Do Schools Kill Creativity?
August 22nd, 2007 |
Sir Ken Robinson makes an entertaining (and profoundly moving) case for creating an education system that nurtures creativity, rather than undermining it. With ample anecdotes and witty asides, Robinson points out the many ways our schools fail to recognize — much less cultivate — the talents of many brilliant people. “We are educating people out of their creativity,” Robinson says. — from TED Talks
Do you agree or disagree with Sir Robinson’s assertions?
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August 22nd, 2007 at 2:52 PM
Yes, I agree with Sir Ken’s (as he is also known) assertions. I don’t think that the educational system intends to “kill creativity” but I do think that it does get inadvertently squashed.
August 22nd, 2007 at 9:32 PM
man, this is cool stuff and he’s funny.
August 23rd, 2007 at 4:44 PM
I think his story about the child drawing a picture of God perfectly exemplifies his entire point. Unfortunately, I think it’s nearly impossible to disagree with his assertions.
August 24th, 2007 at 8:19 AM
Like Carol, I really, really, really don’t want to admit it, but I think Sir Robinson makes a very strong case for his assertions. I agree with Kerry that the educational system doesn’t set out to kill creativity, but most of us do seem to become less creative over time.
Today’s post along with your 08/01/07 post have emboldened me to be an even better teacher this school year. Thanks for the encouragement, Clif.
August 24th, 2007 at 8:22 AM
I’m glad to hear that, TeachingInMemphis. You were already a great teacher, so your students are in for a super year.
August 24th, 2007 at 2:43 PM
Provocative Quote
“We would never consider teaching children to read without also teaching them to write. In the same manner we must teach our children not just to read electronic media but also to create digital media themselves.”
–from Ann Bell̵…
September 3rd, 2007 at 10:02 AM
This is a great video, and it is very inspiring. I want my students to be creative. I want to be able to use technology to encourage my students’ creativity.
September 4th, 2007 at 7:07 PM
I do think a lot of children these days are not being able to use their brains to be creative. I do not think schools are intentionly doing this but the schools generally are just worried about the math and sciences. I think that is because they want the students to be able to use those skills to be great leaders in the future. My thought is that kids should be able to use their creative minds to come up with ideas for the classroom. I think no idea is ever to stupid or crazy as long as it stays within the requirements for the project.
September 4th, 2007 at 8:26 PM
Sir Robinson had several good thoughts throughout his video. One point he made was that students “are frightened that they may be wrong or may make a mistake.” I feel that this is where the teacher should become the encourager. There may be students that think their idea is not as good as the next person. Teachers should emphasize that there are no dumb ideas or thoughts. Creative writing and projects should play a large role in most courses.
I don’t necessarily think that schools are killing creativity, but they may not be doing all they can do. I think alot of testing is multiple choice and there are not enough open-ended questions that allow students to use their creativity.
September 5th, 2007 at 12:08 AM
I think Sir Robinson brings up a very good point that most of us have not noticed. I don’t think that our education system is purposefully killing creativity. However, I think that we have focused so much on academic achievement, that we have lost sight of the way that children naturally learn the subjects that interest them. Instead of teaching students to be successful people, we are teaching them to be successful students.
September 5th, 2007 at 5:32 AM
I agree wholeheartedly with Sir Robinson. I have felt for years that schools have placed more emphasis on academics than arts. The schools seem to feel that if students want to do something outside of school work, they can enroll in sports. There are so many talents in other fields, and it is to the detriment of our society to ignore them for the sake of higher test points and more federal money.
September 5th, 2007 at 7:24 AM
He is wonderful. Children should be allowed to be kids & express their creativity. Moving, running, jumping, & dancing are healthy mentally, physically, & emotionally. Creativity can enhance sociability. If we loathe sitting in a chair all day at a desk, why should we force our children to do it?
September 5th, 2007 at 12:30 PM
I agree with Sir Robinson when he says that creativity is just as important as literacy. Allowing a child to express his/her creativity helps the child define themselves as a person and also helps with character building.
