Ken Robinson - "You have to work at creativity"

The Educationalist Sir Ken Robinson appeared on Desert Island Discs here with Kirsty Robinson and explained how creativity is not god given, but man driven. In that it man has to nurture, develop, master and marshall the power of creativity. Ken explained that many people have no idea of what abilities they hold. He explained that, contrary to popular myth, creativity and innovation can be developed in a deliberate and systematic way. And according to Ken, what we need is a learning revolution. He explained that there are a number of misconceptions. He said:

"People think creativity is about special things. Yes of course you can be creative in Music, dance, theatre and literature. But this isn't just about the arts. You can be creative in science, technology, and mathematics. In any field where human intelligence is active there's opportunity for creative thinking and achievement. Our current systems of education tend to stifle these powers of creativity. Not in a way that is deliberate but it tends to be systematic."

He said:

"We're all born with tremendous confidence in our creative competences. Young children are tremendously creative and buoyant; but by the time they've left schools they've often lost that confidence. And most adults, if you ask them if they're confident they'll say that they're not.

He explained that hard work, grit and resilience is the teacher and creator of creativity:

"Creative abilities in any field Have to be developed and evolved. They don't just happen. When an adult says they can't draw, they're probably right, they probably can't. It's like if an adult were to say that they can't read and write, well they can't. It's not that they're incapable it's just that they haven't learnt what's involved. 

So the fact were born with these natural faculties doesn't mean they evolve naturally all of their own, you have to work at them."

More information on Sir Ken Robinson

His life began in a crowded house on Merseyside in the 1950s, full of visitors, noise and laughter. His front door was just a hundred yards from Everton football club, but his boyhood dreams of playing for The Blues ended when he contracted polio.

The first of his six siblings to pass the 11-plus and win a scholarship to one of Liverpool's best schools, his education would fundamentally shape the rest of his life. He said:

"If a teacher hadn't seen something in me that I hadn't seen in myself, my life might have gone in a very different direction."

Previous posts on our need to redefine our definition of success here, here, here, here and posts on creativity here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.