Commentary

Here is my commentary:

2. School promotes "correctness" over "creativity".

The teacher sets an assignment. John submits a piece of work that is full of original insights into the problem and proposes creative, workable solutions. Unfortunately, in his enthusiasm, he has neglected to follow the structure that the teacher has set out. For the same assignment, Henry submits a piece of work that follows the set structure to the letter. His brief research on the internet has allowed him to present a pedestrian understanding of the problem and some pretty standard solutions. Guess who scores better?

It is an oft lamented fact that schools promote "correctness" over creativity. In his thought-provoking talk Do Schools Kill Creativity, Sir Ken Robinson highlights the fact that most schools today discourage creativity because it is not something that is highly valued in the workplace.

In trying to understand why school promote correctness, one must first understand that correctness is measurable and quantifiable, creativity is not. In the large classes so common in the modern schools, valuing correctness, the easier method of assessment, puts less strain on the teachers. Imagine trying to assign a mark for creativity. Creativity cannot be quantified or broken down into marking rubrics. Should Da Vinci's Mona Lisa be marked higher than Picasso's Dora Maar Au Chat because it looks more like a person? Or should Dora Maar Au Chat be given marks for using bright colours? There is simply no way to compare the different forms of creativity.

It would be utterly impossible for schools to promote true creativity because it would lead to a breakdown of the most fundamental values of the education system: Evaluation and Competition. In today's competitive society, the education system acts as an important tool for separating the most intelligent people from the rest. Students are ranked according to academic ability to determine their usefulness to society.

Some may point out that there are alternatives to traditional schools such as art schools or music schools where creativity is valued over correctness. This is true only on the surface. Dig deeper and you will find that these schools promote certain "correct" ways of doing things. Art students need to follow certain procedures when painting subjects and music students had better not try to improvise during the exams or else they might just fail. This is the easiest method by which the schools can produce top students who meet society's criteria for good artists or good musicians.

Therefore, so long as schools are under pressure to perform the task of separating good students from bad ones, schools will continue to promote "correctness" over "creativity". This is the only way students can be trained en masse to do things the "right" way. Creativity requires for students to be seen as individuals with different ideas and talents that cannot be quantified or compared, much less reduced to a percentage score on the end-of-year report card. Sadly, that report card is necessary for deciding who is to hired for that coveted job. Thus, all schools promote "correctness" over "creativity".