September 5th, 2007 at 12:54 PM
I do agree Sir Robinson that creativity is very importatn. I believe that a child should be able to express themselves. I do think that schools do kill the creativity in students to a certain extent. I do not think that this is done on purpose, but it is done. I liked his statement that you could not be afraid to be wrong and children are not afraid of being wrong, but that school teaches them to be afraid of being wrong. I think that this is true and it can hinder a child while they are trying to learn. They could become afraid of trying to express themselves for fear of being wrong. I think that this could kill the creativity in a student.
September 5th, 2007 at 1:22 PM
I agree. I think they often put too much focus though on the national standards and test scores rather than letting the students express themselves as individuals. Thats why I think it is necessary to keep sports, art, and music in the school systems so that the students have a way to show their talent and creativity.
September 5th, 2007 at 6:02 PM
I also agree with Sir Ken’s assertions, and many of you all as well. Being a teacher myself, not to mention a creative one, I strongly feel that children should be able to express themselves creatively. I feel that schools do kill a child(ren) creativness a lot more than it allows it. Like Gene said” i do not think that it is done on purpose, but it’s done”. Because schools are so structured, and on such a rush-rush bases, they do not allow children to apply their full creative side, whether it be in drama, music, sports,writing, or whatever. Children these days are so, well forced to exceed a certain standard, untill they are scared to make a mistake, mess up or to even be original. If more teacher spent their time thinking creatively, there would be more creative thinkers, and doers.
I really loved the film and it gave me with a lot of insight that will surley make me a better teacher.
September 5th, 2007 at 7:50 PM
Yes, I would have to say that I do agree with him. Education does kill many creative aspects that many children have. When a child talks too much we punish them, and we don’t give them a creative outlet to express those conversations. We many times keep children in their desk, and don’t allow them to move around as they should. All of the Arts have been cut, or simply do not exist. I learned this summer in an instutute that teachers not only have the responsibility to promote academics, but there is a social aspect that we must not ignore as well. This has really tied everthing together, and really completes the circle of educating. We must encourage the academic, social, and creative being all at once. I feel that if these areas were addressed more and on a consistnat basis, there would be more success in all schools as opposed to failures.
September 9th, 2007 at 11:52 AM
[...] Prepare to be Wrong 9 09 2007 “If your not prepared to be wrong you will never come up with anything original” – Sir Ken Robinson [...]
February 4th, 2008 at 10:09 AM
[...] very funny and entertaining (and persuasive) talk on how schools are killing creativity. Thanks to Clif Mims for pointing me to that [...]
March 14th, 2008 at 12:04 AM
[...] Do Schools Kill Creativity? This blog has moved. This post is now available here. [...]
April 17th, 2008 at 1:57 PM
Hee hee. This guy is pretty funny. I agree and disagree… I do believe that schools have a way of inadvertently “killing” creativity, but in a way, how can this be avoided? There is so much to teach and so little time in a day.
I also think the allowance of creativity has to do with how creative teachers are. As teachers, we must be open-minded and we must teach our students to be open-minded and to take other perpectives as well. We have to encourage students to use their imaginations and we have to allow choices when asking the children to express what they think and what they are learning. We need to prompt them to express themselves and support them when they do. We need to ask them what they think and really listen to why. We should not punish or negate different thinking or creativity.
April 20th, 2008 at 10:02 PM
I agree with his opinions. School restricts students so much these days. Do this project. This way. Just like this. The freedom to create and to let the students minds be free is reduced to a time schedule between TCAP and SAT tests.
June 23rd, 2008 at 12:43 PM
I totally agree with Sir Robinson. Creativity is very important for a child’s education because it is just another way to show how intelligent that child could be. I do not think that the schools intentionally kill creativity, but due to the standards of No Child Left Behind, it has benn implicitly written into the school curriculum.
June 24th, 2008 at 11:52 PM
First, let me say that I agree that Sir Robinson is funny, entertaining, and on target with many of his comments. While schools can stifle creativity, it is usually individual teachers that help the process. For example, a Kindergarten teacher needs to make certain a student has mastered their color words. Do they ask them to identify individual words such as “yellow” or “blue” or do they make-up a game or give the students a choice about how they will idnetify their words such as drawing their own unique rainbow when the teacher shows the color word? Part of the solution to teachers and schools being accoutnable to certain terms, objectives, tests, and standards, is the way in which we present them to the students and then allow them to present it back to us. The more creativity that we use, the more creativity will be created in the child.
