The big question: Do schools kill creativity?
In a talk riddled with humourous twists, words associations and fun analogies, Sir Ken Robinson reminds us of the relevance and importance of creativity in education. Beginning with how children have the capacity to be imaginative and innovative, he gives examples of how they are not afraid to make mistakes.
A teacher asks a girl what she is drawing during a drawing lesson and was met with “I’m drawing God” The teacher then says, “But no one knows what God looks like,” to which the little girl replies,”they will in a minute.”
Children are being taught to live and work in an unpredictable future – a future that is hard to imagine even just 5 years away. So if creative capacity is a key element of innovation, there is a disconcerting imbalance of the arts in educational hierarchy. The arts are consistently at the bottom of the priority list. As a result, children are being prepared for jobs and creativity is educated out of them. Mistakes are stigmatized as the worst thing to do, consequently creating fear of taking risks, of being wrong and ultimately resulting in creatively talented people who don’t know that they are creatively talented.
Sir Ken Robinson makes a deeply engaging case for rethinking the way that children are taught, so that they may make something of their future. Watch the video here.
