Comments on: Our education system risks stifling children’s creativity

By: Christina Zaba

Christina Zaba — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 01:01:20 +0000

Creativity is about being comfortable with uncertainty – better, it's about being *inspired* by uncertainty, which creative, entrepreneurial people see as opportunity and adventure.

However, since the National Curriculum in the mid-1980s and increasing testing and league tables, creativity has been increasingly difficult to arrange for in our schools.

Without a willingness to take risks, spend time on things that may come to nothing, follow hunches and get totally absorbed in something you're interested in – all of which must sit uneasily with the predictability of 'teaching to the tests' that all too often happens in school – where are we going to get our next entrepreneurs from?

It's depressing, but I agree with Nick – business can and should help inspire and engage the young. The only thing is this is not really about creating great jobs – it's about creating great people. So there is that caveat.

By: Becky

Becky — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 07:09:00 +0000

I agree too.. I have just finished reading a great book titled, "Lives of Passion, School of Hope: by Rick Posner which is about the option of an alternative school where children can be taught in a classroom that promotes passions and hope. There is a school in Colorado that has been using this model in their teaching and have had enormous success rates. For example the allumni, who are now all adults, have all grown up to be responsible, successful, lifelong learners. This is the type of education that I would like to see implemented in my child's school.

By: Nick Sturge

Nick Sturge — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 22:21:58 +0000

Thanks for the comment Al.

You're absolutely right that students should be encouraged to think of all forms of employment: self, start-up or employee.

However, we need all of these types so the education system needs to be flexible enough to produce people that employers need. There's no single "perfect" output of a school – students need to find what's right got them.

That's the flexibility, in my view.

cheers.

By: Al Shaw

Al Shaw — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 12:23:33 +0000

I agree with much of what is said here, especially about the need for education to be more flexible and broad based.

What I would add is that we need to get away from the idea that schools exist to meet the needs of employers. Such a paradigm – which comes through in all government statements on schooling – reinforces the employer-employee model as the primary "reality" in the world of employment.

My own view is that we should be empowering young people to think more broadly about "work" and that, specifically, self-employment should feature much more prominently in the options presented at school.

Schools don't exist for employers. They exist for the students.