Do Schools Kill Creativity?

The Majority of education and academic system nowadays claim what they do is to educate, to develop and to make students more creative. However, that is not what happens in reality. We like to believe that school is the way to nurture the mind and to make students think. Yet, at the end of the day, all students can think of is about how to pass the exam. School, which is falsely perceived as a place to grow new talents, is single-handedly stifling the creativity. There are two very critical factors applied majorly in an academic system nowadays that kills creativity. The extrovert ideal and study/learning issue are the two problems that should be addressed by innovative solutions in the education system in order to put a cease to this sad recurring

Extrovert ideal is, as Susan Cain, in her book Quiet put it- “the omnipresent belief that the ideal self is gregarious, alpha, and comfortable in the spotlight. They Work well in teams and socializes in groups and the idea where to be great is to be bold and to be happy is to be sociable”. This event, where individuals make space for a tight scope of personality also practice widely in school. It is obvious where participation in class takes a certain percent of grades’ credit; more talkative students or those who always raise their hands are appraised as more dynamic, more intelligent, more alluring and more desirable students.

Furthermore, research even suggests that the vast majority of teachers believe that the ideal student is an extrovert. Even as early as elementary school years, sitting position is arranged to give students high levels of stimulation to foster group learning. In university this practice often associated with big class in a hope that it will engage more students to actively express their opinions. Teachers tend to expect when they have some questions, students will raise their hands and express their thought in an instant; but that is not how it works for some

First, both teachers and students should be aware about introversion and extroversion extent. Students can begin to know what natural temperament they have, how their brain works and receive stimuli; this way they can embrace every uniqueness they have. Teachers can begin to understand what makes students more introverted, what that means and how best to cultivate the talents of those students. Second, empowerment for introverted students. This key element can be done in several ways, such as: engage students to give more thoughtful and reflective comments; give students time to think and discuss a concept with a partner before sharing it to large group is a good way to engage more students in a class discussion; assign student to convey their ideas in small group of two to four students, this way can balance both type of personalities; Challenges student to experiment in opposite style of their natural temperament, introverted student can learn to share their ideas and seek for feedback while more extroverted student can learn to listen more to other