Education In Ken Robinson's 'Do Schools Kill Creativity'

Education affects everyone despite socioeconomic status, race, gender, and any other distinctive factors, yet the type of education one receives is built on the basis of these factors. Going to school in a suburban area that is upper to middle class differs greatly from being an inner city student living in poverty. The differences are even greater country to country. Society, no matter where in the world, puts education on a high pedestal, yet certain subjects are looked down upon compared to others. In Ken Robinson’s “Do Schools Kill Creativity?” and Bunker Roy’s “Learning from a barefoot movement”, they speak of education from different perspectives and aspects. Despite being two completely different stories, they can connect at a much

After finishing his schooling, he wanted to witness how small villages lived. Roy was shocked to see starvation and death around every corner of these villages. Because of the exposure, he decided to live and work in one of the villages. He became aware of the extraordinary skill set and knowledge these people had, which were never correlated with the people. Starting the Barefoot College is Roy’s way of teaching and giving back to the community. The college would accept everyone but those who have degrees. His point of rejecting those with degrees is to show that one does not have a certification to be something if they already have the skills to show for what they are. “You don’t need a paper to hang on the wall to show that you are an engineer” (Roy, 2011, 4:54). Literacy in other countries is not as common as one may think, Barefoot College was built by 150 architects who cannot read nor write (Roy, 2011). Regardless of one’s abilities, people are still able to pursue their dreams if they are willing to work hard. The college bases their teachings on the lifestyle and work of Mahatma Gandhi, students eat, sleep, and work on the floor.

As a result of the different stories, the connection may not be as apparent at first, but looking at the talks’ greater meanings, there is a strong correlation between the two. The most obvious connection is education. In both cases, every topic spoken

Academic inflation is a term that Robinson uses, it explains the need for higher degrees and certifications due to the worth of one degree dropping. Roy’s (2011, 13:15) speech shows an example of this inflation, “All across the globe, you have this tendency of men wanting a certificate.” Nowadays, the majority of decently paying jobs require a degree, which is not a surprise due to social standards. Although a college degree could prepare one for the real world, on the job training can do the same thing in less time. The weight and pressure put upon students to go to college is ubiquitous, yet it is not necessarily bad. Higher education is based upon society’s idea of intelligence. Robinson (2006) calls for a new perspective and view of intelligence, “We know three things about intelligence. One, it’s diverse...Secondly, intelligence is dynamic...And the third thing about intelligence is, it’s distinct.” It comes in so many different forms, yet people have this set idea that smart people are the ones with multiple degrees, a higher socioeconomic background, and have socially acceptable jobs, like white collar jobs, anything in the medical field, etc. People look down upon those who are more free spirited and do not have a 9 to 5