Do Schools Kill Creativity?
In this video, Sir Ken Robinson makes an entertaining and moving case for creating an education system that nurtures (rather than undermines) creativity. Some powerful points he argues include:
- Creativity is as important as literacy.
- People don’t grow into creativity, they grow out of it (or are educated out of it).
- If you are not prepared to be wrong, you won’t come up with anything original. By adulthood, most people have lost that capacity.
Robinson advocates for music and arts education, since these are creative activities. He encourages a transformation of our educational system into one that values these experiences as much as traditional academic ability.
I agree wholeheartedly with his basic message, and have heard myself make similar arguments. But there are two critical points missing from this talk.
#1: Creativity benefits our society on just about every level
Robinson fails to address (here, at any rate) the many ways that creativity can help just about every aspect of our society thrive. Businesses, universities, government offices, and all kinds of other non-arts related sectors need creative people to dream up strong visions and lead the way. Creativity is not just OK. It is desperately needed.
#2: The arts are not inherently creative
If the arts are to serve as a mechanism for fostering creativity, we must rethink the way we teach them. Unfortunately, in too many cases, arts education squanders inventiveness. Mistakes are shunned. Improvisation is ignored. Teachers make all artistic decisions, and demand their students perform the “correct” way by adhering rigidly to these prescriptions. For “Arts as Creativity Training” to hold water, educators must develop environments where creativity is allowed, encouraged, and celebrated. By doing that, the argument for what we do becomes exponentially easier to make. For a more detailed exploration of this topic, please read Are Artists “Creative Professionals?”
What do you think?
6 Responses to “Do Schools Kill Creativity?”
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DAVID CUTLER balances a varied career as a jazz and classical composer, pianist, educator, arranger, conductor, collaborator, concert producer, author, consultant, speaker and advocate. Dr. Cutler teaches at Duquesne University, where he also serves as Coordinator of Music Entrepreneurship Studies.
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Very little do I disagree with Dr. Cutler! Creativity is “desperately” needed!
Yes, and perhaps people should even be educated differently in different places. Unfortunately, there are those who are not interested in the whole and only want control and profit–victims of there own misguided education.
I also wholeheartedly agree with his entire conclusion, and I’ve argued it myself many times before ever hearing this. It really does become especially true in Liberal Arts higher education, and I feel that my main reason for being a music student is so that I can learn to sing in a way that will not hurt me instead of singing in a way that fosters my professors’ creativity. I can barely agree with going to school for music, and doing it for writing or art is simply absurd to me (or at least, going to school for many years learning the same thing is absurd).
And it’s so incredibly true that people are literally afraid to fail or be wrong in any class or at any time. A person is afraid to raise their hand and answer a question in a language class, let alone take a creative musical chance in their composition class or focus on painting Dada art in an art school that focuses on Impressionism.
Hopefully we really can fix this and fix it where it is most problematic; secondary and tertiary education. I really liked the video as well. Thanks for the post!
I could not agree more, and I am glad that Dr. Cutler added those few extra points. I would like to add that creativity fosters the development of the mind, the soul and the spirit. Happiness is dependent on creativity and achievement and without one’s imagination and new ideas that are born from creativity, what else is there to accomplish and strive for in this life? When the arts and music are collaboratively taught in an open manner that allows students to express themselves freely and artistically, creativity grows giving each individual the opportunity to find their own creative niche. The arts and music develop the person, and where culture begins, society will follow. Music and the arts are also an excellent way for people to express their emotions, and it is my argument that people and especially children who are discouraged from nurturing their artistic abilities conclusively develop violent, aggressive, emotionally unstable tendencies throughout their adulthood.
I think not only is creativity lost in a subject that is thought to be most creative but in all school subjects in general. Creativity, along with critical thinking skills (which I feel are sometimes one in the same) are not fostered. I myself know that only as a robot have I done well in classes. There was no room for creativity. By the same token, I understand that sometimes, the grind is really all that is needed to learn your craft, but it would be nice to have more teachers fostering creativity before it is completely lost. The best classes, and those that have motivated me to do the most, have been ones in which the professor not only was enthusiastic about the subject they were teaching but presented it in an interesting way. Generally, I’ve been disappointed with the lack of creativity of teachers, especially on the college level and I do think it completely detracts from my own creativity. Lastly, I feel that creativity breeds from experience. When cooped up in a school all day, your experiences become that of sitting in front of computers, in practice rooms, and maybe reading or writing. Therefore, your own creativity can suffer.
I’m actually writing an article for my school’s magazine as we speak because I was so riled up and inspired by Sir Robinson’s talk. As a student, I totally identify with everything he says about students being scared to answer questions. The general atmosphere, in my school anyway, is ‘This is what you are learning, these are the answers.’ And that’s it. In every subject, there’s such a strict curriculum we have to follow, there’s no time to go off on tangents, or explore. It’s so depressing, I don’t think the teachers like it either. I mean, to get the best grades,all you have to do memorise all the facts and reasons the teachers spoon-feed to you. I really hope by the time I have my own children, Sur Robinson’s ideas have taken off.