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Hibah Ameer

Design Student, Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture

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Does formal education as a child hinder a child's creativity?

I am writing on a paper on Education Systems restricting child creativity. On one hand formal education has it s benefits as it trains the human eye to notice things, place things in order. But on the other hand it sets certain limitations to a child's imaginative mind and forces him/her to produce stereotypical imagery of what they call 'art'
What are your opinions?

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    David Hamilton 50+

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    Sep 21 2012: I don't think it means to... I think... No one asked the government to teach their children to be creative. School isn't meant to do that, parents, community, spirituallity, and exposure to new life experience make you creative, not classes.

    This seems to be a recurring theme lately... "Why didn't you teach my child to be creative, and kind, and to love knowledge"... To which teachers, for some reason, are no longer allowed to respond "Because that's your job... You had a child... I teach him facts, and job skills"
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      Fritzie Reisner 100+

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      Sep 21 2012: It is not that teachers are not allowed to respond that way. It is just not what teachers see as their mission nor what they do!

      For some reason people like to think of teachers and classrooms that way, but it is simply not accurate in general in this century.

      Literacy, is, of course, a focus, as being able to read is fundamental to a lifetime of continuing learning and communication.

      Critical thinking is likely number two to most teachers and number one once students have learned to read. That is, teachers want to give students experience in drawing conclusions they can support with arguments and evidence, both orally and in writing and visually (with displays and graphics).

      In science, the thrust of k-8 grade science, at least in the US, is empirical. It is about learning to observe, learning about how to change something in a measurable way and observe the effects on a system of that change.

      Even the standardized tests in eighth grade science ask students to design an experiment to test a hypothesis. [I have proctored such tests].
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        David Hamilton 50+

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        Oct 6 2012: Science and literacy, are facts and job skills... So if teachers no longer see themselves as teaching facts and job skills... They are mis informed. What you are describing is the scientific method... It's natural, you have to train it out of people, not train it in. It certainly doesn't take 9 years to learn it, what you learn are the results of your experiments, and they should be designed to teach you the most important facts about science and the physical world they can.
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      Hibah Ameer

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      Sep 21 2012: I am an art student now and I am told to explore all possibilities
      But as a child I was always told to color inside the lines. I wonder how different it would be if teachers just let the children do what they wanted.

      It can't be denied that most part of the training comes from the education systems that a child is part of. Get good grades, study hard, do as the teacher says, make her happy etc. This is the normal life of any student.
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        Fritzie Reisner 100+

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        Sep 21 2012: I do not know very much about art education. I received my basic education long ago, but judging from my children's schooling and my experience in teaching and curriculum design, the last couple of decades of lower ed have not been focused on asking kids to guess and do what the teacher wants, to agree with her, or to hang on her every word.

        But I do not doubt your description of your personal experience or that some schools and classrooms may still be run in this way.

        It is at this point very far from universal.

    • Kundan Jha

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      Oct 5 2012: Well I would say David Hamilton is right... but he is wrong at the same time... No teacher can teach creativity to a student.. but he can instigate them, make them think and do a lot more if they decide to do something about it... however this discussion is not about a teacher, it is about the education that we as student are getting in current times...

      Every kid is different... No one knows what can motivate them or inspire them to do something different, or make them think out of the box... Who knows if the inspiration for being creativity could be the formal education that they had got... And there are lots of example to it...

      The only thing what we can do is to make sure that never say no to a kid when he is asking questions, but at the same time make sure you're the one to answer them.. just be the one to direct them to the answers... and let them find it out themselves.....

      Every discovery one makes make them think differently and creatively...!!!

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