Why Aren’t We More Creative?
According to new research, American’s creative abilities are on the decline. Newsweek reports that while teachers are feeling the heat of standardized testing, students’ critical thinking and problem solving skills are suffering.
I had a fascinating conversation this past weekend with an extended-family member who is a teacher at a low-income grade school. It was amazing for me to hear just how hard today’s teachers are pressing (and being pressed) to see their kids’ test scores improve. If they don’t, there are often dire consequences.
Meanwhile, programs that foster cultures of explorative learning, imagination and creativity seem to be almost extinct.
I personally wonder if our shortcomings in education have a lot to do with a failure of imagination in us as adults? In schools, churches and other learning environments, we’re often so slave to the “deliverables” that it becomes difficult to foster the creativity and imagination necessary for learning and growth.
What do you think? Can this trend be reversed? What can our schools and churches do to help? What do you imagine?
(via Collide)
07/30/2010 at 10:40 am
Easy. Creativity defies standardization, categorization, compartmentalization, pigeon-holing, distinct classification, and conformity. Our education system relies on those things. It stresses not coloring outside the lines, not going against well-established procedure, not complying to the rules, not following the rules, not going strictly by tradition, not questioning authority, not veering off the set path. Unapproved individualism is not tolerated. Children are not allowed to be kids, not allowed to be silly, be experimental, be loud, laugh, or play. Our education system wants to mold children into socially conscious, politically active, environmentally friendly, non-competitive, workplace productive employees of tomorrow, and the less they question the government and society that educated them, the better. Simply put, schools are controlled environments where products are made, not where kids are educated. And that’s sad. And criminal.