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Is education killing our creative minds?

The more we become conditioned to reject 'wrong' ideas, the less ability we have to
create

PUBLISHED : 25 NOV 2019 AT 05:29 WRITER: ARINYA TALERNGSRI

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Pablo Picasso once said, “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to
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remain an artist once we grow up.” In other words, creativity and talent is majority.
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among others.

This story illustrates dramatically the importance of understanding and

using our creative capacity for the riches it contains, rather than wasting it
on something we aren’t cut out for.

Did you know that from the day you are born, your brain is full of wild
thoughts and inventive imagination that play a part in your actions?
According to a test devised by Nasa scientists, 98% of children are born
creative, but as we grow older that figure drops. By adulthood, the number
of creative individuals is very low.

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Divergent vs Convergent

This is due to the fact that we generate ideas in our mind in two ways:
divergent thinking and convergent thinking. Divergent thinking is free-
flowing and non-linear, allowing us to explore novel ideas and solutions,
whereas convergent thinking involves coming up with a “correct” answer
after we have tested, criticised or evaluated the information. We are taught
to use both types of thinking together, and they end up competing with
one another.

Imagine yourself thinking of new possibilities, while at the same time you
are already judging your thoughts and criticising them without even
letting them truly come to light. If this describes how you think, it’s
because you and millions of others have been conditioned by our
education system to believe that being “wrong” is the worst outcome.
When we generate thoughts or ideas that don’t “fit”, they are automatically
rejected.

Just imagine how many artists, people with creative minds and talent have
had their hopes and dreams dashed and their potential wasted because the
“system” doesn’t guide them. Instead, they are told to adapt themselves to
follow the path that is “right”; if not, they will be considered failures.

A teacher’s job isn’t just to convey information to students, to be a mere

delivery system. Instead, a teacher should be a guru and mentor, someone
who can inspire and stimulate people to think and learn. Being “educated”
means gaining knowledge through teaching, but real learning is the
acquisition of knowledge gained through experience and requires teachers
to engage people and spark their curiosity.

The Right Balance

Having been in the learning and development business for some time now,
I have thought long and hard about how to help people realise their
potential. The lifelong learning ecosystem at my company offers diverse
programmes through YourNextU, providing individuals with context and
understanding of potential impediments to creative thinking and
innovation. Armed with that awareness, learners can come up with
strategies to explore their possibilities and the areas in which they might
have been stifled in the past.

More and more employers in today’s world are looking for people with
creativity. According to MarketWatch, it is now the number one career
skill wanted in workforces. Fostering creativity in students is vital because
they will be entering an increasingly uncertain and complex world.
However, it has been a challenge for educators to encourage this change
and find the right balance between completing projects and the essence of
inspiring artistry.

We are accustomed to being disciplined in school or in college, as we are

used to making decisions and evaluating ideas. This is not necessarily a
bad thing. But teachers should also take into consideration the value of
real learning and the nature of talent as they guide young people toward
the future.

Arinya Talerngsri is Chief Capability Officer and Managing

Director at SEAC - Southeast Asia’s Lifelong Learning Center.
She can be reached by email at arinya_t@seasiacenter.com or
https://www.linkedin.com/in/arinya-talerngsri-53b81aa.
Explore and experience our lifelong learning ecosystem today at
https://www.yournextu.com

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