Smartt14 - May I ask, are you a member of the class of 3/4E2 from Swiss Cottage Secondary School?
Wai Kit,
Good points! I wonder, when does this restraint start? Primary school? Do you hane any suggestions as to how we can stop it from happening?
Javier - Your point about enrichments and wanting be creative is pretty strong. Is this alright, though? When creativity is so important for the future, how can we just let people pass up the limited (or maybe not so limited) chances to be creative?
As for your point about time management, I see a bit of a flaw. If students are worried about time, how can the answer be to sign up for something outside of school that requires more of their time?
Rui Ying, I am really intrigued about the point you make in your last paragraph about confidence. Do you need to be practice being creative in order to reach your creativity potential because we need to be confident about our creative capacity?
You know how much I believe in confidence, so I am inclined to think that you do need confidence in order to be creative. Perhaps, even, you need confidence to Dare to Try being creative, especially so in a system that requires so much rigid knowledge (or textbook knowledge).
Jolin - you make excellent points and I agree with most of them. Your example about history is quite interesting (although, if you were to use something like that in an argumentative essay, I suggest you give an even more in depth example. Can you think of a particular history question where this happens or one where it happened to you). Your example about projects is also quite interesting.
You paint a picture of a very boring, dull, educational system. Do you think that even students who really want to be creative can at all? Even a little?
As for having time, take a look at this website. I'm not entirely convinced about it's credibility, but, it's saying that in order to be creative, people need to be aware of the creative process -- which takes TIME.
http://www.productiveflourishing.com/
Javier - interesting points.
I think that in a way, you are arguing that people need to have the motivation to be creative. Of course, you are all busy, as most people in the world are. If one truly wants to be a creative person, they must take the initiative to do so. In effect, it's not really about whether schools kill creativity or not. Am I on the right track?
I wonder where creative blocks (times or periods where people just cannot come up with new ideas) come into play with this all. think it's interesting that people take time away from it all just to be creative. These people suffer from creative blocks though too.
Jiaqi,
Please see the comment I made on Wan Bo's argument. You both are still not proving that knowledge is necessary for creativity. Although you provide analogies, I'm still not convinced that you need knowledge for creativity.
Children are creative, aren't they? Even very young children know how to pretend play, they are not necessarily using knowledge, they are using their imagination.
Which one comes first? I do no know that anyone has answered that question or will be able to.
Yoke Mun - Please see the points I made regarding Aloy's response. They are applicable to yours as well.
Aloy - What about the fact that you wear uniforms? That you are forced to maintain a certain hairstyle/hair colour? That you have a very limited number of subject options as an express student?
Based on what you have provided us, perhaps it is fair to say that you believe schools develop creativity, but they certainly are not allowing for full creative potential to be realised. You do not prove that at all.
Alex - can you say that ALL subjects allow for creativity? I think it would be a hard argument to support. How does one be creative in a subject like math? Perhaps at a higher level, whereby you are creating your own formulas, but even so, isn't math math because it is so finite, so right or wrong?
Wan Bo - I think that you make a good deal of valid points, and bring forward thought provoking evidence/support.
I think that your point in paragraph three is a tricky one to support. Do we really know what comes first, creativity or knowledge? It is a bit of a chicken versus the egg argument and I don't know that we can be sure, even if an American expert believes so. Do knowledge and creativity go hand in hand, yes, I do believe so. Do they stimulate each other, yes I do believe so.
As for your argument about not being taught in the right the right way, I think that is very interesting. Is it fair to say that there is only one way to be taught, though? Can we say that it is realistic to provide differentiated learning for 40 plus students in a class? I think it needs to be said that there are constraints of teachers and that although I believe schools kill creativity, teachers are thinking about ways to allow for creative expression and development.
As for my point about two subjects facilitating creativity, I think you're right, there are other subjects that allow for some creativity. I think, though, that the two I mentioned allow for the most creativity. When doing a science project, their are confines and guidelines that you must adhere to, isn't that the case?
“All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up” once said the great Pablo Picasso, a man who knew no creative bounds and knew no limits when it came to his comments. Do schools kill creativity just as Picasso implied? Indeed, they do. Creativity is an invaluable skill but by focusing too heavily on selected subjects, and downplaying the importance of creative skills, schools are in fact making it very difficult for students to be truly successful when they leave the comfort of their educational lives.
Creativity is an invaluable skill, and will prove to be a major asset for anyone who plans to be successful in the future. The quality and number of people graduating from University with a Bachelor Degrees, a Masters Degrees and even a PhD is increasing at an incredible rate. What will set someone apart from the rest in the future is not their number of ‘O’ Level distinctions, nor will their Degree from an Ivy League school, or the fact that their PHD dissertation won a major award. There will be a tremendous amount of qualified people applying for the same jobs. What will set someone apart is their ability to think differently, to think in new ways, to come up with new ideas, and to be innovative. In effect, what will set some apart from others is their ability to be creative.
