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The Educators

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Sarah Montague interviews the people whose ideas are challenging the future of education.

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The Educators: Sir Ken Robinson

Sir Ken Robinson

13/08/2014

BBC Radio 4 - The Educators, Sir Ken Robinson

Sarah Montague asks Sir Ken Robinson why he thinks schools are a barrier to creativity.

Sarah Montague interviews creativity expert and writer Sir Ken Robinson, who believes schools can crush the creative talent of children in the name of testing and comparison.

A talk for the online lecture series TED in 2006 launched Sir Ken Robinson's ideas to a global audience. He spoke about creativity in schools for 20 minutes, and the video has been watched more than any other TED Talk, with 27 million views so far.

In conversation with Sarah Montague, he argues that modern teaching is a product of industrialisation, putting children through a factory model that prepares them for working life. But if we truly value innovation and creativity, why isn't it taught?

For the programme, Sir Ken returns to the former Margaret Beavan Special School in Liverpool, where he spent his primary school years in the 1950s, after contracting polio at four years old.

He's since advised governments and businesses around the world on how to harness creativity, and believes if schools were radically different, giving creative subjects equal status, children would find their true talents.

Presenter: Sarah Montague
Producer: Joel Moors.

Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

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