions to Elegant Problems
The idea of Elegant Problems emerged during Dr. Kay’s time as a Visiting Scholar at Teachers College, Columbia University, where A. Harry Passow had created a position that allowed her to continue exploring her research on personal aesthetic preference and creative expertise.
Following a Creativity Seminar devoted to Howard Gruber’s research, Dr. Kay found herself thinking about the role of problem finding in the lives of the eminent creators he and his learners had studied. Across mathematics, science, art, and other fields, accomplished creators often described exceptional solutions as elegant.
On the drive home, crossing the George Washington Bridge, a question came into focus:
If the work of highly creative people culminates in elegant solutions, what kinds of problems might invite elegant solutions to occur?
That question initiated the development of Elegant Problems.
Worthiness is fundamental. An Elegant Problem must matter—to the person engaging it, to a discipline, or to a larger field. It must also provide opportunities to exercise the creative-thinking capacities identified by J. P. Guilford.
What Makes a Problem Elegant?
Worthiness
Fluency
Flexibility
Originality
Elaboration
… and the possibility of an
Elegant Solution
What Can an
Elegant Problem Do?
Inspiration
Elegant Problems can fuel curiosity and wonder by introducing questions or possibilities that remain compelling enough to sustain inquiry consistently for any audience.
Practice in Problem Finding and Defining
Learners encounter opportunities to find relevant possibilities within both open and closed problems, make choices, and construct personal meaning as their knowledge and skills develop.
Development of Personal Aesthetic Preferences
Creative viewing and production provide opportunities to recognize what feels fitting, satisfying, meaningful, or beautiful—developing the aesthetic literacy Dr. Kay associates with advanced creative expertise.
Inspiration — Andrew Wiles
Introduced to Fermat’s Last Theorem as a child, Andrew Wiles remained captivated by the unsolved problem and ultimately returned to it decades later—an example of how a compelling problem can fuel curiosity and wonder across a lifetime.
Problem Finding — The Talent Profile
The Talent Profile grew from documenting the independent inquiries learners chose to pursue through curiosity, wonder, and interest, making patterns of personally meaningful exploration visible across time.
Aesthetic Preference — Wally’s Way
Engaging the Imagination: Wally’s Way demonstrates how playful creative observation can help learners notice, choose, respond, and begin developing the personal aesthetic preferences that inform creative judgment.