How "The Element" Pushed My Thinking

I have been wanting to get my hands on The Element by Sir Ken Robinson for about six months now, and I finally had a chance to read the book this week. I had heard some detail about the contents of the book through word of mouth and online postings, specifically this blog post by Will Richardson, but I was left with many unanswered questions that I hoped would be addressed in the book.

I understood that the definition of The Element is "the point at which natural talent meets personal passion" and I tried to connect this definition to my own experiences, but I realized that it was difficult to truly understand the power of being in The Element without digging deep and discovering what factors contribute to, or inhibit this achievement. As an educator, I was also curious about how we as teachers can encourage our students to discover and pursue their passions.

Some parts of the book clicked with me right away because of my own personal connections as well as my knowledge of the success stories of others as portayed in the media. For example, there are no shortage of stories about athletes who report the power of being "in the zone" and visualizing what success looks like as they pursue their passions. However, as I read the book I was particularly drawn to other points that Sir Ken makes such as the importance of "Finding Your Tribe" (pg. 103) and overcoming the barriers or obstacles that may detract from us finding our Element. In chapter 6 he summarizes this important point as follows:

I think of the barriers to finding the Element as three concentric "circles of
constraint." These circles are personal, social, and cultural (pg. 132).

This was one of those concepts that really pushed my thinking and challenged me to consider this through the lens of a teacher and a parent. Sir Ken tells the story of Arianna Stassinopoulos (Huffington) and how she overcame many social objections, including those of her father, on the road to finding her Element. The support that Arianna received from her mother helped her pursue her passions and realize her dreams, and I can't help but look at my own life closely and ask myself "Am I doing everything I can to encourage my children and my students to connect to their passions?" Or am I subconsciously throwing up roadblocks (I certainly don't think I'd do this intentionally)?

The biggest "wow" moment for me came in Sir Ken's hard-hitting chapter on education transformation. He argues that the hierarchy of subjects taught in the standard curriculum need to change to reflect a more balanced and diversified approach to education. He sums up this point with the following statement:

Too many students pass through education and have their natural talents
marginalized or ignored. The arts, sciences, humanities, physical education,
languages, and math all have equal and central contributions to make to a
student's education. (pg. 247)

Now, I"m not sure that I can convincingly make the case that all of these subject areas should receive an equal focus in our curriculum, but Sir Ken's point is well taken. I don't think that there is any doubt that we have students in our care who have a natural aptitude or passion(s) that isn't being nurtured at home or at school. My own teaching practice reflects this. I can think of a number of students I've taught in the past couple of years who have demonstrated a natural talent and obvious passion for the arts (music, visual, drama), and again I ask myself the question: Am I doing what I can to acknowledge this passion, encourage it, and help push it to the next level? Hmmm...this is an area I need to take a good hard look at.

I'd be interested in hearing others' thoughts on what it is that we can do, or are doing, in education to help our students, and each other, reach our Element.