Making a Difference: A Tribute to E. Paul Torrance From the United Kingdom

Abstract

This article pays tribute to the life and work of Ellis Paul Torrance as an individual, psychologist, and educator. It is written from the perspective of a UK psychologist, teacher, and academic, and it traces sequentially the impact of Torrance's work on the author's research and teaching in the United Kingdom. This includes a large-scale investigation into the views of 1,028 UK teachers and lecturers on creativity, teaching, and learning (Fryer, 1989, 1996; Fryer & Collings 1991a, 1991b); the development of undergraduate and postgraduate courses in applied creativity; and the establishment of a registered charity, The Creativity Centre Educational Trust, of which Torrance was the first honorary member. This article does not attempt to chart Torrance's many achievements (there are others who can do this better). Instead, the emphasis is on his personal qualities, his skill as a psychologist and an educator, and his influence on the author's own work in this field. Attention is drawn to an observation he made shortly before his death about performance on tests of creativity and intelligence and their relation to academic achievement. Torrance's landmark contribution to the understanding and practice of creative education is highlighted, and it is argued that his work is not only relevant to those identified as highly creative but also to education as a whole.