Creative vs. Routine

Most classwork is designed as logical and ordered, based on facts. Many people believe that logical is the opposite of creativity. One synonym of logical is analytical. To analyze, one has to think creatively to compare information given against other known facts. Perhaps a better antithesis to creativity would be routine. This pits thinking against habit. The many advantages of creativity in teaching are touted in multiple publications about excellence in teaching. I agree that creativity is lacking in many classrooms and our educational system can use a good dose of teaching students how to think creatively with respect for the ideas of others and with a goal toward designing solutions to a host of issues that affect our many communities. But I wonder... Do we need to infuse EVERYTHING with creative thinking? Creativity demands time --time to think, time to design, time to share with others, time to reflect and adjust, time to implement. There are situations which do not offer the luxury of time. Creative thinking has it's place, but there is also a time for simple basic instruction which is ingrained as habit. For example, if you cut your leg with a chainsaw, do you want the EMS team to spend time analyzing the problem and thinking about a creative solution? Or is this the time to simply use the trained methods (for stopping blood loss and saving the limb) and get you to the hospital? Creative thinking might be more applicable when the surgeons design a solution to reattaching your critcal leg parts, or when a team of EMTs try to create a new, faster, better way of treating this type of injury as a reflective exercise that implements a new procedure before the next 911 call. I would want my students to understand that there is a time for creative thinking (be it for producing or reflecting) and a time for following routine accepted standards.