You can’t do what you’ve done in the past. The education system was created to meet the needs of the Industrial Revolution. Unfortunately, it seems that education still primarily exists to meet a country’s economical needs. Divergent thinking is the ability to think outside of the box. Sir Robinson showed us that based on a longitudinal study, divergent thinking decreases the longer a student is in the education system. Students are taught that there is only one correct answer. Therefore, schools stifle creativity. This benefits a country because it produces a group of young people that will not question societal norms, but conform to it.

We are living in a society where our students are increasingly stimulated by technology etc, yet we expect children to then sit for hours in a classroom with no prospect of recess. Sir Robinson states that as standardized tests increase, so does the diagnosis of students with ADHD. Therefore, he states that we are getting our students through education by anesthetizing them, rather than waking them up to realize what’s inside of themselves.

The concept that education system kills creativity is not a new one. However, we have not found a solution yet. No matter how much funding has been used to bring back art programs, there is still a major push to focus on standardized tests. So much so, that within every subject area (including art), teachers are expected to tie in standardized test standards. I propose the opposite. Instead of tying in core curriculum into extra curricular classes, hold teachers accountable for implementing carious forms of the arts in core classes. There is a plethora of research that shows that students can retain information through various avenues, including poetry and singing. Students will also perform better after some exercise. A colleague of mine started a program in California where they incorporate math into a PE class. This resulted in students not only performing well in math, but believing in themselves and their ability to grasp a seemingly difficult subject.

As a School Counselor, I always feel bad deep down inside when I hear a parent state that they will put their child on ADHD medication. I believe that if the student was paired with creative teachers that engaged them in a more aesthetic based curriculum, perhaps the student would not need the medication.

My challenge to all educators: do not anesthetize your students, encourage divergent thinking, find alternative ways to engage your students with reading and math based assignments, embrace the arts and the individual creativity that each child posses.

Our world is changing so quickly we can hardly keep up. I looked at my daughter last week and thought to myself, how can I ensure that she has a competitive edge in her education. If she chooses a career in IT and earns a degree in said area, it’s quite possible that due to the rapid rate that of change, she could graduate and her degree be deemed obsolete… okay, perhaps that’s an exaggeration. But the former is still true, it is becoming increasingly difficult to keep up the pace set before us.

So how do we as educators keep up with this ever evolving system? I suggest the solution is that we teach our students to question everything. to search for truth for themselves and not just be content with being spoon-fed standards based knowledge. When a young adult has already acquired the skill set which enables them to step out of the box and take creative risks. The more innovative the future generation is, the more advanced our society should become.

Eddie describes smart failure as attempting a task, getting it wrong but still being praised for the attempt. He states that this is the new way of doing things. Whereas the old way would have ridiculed you for getting something wrong and this is because it was expected that one should follow a prescribed way of doing things, or at least consult with someone with more experience. However, the new way requires and accepts failure.

Eddie states that, “the pace of change overtakes the pace of learning”. Therefore as educators, we need not resist the change, but embrace it. Because change is so rapid, rather than overworking our selves to keep up with it, we must learn to become malleable in the face of change, and teach our students to do the same.

According to Andreas Schleider, we must use data to build better schools. In the 1960’s, the U.S. was first when it came to education, this has slowly declined and we now see countries that once had poor educational standards surpassing the U.S. in this area. Korea showed the world that by improving a country’s education system, you will improve it’s economy and general livings standards. Therefore, it’s not a booming economy that’s the predictor of a solid education system, but in fact it’s the other way around. Andreas states that per pupil spending only accounts for less than 20% of performance among countries. For example, Luxembourg spends the most on their education system, however, they are still ranked pretty low.

The dividing factor is not how much money is spent but how the money is spent. For example, Luxembourg and Korea invest around the same amount in their education system. However, Korea pays their teachers more (therefore attracting the best professionals), invest in longer school days and in professional development for teachers. Teachers are also expected to not only educate but develop their students. Luxembourg on the other hand pay their teachers a lot less. This is because they have smaller class sizes that inevitably require more teachers. We see this in the U.S., if we invest in paying the best  professionals to teach our children, we could have a stronger education system. The question is always, where can States find this money? It seems that Korea’s larger classroom idea is the solution. However, this would work in an ideal world. Societal values in Korea and the U.S. differ. I think most teachers nowadays would be afraid to teach a class of 40 plus students. How many of us have heard teachers say after a long day with disruptive students, “I don’t get paid enough for this”. I remember one of my former Chemistry teacher always stating that she used to teach a class of 60 boys in India and they were better behaved than our class of 30 Catholic School girls. I think that teachers also struggle with larger classroom sizes due to the constraints placed on them through national standards. Where as countries like Korea allow their teachers to collaborate in order to find their own innovative ways to impart wisdom.

