Research Paper

How schools kill creativity?

Chitwan Singh Sekhon

Thompson Rivers University

The concept of human education system revolves around the idea of providing information. This

further gives the false feeling that we know everything. Thus, making us believe that having

information is intelligence. Information is useful but it is intelligence that allow us to navigate

through a situation in a unique way. Too much information takes away the ability to pay attention

because the basis of attention is not knowing, which makes a person curious. Skip paying attention

to this reading or being blind, either way it exacerbates the ability to understand. That’s true for

every aspect for life. Most people wouldn’t even notice what they are eating or what is even

happening around. We as human beings have developed, not only our cities are now advanced but

we have information of almost anything with a touch of a finger yet still have failed to comprehend

the human internal software.

According to Robinson (2006), our education system has made us frightened of being wrong which

makes us not prepared to try something new, therefore prohibiting to come up with something

original. We are now running national education institutions where mistakes are the worst thing

one can do. Therefore, we are educating people out of their creative capacities. Picasso (2013) said

that all children are born artists. The problem is to remain an artist as we grow up. Eventually, we

get educated out of creativity.

Not only every education system in the world has the same hierarchy of subjects, that is, at the top

it is mathematics and languages, then humanities and at the bottom are the arts but there is
hierarchy even within the arts, that is, music and arts within the higher status as compared to drama

and dance. Robinson (2006) raises a question that why isn’t dance taught every day to children the

way mathematics is taught. He notices that as children grow up, we start to educate them

progressively from waist up, finally focusing on their heads. Hence, making them feel their body

as a form of transport for their heads.

Our education system is predicated on the idea of academic ability. The reason being lack of public

education systems before 19th century as these all came into being to meet the demands of

industrialism. Therefore, the hierarchy is rooted on two ideas, one being the most useful subjects

for work are at the top and second is academic ability which deludes our idea of intelligence. The

whole system of public education around the world is an extended process of university entrance.

Thus, highly talented, brilliant and creative people think they are not because the thing in which

they were good at wasn’t valued at school or was denounced.

According to UNESCO (2004), in the next 30 years, worldwide there would be more people

graduating through education then since the beginning of history. Consequently, degrees are worth

nothing. Hence, we need to rethink our view of intelligence. Acquiring information is only good

for boastfulness as it will take away the ability to pay attention as the arrogance of information

brings attention deficiency. We need to rethink the fundamental principles on which we are

educating our children as learning is a process which includes paying attention, right understanding

and making mistakes with the use of human imagination.

References:

 Robinson, K. (2006). Do schools kill creativity?. TED.

 Picasso, P., & Picasso, P. (2013). Paintings, quotes, and biography. Pablo Picasso and his
Painting. Retrieved from.
 Scheerens, J. (2004). THE QUALITY OF EDUCATION AT THE BEGINNING OF THE 21 ST
CENTURY Paper for the UNESCO Education for All Global Monitoring Report.
 Collins, A., & Halverson, R. (2010). The second educational revolution: Rethinking education in
the age of technology. Journal of computer assisted learning, 26(1), 18-27.
 Ellyatt, W. (2007). The Isha Home School. MONTESSORI INTERNATIONAL MAGAZINE, 85, 20.
 West, E. G. (1976). Education and the industrial revolution.