Children have real understanding only of that which they invent themselves, and each time that we try to teach them too quickly, we keep them from reinventing it themselves.
Jean PiagetRead
Are we forming children who are only capable of learning what is already known? Or should we try to develop creative and innovative minds, capable of discovery from the preschool age on, throughout life?
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote questions whether education is focused solely on existing knowledge or if it promotes creativity and innovation in children.
Jean Piaget's quote highlights the importance of nurturing creativity and innovation in children's education. He challenges the conventional approach that emphasizes rote learning of established knowledge, advocating instead for an educational framework that encourages exploration, critical thinking, and discovery from an early age. This approach not only benefits children during their formative years but also equips them with skills that are vital throughout their lives.
Themes
EducationCreativityInnovationChildrenLearning
In practice
Example use cases
During a lecture on child development, this quote can prompt a discussion on teaching methodologies.
More from Jean Piaget
All quotes →Logical activity is not the whole of intelligence. One can be intelligent without being particularly logical.
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Children's games constitute the most admirable social institutions. The game of marbles, for instance, as played by boys, contains an extremely complex system of rules - that is to say, a code of laws, a jurisprudence of its own.
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Everyone knows that at the age of 11-12, children have a marked impulse to form themselves into groups and that the respect paid to the rules and regulations of their play constitutes an important feature of this social life.
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Play is the work of childhood.
Jean PiagetRead
The goal of education is not to increase the amount of knowledge but to create the possibilities for a child to invent and discover, to create men who are capable of doing new things.
Jean PiagetRead
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