As it stands, schools are cultivating all of those distinction achievers, those Ivy Leaguers, and those PHD bound students by focusing almost entirely on book smarts. Take, for example, the fact that Express students in Singapore cannot take Art after Secondary Two. Another example is that Design and Technology is only available to certain students. Are these subjects not valued? Are these subjects not preparing students to be those applicants who will know how to be creative, how to be different? In addition to the lack of these options, in the Express stream, students on average take eight classes, and the only two that lend themselves to creativity are English and Literature. The creative opportunity a student has in these subjects is limited because in order to be successful in these subjects, students must write papers whereby the main skill being examined is critical thinking, not creativity.
It must be said that there are a number of different educational philosophies and schools who do put more effort of creativity than others. It must also be noted that what it means to be creative, or to cultivate and encourage creativity mean different things to different people. Furthermore, some students who are in uncreative environments will find a way to be creative. There are also a number of schools, especially in North America whose focus is the Arts, such as the Julliard School. This issue is not black or white, it is not a yes or no, rather, it is quite complicated. It is not my aim to say that all schools kill creativity. It is my aim to say that many schools kill creativity and the general trend is to do just that.
Shortsighted educational philosophers, they are who we should blame. Teachers who prefer docility and tame students to those who have creative ideas and are forward thinkers, their heads should be on the chopping block. Societies who declare that math, science, memorization and successful standardized examination results are the only things students need to survive, they are at fault! Although Picasso might have felt this way, the truth is, where the blame rests is not the biggest issue at hand, rather, the biggest issue is how we put an emphasis on creativity in schools, how we take the very obvious fact that creativity is the very thing that will result in success in the future, and take advantage of that knowledge, how we make the most of our artistic children.
Links:
http://www.ted.com/talks/
Sean,
First let me just say that I am quite impressed with your comment and your responses.
I think, for those that argue that NS is a waste of time, they are thinking too narrowly. It is without a doubt that people grow during their two years, both physically and mentally. I think the issue is more about whether or not people should have the choice to decline this growth. What do you think?
As for those who work behind the scenes when it comes to both war time and times of peace, is knowing how to shoot a gun the only way to contribute? How about those who build the tanks, fighter jets and listen to sattelites? They may not know how to shoot a gun, they may not have been to NS, but they are still contributing to national safety, aren't they? I think to say that anyone who has not been trained in the military is useless come war time is a bit of a stretch.
Finally, and other people have made this point, is joining NS the only way to curb rising obesity rates? How about changing the type of food children eat in the canteen in school? Making mandatory strictly to address obesity seems like a stretch as well.
Hady - that is a very thought provoking question. Well done.
Nigel, Tammy and Vino,
Think about the scale of atomic bombs. Could any country defend itself from such a monstrous thing? When Japan was hit with the bombs in Nagasaki and Hiroshima, it devasted the country. Leading up to the bombs, Japan was one of the strongest military forces in the world.
What do you think about the argument that says WW3 will be the last war, because it will a nuclea and nobody will get out alive, regardless of their size?
Can you make the argument that in order to learn the beneficial skills that NS men learn (such as responsibility and discipline) that they need to be stressed and tested. How can you learn to survive and defend when you're not put into similar conditions?
Two things to think about:
1. When (and if) NS overstretch their limits, are they to blame or is their training to blame?
2. Should the government and media be obligated to show a true picture of NS and all things related to it? Should it be kept secret?
I don't believe catticus90 is in our class. I also don't think they understand the purpose of our debate or our point of view (how could they if they are not in SCSS 2E3 or 2E5).They do make some interesting points, though. What do you all think??
Hilman,
Can you think of other important qualities that NS teaches beyond discipline? I think you make a strong argument, btw.
Ms. Sam
Zoe,
Is NS the only way that Singapore can be on the same page as bigger countries??
Ms. Sam
Wazza - your point, "this is the time where all men are treated equally, be it rich or poor" is very interesting. Could you elaborate? Why is this important to the nation and to the individual?
Ms. Sam
Jia Ling,
Can you be more specific or provide examples of how women can support Singapore? Can you think of any wars that may arise in which Singapore will need to participate? Who is Singapore protecting itself from?
Ms. Sam
LiXuan,
You make some interesting points. I wonder, which kind of war would Singapore's National Service need to participate in? Can you foresee any conflicts that might result in war? Who does Singapore need to protect itself from?
Ms. Sam
