On the passing of Sir Ken Robinson
Date Posted: August 28, 2020
Sir Ken Robinson’s contribution to digital creativity in Northern Ireland will have lasting impact.
The death of Sir Ken Robinson was announced by his family on August 21, 2020. Originally from Liverpool where he was born in 1950, Sir Ken was a leading thinker in education and creativity. His core message that, “education in the 21st century must move beyond what is simplistically measurable,” has never been more relevant given the recent furore following the awarding of GCSEs and A-Levels after the abandonment of official examinations due to the coronavirus pandemic in the UK.
Sir Ken was instrumental in establishing and the subsequent success of Northern Ireland’s three Creative Learning Centres (CLCs), first pioneered by the Nerve Centre in Derry/Londonderry and later with Studio On (now Nerve Belfast) and the Education Authority’s Amma Centre in Armagh. His involvement in Unlocking Creativity – Making It Happen (2001), the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure’s (DCAL) development strategy document, provided the rationale for establishing Northern Ireland Screen’s support for the CLCs and their teacher development programmes in the use of digital technology in support of learning in our schools. Sir Ken was also involved in the initial work carried out in writing and publishing A Wider Literacy, Northern Ireland Screen’s vision for moving image education launched in 2004. His recognition of creativity as an essential skill for learning was a constant theme for Sir Ken, “Creativity is as important as literacy.” He also argued eloquently for its promotion as part of our education landscape in Northern Ireland:
“In a world of rapid economic and social change the future prosperity and well-being of Northern Ireland will depend increasingly on the creativity and adaptability of all its people. Developing these abilities in the best way calls for new approaches in education, at all levels, and new approaches to economic and cultural development. If fully implemented, this strategy would bring enormous benefits to Northern Ireland.” Unlocking Creativity – A Strategy for Development (2000)
He also foresaw the enormous power and benefits of distributing moving images using the internet and how they could support learning in schools:
“Moving image media… are a valuable source of information for many people and an increasingly important sector of the economy. It is therefore important that children in school are given the opportunity to extend their knowledge of their moving image heritage, develop their understanding of how these media work, and acquire the skills needed to explore digital creativity with moving images in a variety of media including internet and multi-media.” Unlocking Creativity – Making It Happen (2001), A Wider Literacy (2004)
His inspirational TED talks motivated an entire generation of teachers across the world to pursue new approaches to creativity in the classroom, not least, in Northern Ireland.
Sir Ken is survived by his wife Marie-Therese (Terry) and their children James and Kate and Kate’s daughter Adeline.
Kenneth Robinson, educationist, b 4 March, 1950, d 21 August, 2020