June 26th, 2008 at 10:31 AM
I think Sir Robinson has a great sense of humor and uses it wisely when delivering this presentation. I agree that intelligence is diverse and that creativity is part of intelligence and should be encouraged and not discouraged. I agree that our schools should focus more on the arts and regard them as academic disciplines capable of helping children discover their talents. Too often, schools regard math and science as the only means of succeding in today’s world. I believe society needs to treat the arts with more respect, and then schools will have to focus more on these disciplines as academic disciplines and not as “special area disciplines/elective classes” for children to take. I think children sense that their interests and talents in the arts will not always be rewarded, and naturally become discouraged. I think Sir Robinson’s ideas are similar to Howard Gardner’s and his theory of multiple intelligences. Hopefully, more schools will make stronger efforts to integrate the arts into their school curricula as academic disciplines. I enjoy this video.
June 26th, 2008 at 3:15 PM
This made me laugh and it made me think. Sir Robinson is very witty yet he made some powerful thought-provoking assertions about schools inadvertently and sometimes advertently killing creativity. Right now, the first things to go when a school system has to budget is the art and music program. Somethings we cannot control so we as educators must adapt and do our best to encourage students to be creative. I am a writer. I could not imagine living in a world without a Poe, without Shakespeare without Langston Hughes without art. I don’t want to live in a world like that.
June 26th, 2008 at 5:16 PM
Sir Robinson is amazingly brilliant and uses humor and intelligence to discuss creativity. Several things he said struck deep. I have a desk calendar for teachers and recently one of the days said that the body’s soul purpose is to carry the brain. When Sir Robinson mentioned this in conjunction with his idea about schools teaching kids from the waist up and eventually only one side of the head, I immediately understood. This is why I love the TPR (Total Physical Response) method in my foreign language classroom. It allows the kids to move and create movement to go with new vocabulary words in gestures and signs. Kids act out oral stories and create new ones using the TPRS (Total Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling) method. This allows for more movement and gives children the ability to create new stories with humor and amazing twists with the more language they have. I also loved his anecdote about the dancer because I know that my teenagers are not all ADHD, but some are dancers and athletes who need movement to think and create. I try to foster this activity in class to promote learning and creativity at the same time. Thanks for the video!
June 27th, 2008 at 3:09 AM
I agree with Sir Robinson that creativity does not seem to be a priority in schools. As he stated, in order to be creative, you must be prepared to be wrong. If you are not prepared to be wrong, you will never come up with anything original. Students should be allowed to be creative and they should not be frightened of being wrong.
June 27th, 2008 at 4:17 PM
I do agree with Sir Robinson. I think one thing that may make it difficult for people in education right now is that we are being asked to integrate and use technology in our classrooms that was never used in ours. It would be easier to know how to adjust to this necessity of being familiar with and integrating technology into classrooms if it in any resembled the way that we were taught in schools. I can remember computers being something that I had to learn on my own time after I had finished my assigned reading. But it is the responsibility of the educator to have all the tools necessary to teach his students and inspire as much creativity in them as is possible.
July 17th, 2008 at 12:47 PM
Great video clip! I feel that student creativity has been somewhat hampered by instructors who feel pressured to just “teach to the test”. Sir Robinson makes some valid points. After watching the video, I thought to myself, doesn’t a lot of what he just said seem like common sense? But for some reason “common sense” seems to get lost in translation between policies and laws governing education and activities that take place in the classroom. Too many times, the people dictating how teachers run their classrooms are either too far removed from being on the front lines to remember what it’s really like…or they’ve never spent a single day as a teacher in front of a class full of students. Our country is lagging behind other countries in terms of student achievement. Research is out there to prove that statement. Until teachers control the learning environment within their own classrooms and not politicians, I don’t see our overall progress improving.
OK, climbing down off of the soapbox now : )
July 17th, 2008 at 3:29 PM
I agree with Sir Robinson and I love his style in presentation. However, I wonder how idealistic his view is at the present time. Where do we start to open the door for the creativity and the diverse intelligence of students? I think we need to rethink curricula, school scheduled (how much can you put in a school day)and teacher training.
