House2Home Ministries

A few years ago, just when new curriculum reforms in our state were gaining momentum, my daughter's teacher said something to me that I'll never forget. She was the kind of teacher who was not only a great instructor, but she was also a great facilitator because she loved to learn along with her students. But as standardized testing and academic performance intensified in priority, she and many of her peers became understandably disturbed. She said to me, "I wish I could spend more time doing the creative-type lesson plans I used to do with my students, but all this pressure to get them ready for tests has pushed time for creativity right out of the door. That makes me sad because I used to actually have fun teaching my kids and they had fun learning."

That teacher's words came back to mind as I watched this video clip of a decidedly unabashed TED Talk given by Sir Ken Robinson a few years ago. He posed the question, "Do schools kill creativity?" I don't know about you, but I've seen some evidence that this may be true. But the sad part of it is that I don't think it's because they want to kill creativity. I think, with the exception of a few brave teachers, they inevitably do because of the current irrational systematic curriculums that are imposed upon them. Instead of teaching students, they have been reduced to teaching school. 

Listen to Sir Ken's case for the necessity of creativity in the learning process and see what conclusions you draw. Then, chat back at me with your thoughts on how we as parents can keep creativity alive and thriving in our own children.