The problem with the word ‘creativity’ is that it conjures up such a wide range of possible interpretations that it ends up serving no-one except those who wish to peddle it as a pedagogical aim and charge thousands of pounds for their talks in Dubai or Davos, or a school hall near you on an … More Schools Should Ditch Creativity
The Guardian gushes: At a time when arts are squeezed in some schools, teachers are embracing them as a tool to teach the environment without realising it is this insidious belief that the arts are merely a pedagogical tool that is leading to a paucity of engagement with great art. The tragic figure of the starving … More Dumbing Down the Arts
Apparently there are now 1,700 fewer drama teachers teaching in UK schools than there were in 2010. I don’t have any information as to how accurate this figure is and what the figures are in the constituent nations of the United Kingdom nor how it compares to other subjects, suffice to say it adds to … More Drama in Decline
“In the popular imagination,” writes Tim Blanning in his wonderful book ‘The Romantic Revolution’, “Beethoven was the romantic hero par excellence: the lonely, afflicted, uncompromising, utterly original genius, ‘a man who treated God as an equal’…” This vision of creative minds echoes down the centuries. The tortured artists in their garret, often poor, wearing black, … More Creativity and Collaboration
To avoid misunderstanding: it seems to me that conservatism, in the sense of conservation, is of the essence of the educational activity Hannah Arendt According to the sleeve notes of their new album, Blue and Lonesome, Rolling Stones’ guitarist, Keith Richards, wants written on his gravestone: He passed it on The gnarled rockers’ latest album … More Teachers Should Pass Knowledge On
If you click on the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) ‘Teaching and Learning Toolkit’ webpage the first thing you come across is: click on this and you are informed that: What is the point of this? Why should the arts even be expected to work for the glory of other, maybe, more important subjects? For example, I … More Arts Education has a “Low Impact”
The dove, in free flight cutting through the air the resistance of which it feels, could get the idea that it could do even better in airless space. Immanuel Kant: Critique of Pure Reason Pity our free spirits, constrained by the school and kicking against the pricks. Teenagers, angst ridden, knowing full well if the … More When Push Comes to Shove: Kant’s Dove
“I’ve always cited who my influences are. I felt it was important for people to be able to see how things are put together at any given stage. I let people know what’s going through my head. I’ve been quite vocal about that through the years… I’ve always loved the process – to see how things … More Bowie, my Gatekeeper, RiP
The greatest punk manifesto: This image was from the fanzine ‘Sideburns’, though in common memory it is usually remembered as being associated with Sniffin’ Glue but it wasn’t that fanzine wot done it. Punk a reaction against the skilled overblown prog rock of the early to mid seventies was an attack on ability and artistry, … More Creativity, Education and Punk
It should be idyllic. Teachers and children conversing together, children learning stuff because it’s interesting or necessary or both. Assessment a continuous part of the process of understanding: “Have you got it yet?” “Yes, I have.” “Really?!” “Yes.” “Well, have you considered this… ?” “Oh, does that mean that blah blah might not be right?” etcetera… … More Life in a Post-Level World: Progress Descriptors for Creativity in Four Days
Trivium 21c 