July 28th, 2008 at 2:13 PM
I would have to agree with Sir Ken Robinson on his assertion that schools do “kill” creativity. Our schools are currently designed, like he said, in a hierarchy, in which specific skills, namely math and science, are valued over others. Sir Robinson mentioned a couple reasons why having this hierarchy is ridiculous. One of the reasons why an academic hierarchy is absurd is because people cannot accurately assign value to skills that may or may not be valuable in 30, 20, or even 10 years. If we cannot accurately assess what skills children will need for the future than how can we place a value or emphasis on any particular skill now. Another important point Sir Robinson made was the stress we place on children to be right and not make mistakes. Children, and people in general, need to be willing to make mistakes in order to create, or even learn, something new and original. This rejection to make any mistakes stifles creativity probably more than any one thing in our schools and in society. We need to find new ways to praise children’s efforts and ideas, and less ways to assess them on their mistakes. Sir Robinson also mentioned the declining value of a college degree or what he called, “academic inflation”. This knowledge is very important to educators. If employers no longer value “just” a college degree, then what do they value? Many would say an important skill now seen in the workforce would be the ability to see a problem and to suggest creative solutions. For all these reasons I agree with Sir Robinson that we need to rethink the fundamental ways we educate children and begin to see the vastness of human capabilities.
July 30th, 2008 at 6:20 PM
I agree with Jeremy and also Sir Ken. So much emphasis is placed on standardized test scores. TCAP and Gateway tests focus on math, science, literature, writing, and history (please forgive me if I missed a subject). Teachers’ jobs and livelyhood are threatened if their students do not perform well on tests. Not only is creativity left out, but some essential skills that may not be tested are left out as well.
I agree that “we are being educated out of our creativity.” If students have an urge for creativity or have talents that are not fostered in regular schools, the only other option is sending the child to an expensive “arts” school. Like Jeremey said, creativity is essential in the work place. Most everybody will be faced with a situation in their career in which they must solve a problem with creativity.
It is our responsibility as teachers to ensure that our students’ creative edges are being fostered at school.
March 5th, 2009 at 3:07 PM
I agree with Sir Ken. I am not currently teaching, but I have heard many teachers complain of feeling like the teach to the test. The schools are so concerned with tests scores that the teachers do not have any room in their schedule to add in material they feel is important and would be interesting for the students. I feel that there should be a balance between te standardize tests and creativity lessons for todays students.
June 23rd, 2009 at 12:32 AM
Schools are slowly stealing the creative nature of young students. I mean, school has become so “uniformed” that its a taboo to express one’s self. I AM GOING TO CHALLENGE EVERY TEACHER AND ADMINISTRATOR TO REFORM AND REFINE OUR EDUCATIONAL CLASSROOM STRUCTURE IN ORDER TO KEEP CREATIVITY AND ORIGINALITY ALIVE! DON’T BE ANOTHER BRICK IN THE WALL! LETS MAKE A PROGRESSIVE CHANGE FOR THE SAKE OF CREATIVITY!!!
June 23rd, 2009 at 6:56 PM
ok so he’s right!!! I’ve been saying the same thing about ADHD for a while now. They are just kids they aren’t suppose to sit still and listen for 45 min straight. Even in college sitting and listening to lectures were hard though children are disruptive adults doze off or overload on coffee. Also its do true about college grads you are always over or under qualified and I did move back home
June 23rd, 2009 at 6:59 PM
Mary I would suggest integrating the music,art, dance, physical activity to lessons. They would remember more and have fun learning it. Sort of reminds me of Akeelah and the Bee were she kept rhythm to win the spelling bee.
June 24th, 2009 at 9:49 AM
This video touched a personal spot with me. Before becoming a teacher I spent years in Corporate America having my creativity squashed. And it was the ability I had to BE creative as a teacher that first intrigued me about this profession. However, I agree with Sir Robinson’s assessment that schools do stiffle the creativity of the students. We barely let them talk out and share ideas in class, much less be creative….and all for the sake of “good classroom management.” I hope we find an answer to this problem soon.
