Beautifully stated. The first thing I think of when I think "cave man" are the artistic renderings in the caves in France. Music, dance, art, pretty much what truly identifies us individually and where we come from are now pushed aside or deemed fruitless. Or at least, not part of the "focus."
FCAT testing, testing in general, all based on schematics, and basically pushing us and our kids into dullness. But we are more than that as is evidenced by this site and those on it. The machine can't keep the creative mind down.
Woops, thought I was in the Think Tank. Ummm, yes, schools have progressively become creative black holes. And that's not because of the teachers, by the way.
These are obviously just my opinions, but I do believe not only does the current form of schools kill creativity, they also no longer instruct students how to think. Too much of institutional education is merely based on memorization of "facts" (more usually national propaganda, not actual history, for example) in order to pass memorization tests. Practical skills (such as old school woodshop, metal shop, mechanical drawing) are phased out along with cultural appreciation because of "budget cuts" (while more bureaucrats like assistant principals are added). Go figure. In regards to creativity, whether it be crafts, graphic arts, or writing, creativity is killed by the forcing of students to adhere to a teacher's idea of what is or is not acceptable. While skill sets can be acquired (writing: grammar, punctuation, vocabulary, etc. graphic arts: technique, imagery, anatomy, etc.), creativity itself (i.e. expression) is molded too often into what the teacher may consider profitable employment (i.e. game design). Another killer to creativity is that the majority of teachers are failed artists, and therefore are cynical about the possibility of success as an expressive artist. Commerciality has always been a killer for genuine creativity versus hacks.
I like a lot of the stuff that dude had to say. He is right about creativity being as important as everything else like math and science. I mean just in the work place, if you want to get practical about it, creativity is what solves most problems. It's being able to take the technical knowledge and apply it in a non straight forward way that actually solves problems.
It's cool how kids will learn a few languages at the same time if they are exposed to them a lot as children. I learned two at the same time and speaking wise I feel just as strong in both. As a kid and growing up I never really thought about it when I was learning, it just happened. But now as an adult it would take tons of effort to try and learn a new language as well as the two I know already. I'm sure if one of my parents didn't want me to feel confused they could have easily stifled one of the languages effectively killing that route my brain could have opened up. Creativity is the same way maybe. But it can be applied to much more than just the literal art they are practicing like music, painting, or dance. It opens up new avenues in the brain and allows you to think in a different way.
Thanks for the vid. Thought provoking.
I think it's systemic. Schools need funding and thus have to match numbers, that means prescription to those things outlined in prerequisites. Parents want the best for their kids so they focus on the obvious and touted schools and training. The US sees itself in an odd situation of being low on many levels in education and thus wants numbers. The teachers are stuck in the middle of what they believe will be beneficial and what they know would actually benefit their kids.
Do we teach to the benefit of the one? Or, do we teach to the prescribed benefit of the whole?
In the end, lots of things get overlooked. And, as noted in the vid, that one kid, would have been lost if particular attention was not asserted.
Don't know, I just try to push art, in its many forms, as much as possible, and keep the machine fed at the same time.
I think schools are some of the worst offenders of indoctrination. There is no such thing as an unbiased history class. We are told what to think, what to believe, and then recieve grades based on our ability to regurgitate those biased beliefs. No teacher is going to give you an A for writing a paper portraying JFK as a womanizing, sexist bastard for instance. Stay inside the lines and you are rewarded. So yes, they punish free-thinking.
