Quick! Get the paddles there is still hope Creativity can survive. The questioned posed for this post was do schools kill creativity? I had the pleasure of watching one of Sir Ken Robinson's TEDTalks, the one for which this question derived, and pondering the level of creativity in my classroom, school, and my personal experience of school as a child. Upon conclusion, it pains me to say that the American education system, as a whole, does stifle creativity in children.
I blame the lack of unabashed creativity of our workforce on priorities of industry hoping to fulfill business profit needs with specifically designed employees molded by public education, for their purpose. Though some might consider the purpose of political interference in education policy, blind kindness, politicians also perpetuate the oppression of creativity by enacting mandates on curriculum and assessments in order to create jobs, fulfill areas of unemployment, and touting the success of our country based on a score. Though all that seems negative, I feel as if creativity was not a target for which business, industry and politics set out to destroy. On the contrary, businesses creating for consumers beyond the 21st century crave those creative, out-of-the-box graduates and are willing to take risks by hiring them. (Gardner, 2008) Thanks to technology, an increasing number of opportunities have been constructed to provide the creative thinker, an outlet to perform among disciplined minds, and at a level equal to their peers. Digital media is an excellent tool for which to create. I began constructing a list of digital tools students can use and realized you can turn just about any digital application into a creation tool. It all depends on the purpose and level of creativity in the student. Creativity can be expressed in a document brochure, web design, video production, non-linear presentation, animated .gif, podcast, the potential for creation tools is limitless. Providing the opportunity for students to express that creativity is where educators have to stretch their pedagogy. I am pleased to teach in a technology infused, EL Education school where we focus on real world solutions through PBL teaching. All students are given opportunities to create products using digital media because it is the expectation of our school that technology is a tool for how we do our work now and in the future. We will kick off expeditions in October that involve students taking a stand through the use of digital storytelling, social media campaigns, and advocacy through graphic design and brochures. Students will use digital media to research and develop school voting laws, take on the role of poll worker, and conduct a student election in the Rules to Live By expedition. I appreciate that our faculty works hard to provide multiple opportunities for students to create with digital media. By Gardner's definition, I consider myself a creative thinker and less of an expert. (2008) I am most happy creating for and with teachers and using technology as my medium of choice. As I reflect back to my grade school years, I can relate to Robinson's story of Gillian Lynne, ballerina and choreographer, and her struggle to achieve in a standard education setting. I clearly remember having all my pencils taken away in 3rd grade because I would tap and beat on the desk, books, lunchbox, anything that would create a sound and jazz up the teacher talk raining down on me. I didn't fit in the mold the education system dictated I squeeze into daily. It was middle school chorus and high school marching band that rescued me from hours detention and discipline referrals. In grade school, my parents, teachers, nor I understood the root of my inattention. I was fortunate to have a mother who pushed me to use my talents and creativity in school and toward a career. I close my post excited to use what I have learned about the creating mind from readings and personal reflection, to stoke the fire of curiosity in my robotics students. This is my first time coaching a robotics team but what better way to foster creativity and innovation than through building an original robot from the ground up. Now in my 20th year of teaching, I still get excited to see kids express their creativity at their personal level of success and quality work. Gardner, Howard. Five Minds for the Future. Boston, MA: Harvard Business, 2008. Print. Robinson, Ken. "Transcript of "Do Schools Kill Creativity?"" Ken Robinson: Do Schools Kill Creativity? TEDTalk, Feb. 2006. Web. 28 Sept. 2016. Robinson, Ken, Sir. "How to Escape Education's Death Valley." TEDTalk. TED, Apr. 2013. Web. 29 Sept. 2016.
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Media infused presentations allow for engagement of the viewer or learner, as well as, offers multiple disciplines to be expressed. Adding music, video, text, and images is like an all your can eat buffet for anyone wanting to dive in and invest in the content. It has a little of everything, which for me and my students, keeps the mind active and engaged no matter the common thread of content that holds it together.
I created this presentation to use during a professional development series at my school. We are doing a book study called Management in the Active Classroom that focuses on organized engagement strategies. I thought Paper-Slide videos would be perfect for my teachers no matter their tech proficiency level. I used video samples from all areas of content, created by teachers during a previous workshop I conducted. I was sure to include citations and information about the audio resources teachers have available through Discovery Education. I love the movement of Prezi and was happy to create a media infused presentation in a format that allowed for focal points within the bigger picture. Engage your students and staff with a media rich Prezi and activate the synthesized mind! Berger, R., Strasser, D., & Woodfin, L. (2015). Management in the active classroom (2nd ed.). Woodfin.
8th grade will be kicking off their Take A Stand expedition soon!
To spark curiosity, motivational posters will be place throughout the 8th grade house portraying change makers in the area of Science. Students will be invited to research a person of their choosing and create their own poster to add to the collection. Digital poster created using BigHugeLabs. |
Amy DentInstructional Coach, tech geek, news junkie, and passionate about learning. ArchivesCategories |