Sir Ken Robinson's Lecture: Do Schools Kill Creativity?

In his lecture, Sir Ken Robinson posed a very bold question: "Do schools kill creativity?" In today's society, the goal is for mistakes to be completely eliminated. However, mistakes can play extremely important roles in anything from discoveries to learning. But today, nobody wants to try and do something new or out of the ordinary if they could be wrong. Without trying new things, creativity is hindered. Robinson defined creativity as "having original ideas that have value". He argues that creativity should be considered just as important as literacy.

The hierarchy of every public education system in the world seems to be the same: Math/Science at the top followed by language, then humanities, and finally the arts. Robinson believes there is a specific reason for this. There were no public systems of education before the 19th Century. Robinson argues that public systems of education were created to meet the needs of industrialism. Thus, the hierarchy is weighted more heavily toward subjects that apply most directly to work in an industrialized nation. This hierarchy created an attitude to the effect of, "Don't take music; you'll never be a musician," or "Don't take art; you'll never be an artist," etc. Some students may have been exceptionally good at something on the bottom of the hierarchy that is intentionally or unintentionally looked down upon by teachers and other adults. This may have caused those students to stop doing whatever it was that they excelled at, restricting their creativity. Looking at all of this, I believe that it is important for everyone to experiment with different things and find their niche in life. Whatever that niche may be, it is important, and people should not be discouraged from it.

To view Sir Ken Robinson's lecture, click on the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY

Chalk

I had no idea what to expect when we started to watch Chalk. I had heard that it was kind of like the hit TV show "The Office", so I figured that it would be a comedy about teachers in the classroom. It was much more than that. Yes, some of the events that occurred were a little outrageous and hard to imagine actually happening in a classroom, but one common point I seem to hear over and over again about teaching is to expect the unexpected. Maybe those events aren't that unlikely to happen. Chalk takes its viewers in the world of teaching, and the various struggles, encounters, and successes that come along with it. I would classify Chalk as a comedy, but almost all the comedic parts were events that I could see happening in a real classroom. The movie started out with a very bold and somewhat depressing statistic: Half of teachers quit after their first three years. I had no idea about those figures. However, after watching the movie, the viewer can relate and somewhat understand why so many teachers move on to something else. Teaching is very demanding. However, if a teacher has the the right passion, I don't think anything can steer that teacher away from his or her passion.

The Power of Motivation

What motivates people? Can one person motivate another person? If so, how? The answers to all of these questions vary, but the most important thing to remember is the power of motivation. Motivation can drive individuals to do things they would never do without being motivated. So, how can teachers positively motivate their students academically? Many teachers use different techniques to motivate their students. From threats to rewards, motivation can be a result of various reasons. Finding a healthy balance to motivate students is a continuous experiment that teachers deal with. If every teacher could positively motivate all of his or her students, then teaching would be easy, and all students would be high achieving. It is not that easy. As a teacher, I will continually strive to positively motivate my students academically, and most importantly, I, as teacher, will have to stay motivated as well.

Become a Life-Long Learner

This past Monday, November 3, we had the opportunity to listen and ask questions to a panel of teachers from the Decorah Community School District. It was very interesting and enlightening. One of the quotes that stuck out to me that Jason Rausch, the high school choir director at Decorah High School, said was that, "You have to be life-long learner" which he said was a quote that Weston Noble, a former choir director at Luther, used frequently. I feel that this quote can be used not only in teaching, but in all aspects of life. In life in general, but especially in teaching, things won't ever continually be exactly the same. As things change, you yourself must learn and change as well to be as successful as you can be. This process constantly repeats itself. Therefore, you should continually be learning new things throughout life. Don't resist the changes. Embrace them and adapt to them. It may not always be easy, but it is necessary.

Comparing Test Scores Internationally

This past Monday night, October 27, we had the opportunity to listen to and discuss current issues with two Decorah School Board Members. I found it to be very interesting. One topic that I had a strong opinion about before and still do after the discussion is comparing test scores internationally. One of the school board members took the words right out of my mouth. How can we seriously consider test scores from students in the U.S to be an accurate comparison to test scores from students in other countries? There are so many factors that need to be taken into account: length of the school day, extra-curricular activities involved, other test scores, etc. I was in complete agreement with the school board member when he said something along the lines of, "If we wanted our students to score as high as other students from foreign countries, they probably could, but would it be worth it?" He was referring to the amount of time that would have to be dedicated solely to certain subject areas. Some students in other countries eat, breathe, and live school. Whenever they aren't in class, they're studying, or doing something related. I feel so privileged to have been able to participate in so many extra-curricular activities in high school, which included sports, music, student council, and several organizations. I feel that the education I received from participating in these extra-curricular activities provided me with valuable experience that can't solely be taught in the classroom. As a teacher, I would rather help students become well-rounded individuals rather than individuals who are only good at one thing.

Foundations of Teaching Metaphor

Earlier this semester, we created a visual metaphor for the foundation on which Luther students develop as teachers, which has five main strands. My metaphor's setting is a baseball game.
The first strand is a liberal arts education. When a I think of a liberal arts education, I think of learning about a large variety of areas. This variety is symbolized in my picture by the various positions that can be played during the game and the various types of players.
The second strand focuses on providing experiences and opportunities to aid in the development of knowledge, abilities, and dispositions needed for quality teaching and learning. This is symbolized by the umpire behind home plate. The umpire represents a great knowledge of the game and is respected.
The third strand emphasizes the skills and dispositions necessary for teaching. This is symbolized by the faces of all the players, coaches, and umpire. They are all smiling. They all want to be there, and they're enjoying what they're doing.
The fourth strand talks about providing experiences with diverse populations. This is represented by all the different types of players. Whether they're short, tall, skinny, fat, average, have dark skin, or have white skin, they are all involved and enjoying themselves.
The fifth strand focuses on developing ethical, reflective, and critical thinking teachers-to-be. This is represented by the coaches on the field. A coach is much like a teacher. He should be ethical, reflective, and think critically. He should teach more than just about the sport. Especially at the high school level, a coach should teach life lessons as well.

NCLB Role Playing Activity

I thought that the NCLB role playing activity was very interesting. I personally didn't feel like I knew enough about the subject to take a strong position, but that's what made the role playing aspect of it work. Obviously, some people felt very strongly about certain things involved with NCLB, and I enjoyed hearing the points that the students and professors made. The Monday night that we did the role playing activity, I wished that I had known more about it. However, looking back, I believe it was better that we did the role playing activity first, because it helped me keep more of an open mind about certain ideas. I thought the entire activity was very productive.