Do schools kill creativity?

[sheps999]

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A compelling case.

[Frick]

I didn't watch the movie, but it really does. You can be creative, if you're lucky, but it takes more. And creativity isn't really a part of the general public anymore imo. We're all cultural lurkers.

[T3hPwn3r3r]

MTV killed creativity 20 years ago.

[erocker]

I had some good teachers at school that encouraged creativity and independent thought.

[T3hPwn3r3r]

I had 2 or 3 like that, but the majority were really not looking out for the best interest of the kids, nor did they care.

[Chris]

Teachers love to torture students. Especially the stupid ones.

[sheps999]

I had some good teachers at school that encouraged creativity and independent thought.

Lies. Lies, I say.

[yogurt_21]

schools as a general rule do not kill creativity. standardised testing does.

or did you all think that your teachers got into the game because they wanted to suck the joy out of the eyes of little children?

but when those perky freshly credentialed teachers get out into the real school world they find that they either teach directly for tests, or get fired.

and here they were told they could "make a difference" psh last century maybe.

[Chris]

schools as a general rule do not kill creativity. standardised testing does.

or did you all think that your teachers got into the game because they wanted to suck the joy out of the eyes of little children?

but when those perky freshly credentialed teachers get out into the real school world they find that they either teach directly for tests, or get fired.

and here they were told they could "make a difference" psh last century maybe.
This reminds me...
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[3991v]

I think they do

[farlex]

Society in general kills creativity. Normalcy and conformity are generally rewarded and promoted, "breaking the rules" so to speak is risky and sometimes punished. Most people segregate themselves too, finding like minded individuals and casting away others. Original thought is hard to come by in a room full of 30 people who look and think like you and all are treated the same way. Although school is where this tends to start, it isn't necessarily b/c of the institution of schooling that creativity begins to dwindle for many.

[FordGT90Concept]

Schools teach about 10/90 creativity/logic. If you look at the work place, that ratio is about the same. Creativity won't pay the bills for most people so they focus on what makes a productive citizen.

I think schools aren't "killing" creativity. If it did, there wouldn't be any liberal arts colleges out there. Creativity is really a biological process dealing with the physiology of the brain. It is something you got or you don't (at least in significant quantities). The majority don't.

[farlex]

Creativity is really a biological process dealing with the physiology of the brain. It is something you got or you don't (at least in significant quantities). The majority don't.

Everything is a biological process in the brain (unless you're a dualist), that doesn't make it entirely genetic (very few things are). Some are more apt towards original thought, but that does not mean it can't be nurtured in others.

[Shadowfold]

My school "endorses" "creativity" but I have yet to take a class that wasn't just "Here's a lecture and some homework, good luck!". I'd love to take some hands on classes stuff, but it's not available.

[farlex]

My school "endorses" "creativity" but I have yet to take a class that wasn't just "Here's a lecture and some homework, good luck!". I'd love to take some hands on classes stuff, but it's not available.

Yeah, in a way it's poor irony that all school "prepares" you for the workforce, then the workforce tells you all they want is experience. Then you say, well dammit why didn't they teach me that in school. :p It's a sad state of affairs really.

[FordGT90Concept]

Everything is a biological process in the brain (unless you're a dualist), that doesn't make it entirely genetic (very few things are). Some are more apt towards original thought, but that does not mean it can't be nurtured in others.
Creativity deals with how the links form between neurons and how memories are formed/processed. Take me for instance, everything I do is extremely structured and follows strict patterns. That's how my brain works. A lot of artists don't follow strict patterns. I don't appreciate their artwork because it doesn't fit the mold I consider good; at the same time, they probably don't appreciate mine because it reminds them of cubicles. That's why there is a great divide between the two schools of thought.

I doubt it is genetic at all (beyond the fundamentals). It probably has more to do with the first few years of development when the neurons are establishing connections than anything else.

I believe that nurturing, of any sort, is logic. You take this, this, this, and make it into this. For instance, a school will teach you how to make an impressionist painting (as quoted from wikipedia):

"Characteristics of Impressionist paintings include visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage of time), ordinary subject matter, the inclusion of movement as a crucial element of human perception and experience, and unusual visual angles."

A computer hooked to a robotic arm can do that as it is a very logical process; however, it takes a human to make it into something special.


Let me put this in terms of computing:

It is very, very difficult to make a computer do anything random or anything that could be deemed creative. Every single processor is exactly the same in how it processes information and any deviation from what is expected is not tolerated (considered an error). In order to make a computer do something as simple as product a random number typically needs a seed (usually the current time) which it then scrambles. Even then, a random number is only so random. The neural connections are what introduce that randomness that isn't found in computing. We call it creativity. The more you're neural network strays from what is considered "normal," the more "creative" you are. Arguably, the most creative humans are those that are autistic--they are far from "normal."

It is kind of ironic that the best, "creative" computers would built from defective processors and banks of memory.


You can teach anyone styles of art: a logical person will apply it and a creative person will change it.



I took a lot of art classes in high school as well as CAD. I don't know why, really (easy credit most likely). I could tell you how every single work of "art" would look before I even start it.



Some classes can be considered experience. For instance, I took a business management class that involved officially starting a business (sole proprietorship), performing acts of a business, and dissolving as a business. That could be counted as work experience. Most classes can't though.