Right from the word go this animation narrated by Sir Ken Robinson was engaging, taking me on the journey through education, diving deep into the errors we have created in the design of our current education system. It never struck me how old fashioned schooling is structured until now. But we must move on from this; how do we educate our children so that they have a sense of cultural identity while being part of the process of globalisation? One thing is for sure, by not living in the past. We cannot alienate children who do not see the purpose of school.

We are drilling the wrong ethos into what school is all about: Hard Work – Do Well – College – Job. That is not how it works anymore; there are so many different options to get you where you want to be but there is a lack of informing the young people about what is available.

Why are we educating children by age? Why do we assume that the most important thing we have in common is our age? Why don’t we base it on the children’s interests and abilities?

Another important idea that was raised and I found most interesting in the video was encouraging divergent thinking. I find it sad that our ability to think creatively decreases the older we get. Our education system that was created and based on the industrial revolution has programmed us to work, learn and do in a specific, manufactured way. This has eliminated our ability to think outside the box and quite frankly squashing our true potential. I have no imagination now, and I absolutely hate that. Where has that ability to invent scenarios and tell nonsense stories gone? Well, I think I have found my answer.

In conclusion, this animation indicates how important it is that our education system catches up with the increasing needs of children in the learning environment. It is having a negative impact on our children and we must get away from this manufactured way of learning and move on to more a dynamic, child-centred arrangement.