"But out of limitations comes creativity" ~Debbie Allen

I had this quote up in my STEAM classroom until I moved last year.  In the video A New Culture of Learning (TEDx Talks, 2012), Douglas Thomas drove home the idea that students are more engaged and learn more completely when faced with obstacles in pursuing thier passion.  How do we motivate babies to roll over, crawl, and eventually walk?  By putting something they want just out of reach.  I think a challenge to teachers today is figuring out what their students' passions are. What do they want badly enough that they will put the work in to reach it?  So many seem to only want to spend copious hours playing video games or watching YouTube.  Teachers are resourceful and creative enough to reach these students and discover their passions, but as Mr. Thomas goes on to say, teachers are handcuffed by the system when it comes to diverging from the norm, such as getting students interested in Shakespeare by pointing out his colorful sense of humor.   

Which brings me to standardized testing. The part of the video that dealt with the effects of standardized testing on learning environments had me throwing out some 'hallelujah's and 'amen's to my empty living room.  As educators, our passion is teaching.  Perhaps we should think of testing itself as the limitation, the obstacle in the way of effective and authentic teaching.  Just as the architect mentioned in the video has to build around the imperfections in the landscape, we have to rise to the challenge and dig deep for the creativity we need to create significant learning environments despite the roadblock of 'THE TEST'.  


TEDx Talks. (2012, September 12). A New Culture of Learning, Douglas Thomas at TEDxUFM [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lM80GXlyX0U&feature=youtu.be