Rethinking Education – rethinking me

I read this last night, which caused me to watch Ken Robinson again.

If teaching is a creative profession how do we develop the creativity of our future teachers? How do we attract creative people to enter teaching? When and where, if ever, do teachers come to recognize themselves as creative professionals? How do we develop creativity in the teaching profession?

 

I often get asked about education. I’m half of a parenting team for five children, aged 1 – 14. I’ve taught all school levels, including tertiary, and importantly: now I’m not a teacher. Something I often say is that education is not about a product. It’s not about getting into the next stage.

Ken says:

It’s about finding something that takes 10 hours but feels like 5 minutes. Not doing something that takes 5 minutes but feels like 10 hours.

And when I watched Ken’s second talk I found myself better able to articulate what I think education needs to be.

It needs to be a garden. You don’t know what the end result will be, you just need to create the right conditions for growth.

I found the story of Gillian Lynne so captivating because I feel like I’m living it. I don’t seem to be able find a box to live inside. I’m really good at heaps of things, but I’m so easily bored.

Maybe I shouldn’t write this. Maybe a future employer will read this and dismiss me as having no tenacity. But those who know me and who have employed me will testify that I have a generous helping of tenacity.

What do I want for my kids? I desperately want them to do that thing that they’re passionate about. An I won’t discourage them. No, I won’t discourage them.