How school kills creativity

About 20 years ago, I started my career as a business trainer in one of the most sexy subjects (not!): French. At the start of my career, I had a clear vision on teaching: my teaching style and techniques wouldn't remind any student of mine of their schooldays. So I started developing my own way of training. Years later, my company Tryangle Happiness and Well-Being at Work defined the Tryangle Way of Working, based upon my insights in training and coaching. Our way of working defines itself in 3 keywords:

1. Learning by doing: our trainers and coaches invite our participants to join in, to give things a try and to see what happens. After our learning activities we take a moment to have the learning conversation which is packed with questions (How did it go? How did this feel? What did you like? What did you learn? ...) and positive feedback.
2. Physical exercise: we invite our participants to come out of their chairs because physical movement brings mental and emotional motion. In our sessions, it's not about rational intelligence, but about emotional, mindful, adaptive and creative intelligence. Or as Einstein pointed out:

Creativity is intelligence having fun. - Einstein

3. Fun! If you get to enjoy your learnings, you'll want to discover more. To bring fun into our coaching and training, we invite our participants to be courageous and creative.

Why? Because I experienced a lot of pain at school. According to a lot of teachers I needed to sit still, to listen and to reproduce the insights they were teaching. I remember saying "I'm not a parrot" from primary school until my last years at university. And when I read the story Helen E. Buckley wrote, I'm so happy that this little Griet-girl made up her mind and - without realizing it - protected her creativity that way...

"A little boy" by Helen E. Buckley:

“Once a little boy went to school.

One morning

The teacher said:

"Today we are going to make a picture."

"Good!" thought the little boy.

He liked to make all kinds;

Lions and tigers,

Chickens and cows,

Trains and boats;

And he took out his box of crayons

And began to draw.

But the teacher said, "Wait!"

"It is not time to begin!"

And she waited until everyone looked ready.

"Now," said the teacher,

"We are going to make flowers."

"Good!" thought the little boy,

He liked to make beautiful ones

With his pink and orange and blue crayons.

But the teacher said "Wait!"

"And I will show you how."

And it was red, with a green stem.

"There," said the teacher,

"Now you may begin."

The little boy looked at his teacher's flower

Then he looked at his own flower.

He liked his flower better than the teacher's

But he did not say this.

He just turned his paper over,

And made a flower like the teacher's.

It was red, with a green stem.

On another day

The teacher said:

"Today we are going to make something with clay."

"Good!" thought the little boy;

He liked clay.

He could make all kinds of things with clay:

Snakes and snowmen,

Elephants and mice,

Cars and trucks

And he began to pull and pinch

His ball of clay.

But the teacher said, "Wait!"

"It is not time to begin!"

And she waited until everyone looked ready.

"Now," said the teacher,

"We are going to make a dish."

"Good!" thought the little boy,

He liked to make dishes.

And he began to make some

That were all shapes and sizes.

But the teacher said "Wait!"

"And I will show you how."

And she showed everyone how to make

One deep dish.

"There," said the teacher,

"Now you may begin."

The little boy looked at the teacher's dish;

Then he looked at his own.

He liked his better than the teacher's

But he did not say this.

He just rolled his clay into a big ball again

And made a dish like the teacher's.

It was a deep dish.

And pretty soon

The little boy learned to wait,

And to watch

And to make things just like the teacher.

And pretty soon

He didn't make things of his own anymore.

Then it happened

That the little boy and his family

Moved to another house,

In another city,

And the little boy

Had to go to another school.

The teacher said:

"Today we are going to make a picture."

"Good!" thought the little boy.

And he waited for the teacher

To tell what to do.

But the teacher didn't say anything.

She just walked around the room.

When she came to the little boy

She asked, "Don't you want to make a picture?"

"Yes," said the little boy.

"What are we going to make?"

"I don't know until you make it," said the teacher.

"How shall I make it?" asked the little boy.

"Why, anyway you like," said the teacher.

"And any color?" asked the little boy.

"Any color," said the teacher.

And he began to make a red flower with a green stem. “

~Helen Buckley, The Little Boy

“We have a narrow definition of what constitutes being smart that leaves people out and wounds people’s sense of self. We have elevated one type of brain at the expense of all the other representations of intelligence and flourishing. Intelligence is not one thing, it’s many things. The problem is a set of institutional practices that reinforces the idea that difference is the problem.” Jonathan Mooney

“Don't do things the way people are telling you to. Look at the way that you feel is the best. Your way may be better” Mike Cammarata