Like Andreas alluded to, educational change will not happen over night, but understanding how other counties have made positive strives certainly gives us hope for our country’s educational future. It’s now up to States to analyze the data, policies and practices of other countries for the purpose of implementation here.

For some of us, it’s hard to believe that in this day and age, there are women that lack basic reading and writing skills. However, in parts of the world, this seems to be the case. Laura briefly shares how she overcame the barrier to pursuing higher education. To be able to take control of ones daily routine is something that many of us in the Western world take for granted.

I was blown away by the various stories that Laura shared regarding young ladies that sought to gain various levels of independence. Each story different, yet had the same underlying tone. i.e. education equals autonomy. One young lady, Umm El-Saad, barely knew how to write her name, yet with time, she became literate. To the point where her husband was seemingly concerned about the possibility of her now being able to read his text messages. As humorous as this sounds, her being able to read was about more than catching her husband at antics, but her being able to take control of her daily tasks, such as, helping her children with homework or being able to accurately count her money at the supermarket.

Another inspiring story was that of Fayza. She was forced to drop out of school and get married at age 8. By the time she was 18, she was twice a divorcee with three children. Despite her family’s objections, her goal is to educate herself so that she can gain financial stability and freedom, therefore breaking the barrier of heteronomy.

This is why it’s important for us to share our stories; we never know the extent to which it could encourage and inspire others to overcome their negative personal situations.

The new skills needed for the modern workplace lend themselves to stereotypical female characteristics. Therefore, we see a rise in women not only infiltrating the workplace, but often dominating it. Women are getting more educated and so are entering the workforce at the top. Where we once saw a male dominated workforce, we are now seeing the opposite. Not only in the workplace but in education as well. Girls are beginning to outperform boys, especially at the elementary level.

Women have adjusted and transformed from nurturers to professionals in the workplace. If they choose to have children, they may delay this in order to pursue their education and/or career. However, men seem to not have made this adjustment yet. They sometimes delay getting  a degree as they feel that they can not go back to college because they have to provide for their family. Whereas women have disregarded their stereotypical roles (such as home maker) in order to pursue higher education and a meaningful career.

It was interesting to me that some of the girls at Kansas City College were confidently sharing that they expected to be the breadwinners in their homes. These young women understood their earning potential compared to their male counterparts. Some statistics were shared regarding single, childless women, that they earned more than young men. However, it is true that by a certain age, men are still higher earners and more likely to be promoted. This would suggest to me that whilst females outperform males in school, college and the entry level workforce, things change once they choose to have a family. This is the opportunity for men to swoop back in and reclaim their place at the top of the workforce. It would seem then that the workforce/ earning pendulum continues to swing, sometimes favoring men, sometimes favoring women. So how can we as educators help the younger generations find the perfect balance? Is there such a thing as the perfect balance?

Betrothed at age 5, Kakenya grew up in a home where her father was rarely present. Her mother did not want her to live the life that she was living. She could not own any property and her husband (Kakenya’s father) had the rights to all of her property. He abused her mother and was at times, a raging alcoholic. She knew that her way out was by obtaining a good education. However, Kakenya would have to make a bargain that the average person could not fathom. She told her dad that she would undergo a traditional female circumcision process in exchange for continuing her education. Her father agreed and that was the beginning of her journey.

Here in the U.S., the right to a free education is a privilege taken for granted by many children, and even their parents. For Kakenya to be able to move to the U.S. and go to college, she had to have the full support of her village. Despite having scholarships, she would even need their financial blessing in order to obtain a plane ticket. This was an arduous task, she would arise early in the morning for 17 days and seek the permission of each male elder.

Kakenya eventually made it to the U.S., but more importantly, she went back to her village and sought the permission of her elders once again, to open a school just for girls. You see in her village, girls that walked to school ran the risk of being raped. Kakenya did the admirable thing which was to return home and invest in her community, rather than stay away and continue to invest in herself. Kakenya closes her talk with a very strong statement, “Be the first, people will follow you”. This is a reminder to us all, that we each have a purpose. Our personal goals are not just for us, but we are to take our accomplishments and find a way to help others. As I wrap up my doctoral studies, Kakenya’s story has served as a strong reminder, that this degree is not just about getting letters behind my name. It will serve as a catalyst to be an educational changer.

https://www.ted.com/talks/kakenya_ntaiya_a_girl_who_demanded_school#t-896739