As a storm decided to roll into view through my dining room windows, I decided to cuddled up on the couch and watch this fascinating TED talk:
http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html
It is so encouraging. I watched eagerly, and my heart filled with the joy that is new learning, fascinating angles to see the world from, and new possibilities for the future. One of the things I love to think about when it comes to God is His creative nature. How that is seen everywhere, in nearly everything if you allow it to be. I see it most often in kids that I interact with. Children are meant to be educated in a way that is kind to their natural inclinations. Our education system, so sadly, often pushes children into a big wooden crate, filled with only a few subjects available for study, and nails the lid on to trap them. The children must then pick and choose from a meager offering of “acceptable” interests and courses, which in turn smoosh out their minds’ curiosities. Thankfully, my parents helped to expose me to a lot of things during my life: music, culture, and we were blessed to travel–these opportunities nurtured many of the interests I still hold dear as an adult. But I can’t say that my education in the U.S. did the same. Boring worksheets… homework assignments for the sake of homework… and tests that didn’t truly measure any kind of development bombarded my schooldays. I remember thinking at an early age (9, maybe?) “This seems so pointless…”
This video shows there is so much more. It’s hilarious, it’s inspirational, it’s true. Our educational system needs to get up to speed with the way the world is now, not how it was 50 years ago. Artists, thinkers, creators, the active minds–these are the people who will solve our looming real world problems. Take a minute to watch it–I promise you won’t be disappointed.
-M