June 26th, 2009 at 1:19 PM
This was very thought-provoking. As a math teacher, I feel that the only way I can produce mathematicians is to encourage creativity, not squash it, and since my undergraduate degree is in music, I use it in my classroom as much as possible. Any observer would be amazed seeing how my students think in my class where they can listen to music and move around the room. It’s definitely not the same as how they think in other classes where they sit in rows for 55 minutes.
July 28th, 2009 at 10:01 PM
I agree with him. Creativity is just as important as literacy. I think we are very focused on meeting standards and goals. While this is necessary, we can’t ignore the creativity, gifts and talents that our students have. We can use these talents to help them understand the concepts we teach in class. For example, I might use a song to teach multiplication or let students form a human graph in the class when we learn to plot points. I have to engage students and let them be themselves.
July 30th, 2009 at 1:55 PM
Children lose their creativety over the years. When they are young they have the freedom to express themselves however they want. When children start school they are forced to follow so many rules. It really makes you wonder.
October 11th, 2009 at 12:39 PM
I definitely agree that schools can stifle creativity. The classroom environment often has every student working on the same assignment–an assignment where each question has only one correct answer, I might add. Conformity is the norm and is encouraged because it makes the teaching process easier. I think teachers of subjects like reading, writing, arithmetic, etc. often feel that creativity isn’t/shouldn’t be a part of their lesson plan. However, I think that creativity can be encouraged in all classes, not just the music or art class.
October 14th, 2009 at 11:04 AM
My favorite part of this video it that Sir Ken gives a reason for how we have come to the education system we have. That is grew out of the industrial revolution. It gives the classroom an industrial revolution assembly line kind of atmosphere. Be quite, sit in a spot and do your work. The arts do take a back seat, but it is necessary in a primitive society for that to happen, for survival. Can you imagine a small community of artist performing their art forms and no farmers or hunters? Our world is well beyond a primitive society and we have more than enough resources to provide growth in the arts. One thing I did not like though, was the AD/HD reference. Learning disabilities are not that simple. Different people need different things but not all individuals with AD/HD are meant to be multi-millionaire dancers. Some are genuinely in need of medication to function. Also, not only are we lacking in teaching the arts, we also are missing the mark with technology and wouldn’t it be nice if we had all graduated with a bit of background in finance?
October 15th, 2009 at 7:53 PM
I definitely agree with a lot of what Mr. Robinson is saying. This is the second time I’ve watched this video this week and both times I have been reminded of my own time in school. I never felt encouraged to be creative or follow the path of creativity in school. Reading, writing, math, and science were drilled into our brains. I have now found a creative outlet in painting, but as an adult! It was never introduced to me as a child. However, I feel it is not just art or music or dance classes that are lacking, but creativity in EVERY classroom. Teachers lecture and provide notes, but where is the encouragement to be creative in projects? Essays provide it in terms of writing, but what about the students who aren’t necessarily good writers, but have a talent for drawing? Or painting? It is important for us as teachers to differentiate our instruction to include all students and all abilities.
October 15th, 2009 at 10:34 PM
Schools will stifle creativity if and only if the teacher pursues that goal. Can we pursue non-traditional thinking and action in multiple modalities? We can, and we should. One popular notion in education is the recognition of the theory of multiple intelligences — that people can be skilled in certain forms of intelligence and self-expression. As educators, we should be pursuing these goals with every lesson, ensuring that we are allowing for freedom of expression and freedom of creativity.
November 16th, 2009 at 3:55 PM
I completely agree with him. He makes a very strong and true point that the school systems dont allow children to spread their wings into what they want to be doing. It does take away the origonality of the wide range of talents these children have and can exceed with.
March 5th, 2010 at 9:02 PM
He had some very valid points. To me it argues the case for projrct based learning. Through creativity students are able to trully express their creativity and apply the skills they learn. I think that we are realizing the benefit of this method.
July 14th, 2010 at 4:51 PM
I have to go against the general feeling here…I really don’t agree with what is being said. While I feel that schools are working toward integrating more activities which require creativity and mental flexibility, I don’t think they are currently failing kids either. The argument isn’t as easy as pitting so called ‘academics’ against ‘arts’ or about valuing the contributions of the right side of the brain over the left. Most schools are progressing towards using problem-solving, differentiated learning and arts integration in all aspects of the curriculum.
