Does Education Encourage Creativity - or Kill It?

Sir Ken Robinson. Photo: Wikipedia

Sir Ken Robinson is an educator who believes passionately in the importance of teaching creativity in our schools. In an interview on Radio 4 yesterday morning, he talked about why he thinks our system of education is broken and needs fixing. Robinson argues that creative thinking and creativity are a vitally important - and widely neglected - part of our education system. Dance, he says, should be as important as Maths, of equal value and time in the curriculum. If you missed him on the radio, you can watch his fascinating (and very entertaining) 2007 TED talk below.

Robinson argues that the stuff we learn today in school is geared to the needs of the 19th century economy, when universal education systems were first being built. This is a curriculum which is out of date, and ignores the needs of the 21st Century economy, where creativity and the ability to invent new ideas are the paramount skills needed.




Here at Bucks we believe that creativity can be taught. Studying 3D animation and the digital arts is not just about learning the right tools and which buttons to press. Yes, technical expertise is necessary, but creativity matters too. Good digital artists are just that - artists. Inventive, creative, funny and entertaining artists.

Every great project begins with an idea

London's visual effects houses charge far more than their counterparts in Asia. How can they afford to charge a premium? The answer lies in a unique blend of technical excellence and creative talent. The perfect digital artist knows the software inside out - and also knows what to do with it. Clients come to London because they get - and expect - something extra.

Technical excellence and creativity

Pleasing clients is what commercial artists do for a living. This means coming up with ideas, creative solutions, ways to make the client look good. Creativity and creative thinking is at the very heart of the process.

Learning animation isn't just about technical excellence - though this is also vital. It's about coming up with great ways to apply what you have learned. Creating great projects is what we aim to do here at Bucks. Our university was recently ranked among the top ten creative universities in the UK.  In addition, we are currently ranked number one in terms of facilities spend per student. This is probably because of the huge recent investment in the Gateway Building, a creative media hub which hosts the most modern facilities money can buy.

Gateway Building

We have motion capture, TV cameras, Green Screen rooms, Computer rooms, a dance hall, performance facilities, recording rooms and sound mixing suites. All of it is state of the art, and the opportunities for collaboration between departments are huge. Creativity and creative thinking are at the very heart of what we do.

---Alex

For more about the experience of studying at Bucks New University, come and visit us at one of our Open Days,  take a virtual tour of one of our animation studios, check out what our students think of our course, and see why we're ranked in the top 12 creative universities in the UK. Find out why we're giving free laptops to all our students, and why we give all our students free access to videos at Lynda.com. Also, see what financial assistance might be available to you. Learn which is better for animation, a PC or a Mac? Get hold of a copy of a map so you can find your way around campus, and learn about motion capture at Bucks. And find out about how our online video tutorials work