Creativity is quietly disappearing from our classrooms, and the consequences reach far beyond school walls.

In a world that desperately needs new ideas, we’re unintentionally teaching students to think inside the box.

This essay I wrote for my Capstone Project for English Class Year 11. 

When I was seven years old, I had numerous cardboard boxes lying around my home, and for each one, I had fantastic ideas for what I could cut, assemble, and build. “That can be a laptop. I can make that a board game. How about a shelf?” I felt limitless in my creativity. Now, however, a cardboard box is just a box. How did that happen? 

We once saw endless possibilities in a simple cardboard box—so why don’t we anymore?

Perhaps Sir Ken Robinson has the answer to this, he stated in his TEDx talk that “we are educating people out of their creativity,” and I completely agree. Creativity and divergent thinking have become less of a priority in education. Over the years, teenagers have become less creative and less capable of approaching material in innovative ways. When they reach adulthood, they will face the challenge of solving new and unfamiliar problems in a world where traditional solutions are no longer sufficient. Schools hold the future minds who will solve the still unknown world's problems. Yet they are not preparing them for uncertainty, but rather, structure. To address this issue, I aim to educate and inform schools and teachers so they can integrate creative tasks and tools into their educational systems to train their creative thinking, idea generation, and adaptability, as a result, it will also improve their overall learning.

Importance of Creativity

One challenge my project may face is that people might question its importance and relevance. According to a recent Forbes article, creativity and divergent thinking will very likely be essential skills for the future. The article states, “There’s no doubt that technology is moving at lightning speed, and with that, the workplace is changing. But technology cannot replace creative and critical thinking.” Given the uncertainties ahead, it may be the case that upcoming challenges will not be solved through traditional solutions; instead, we will need innovative and effective approaches. Furthermore on the subject of new technologies, Duncan Wardle a past head of innovation and creativity at Disney, spoke on a TED Conference, where he implies that what is going to distance ourselves form artificial intelligence is our ability to create and imagine.

If schools are looking for reasons to incorporate creative activities into their daily lessons, they should consider how these activities align with the higher-order learning sections of Bloom's Taxonomy, such as analyzing, evaluating, and creating, which K 12 teachers and college instructors commonly use. Creative tasks may only promote higher-order learning but also enhance children's creative thinking, which is rapidly declining.

Creative minds are the future

The stakeholders for my issue are high school students. They are affected because they are not learning in a creative manner, which prevents them from reaching their full potential for learning and mental growth. Furthermore, when they graduate from university and enter the professional world, these students will need to address modern issues and apply their creativity to find innovative solutions. A NASA study found that of 1,600 4- and 5-year-olds, 98 percent scored at "creative genius" level. Five years later, only 30 percent of the same group of children scored at the same level, and again, five years later, only 12 percent. When the same test was administered to adults, it was found that only two percent scored at this genius level. Educational institutions, including universities, schools, and private educators, can drive change in this area. They have the power to provide students with the tools and resources necessary to enhance their creative thinking without altering their course pace or teaching methods. To help me solve this problem, students can provide feedback on activities and share their experiences with me. Teachers can also offer insights on how the tools are being utilized in the classroom and whether any changes are necessary. They are the ones facilitating the creative thinking activities. Additionally, researchers can contribute by providing new methods, information, and data to improve students' creativity.

Simple approaches

To address my issue, I plan to work primarily independently; however, throughout the creative process of developing and enhancing the project, I will collaborate with others to gain their insights, ideas, and knowledge on the subject. This collaborative effort aims to create a higher-quality system. My project is not intended to change the school's curriculum or educational policy, but through my teaching efforts with educators, I hope to emphasize the importance and simplicity of incorporating small creative tasks into their daily workflow. Teaching creativity, which is such an intangible concept, is no easy task. For example, Ella Bruno shared a thought provoking idea during her TEDx Youth talk: Imagine a room with a shelf, some couches, and a table. Now, what if we took that room to the science lab? Creative questions could arise, such as, "How much helium would it take to lift up this room? Is that even possible?" Using examples like these, I aim to teach teachers that a small change in their lesson tasks can significantly alter students' perspectives and approaches to the subject, all while learning in a creative and enjoyable way.

I believe that this superpower should be shared around the world, and I am confident it will reach every corner eventually. However, we need to start with something more tangible, like high schools and local educational academies. I plan to provide them with the necessary tools and activities they can use in the classroom. I will give a speech about the importance of fostering creativity and how my project can benefit their students. Teachers and institutions can access the project website for further information. As the project grows, I will connect with more people who are knowledgeable about creativity and how it can be nurtured in schools. This includes not only experts but also teachers and students, as I want to gather their insights and creative ideas.

Starting and sharing this project won’t be easy, but as soon as one high school is eager to help its students develop creative and original skills, and to improve their learning through engaging and minor changes, the diffusion of this initiative will become smoother.

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The world is driven by ideas. The problems our World challenges us with can not be solved with straightforward solutions. They require imagination and creativity. This human characteristic is being taught out of us. Students are no longer given time to be innovative in schools. The creative decline is staggering. Kindness is a leading motivator in my decision to improve students present and future lives; I want teachers to guide their students to have an open mind and inventiveness. Creativity is a skill we must proudly protect and enhance. To bring a step forward in this issue, I will write and inform teachers and educational institutes about creativity, and design engaging exercises for students to break out of the norm and explore information differently. With the curiosity and creativity of students, they will experience mental growth, become adaptable to situations and analytical with new approaches, these students will be persons that will move the World forward.

Creativity open minds, it broadens our perspectives, I enjoy coming up with ideas and playing with concepts because I know that one day, that idea, will make a change, and that’s what I wish for other students, playfulness with curiosity. As students or citizens, inform teachers and school board members about the value and importance of creativity in our modern world.

Teachers and educators let's encourage creative thinking and provide students with the environment to do so, and who knows? The next big idea is waiting to be created sitting in the mind of one of your students.

Bruno, E. (2024, October 20). The real value of creativity in education [Video]. TEDx Talks. https://www.ted.com/talks (Accessed November 3, 2024) Robinson, Sir Ken (2024, October 27). Do schools kill creativity? [Video]. TED. https://www.ted.com/talks (Accessed November 3, 2024) Wardle, D. (n.d.). Home. Duncan Wardle. Retrieved November 3, 2024, from https://duncanwardle.com/ Cleese, J. (2020). Creativity: A short and cheerful guide. Penguin Life. Krueger, N. (2022, October 5). 5 reasons why it is more important than ever to teach creativity. International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). https://iste.org/blog/5-ways-to-help-students-become-innovative-designers (Accessed November 3, 2024) Boudreau, E. (2020, June 25). Understanding Creativity [Unpublished manuscript]. Harvard Graduate School of Education.