I also take issue with the idea that it ALL has to come from the school. Children simply should not be attending school all day only to come home and plant themselves in front of the television and video games all evening. Children (and adults for that matter) need to explore all of the options that are available to nurture their individuality and create whole people. Encourage your child to read, sew, dance, cook, hike, run around playing hours of capture the flag, paint, play Scrabble, build a train set, have a conversation!!!! But don’t just send your kid to school and think “Oh good, ‘education’ is taken care of”.
July 26th, 2010 at 12:27 AM
Creativity is as important as literacy. How profound is that statement. I agree with Sir Ken. I have always enrolled my children in art classes along with math and reading and enrichment. I try to encourage my children to explore either in a class or at home. My son enjoys playing the piano, but instead of just taking lessons I encourage him to write his own songs. My young daughter walks around speaking in a language that she has created on her own. Instead of squelching that creativty I encourage it. I agree that we have to foster creativity in children and give them a safe place to explore their creative sides.
I also agree with him about the differences between a woman’s ability to multi task and a man’s inability to do that. LOL
But I digress….I think we have to create opportunities for our children to be creative. I personally think the integration of technology can help young people who are used to gaming technology to enjoy being creative using websites like queeky.com.
July 26th, 2010 at 4:48 PM
Imagination is disappearing in today’s childhoods. What seems a lifetime ago, we let our children go outside for the day with a pitcher of lemonade on the porch. We just had to listen for Dad’s voice calling us for dinner. We created worlds of indians and cowboys, princess and ball-gowns or whatever we dreamed up. We explored. Today, our children are not out of an adult’s eyesight for long for the fear that has been instilled in us of today’s unsafe surroundings. They are kept in contained environments without much deviation from the task on hand.
Sir Ken states that we educate from the waste up not addressing the arts in the same fashion as we do other academic areas. In many areas of the country, this is very true. The first programs to be cut are art, music and drama. Dance really is not part of the schools. I give credit to many of the public schools in the Mid South that incorporate music, art and drama programs. This summer, my daughter had the opportunity to participate in the Shelby County Schools Art Academy. They chose from art, choir, band or strings for a week long instruction from local professionals as well as teachers. Many were introduced to technology tools to use to improve composition, pitch or edit their pieces. In just five days, her creativity flourished to the next step.
July 27th, 2010 at 3:10 PM
I agree. When I look back at my own educational experience it was not as widely accepted to be creative the older you get. Creativity is great as long as the majority agree, while not as much when it is not. We need to focus our children on what they enjoy and utilize these subjects to garner a better understanding of the ones that are not as well liked.
July 27th, 2010 at 4:06 PM
“Creativity is as important as literacy.” Those are pretty strong ideas. The more I think about it, the more I agree. If kid’s don’t know, they’ll take a stab at it. Their not afraid of being wrong. We’ve outgrown this trait as adults. I agreed with so much of what Sir Robinson said. I enjoyed listening to his assertions.
July 29th, 2010 at 10:39 AM
This talk has given some me some deep thoughts about how the educational system is set up. I think that we judge children and schools based on test scores is a terrible set up. However, I’ve always wondered what other way is there. Just like he said, all school systems have been made the same around the world. The real questions is, how can we successfully adopt these open ideas about creativity, while maintaining policy and structure? How do we use these creativity’s to further educate and prepare? I agree ADHD is an “invented” condition. At what age do we recognize this need and send children through different paths? So what I am saying is, he is right. Change needs to be made, but where and how do we start?
July 29th, 2010 at 8:20 PM
This is so true! Too often now children are afraid to express their ideas and opinions that may be “out of the box.” They censor their answers to line up with what the majority viewpoint may be until they no longer naturally think with a creative, original thought process. I was an undergrad marketing student, and the curriculum was essentially the definition of an oxymoron. They want you to create original ideas while pandering to the mainstream mindset. The same thing happens in school as children get older. They are taught to think less about their point of view, and more about the accepted point of view. It is disheartening. Children’s creativity and originality should be encouraged and nurtured so that they can grow up to become the innovative leaders that the world needs.