Watch this inspiring TED talk:

As a teacher, I know I’m succeeding when students feel free to take risks in the classroom. But letting students take risks is risky for a teacher. I’m a bit OC, and that’s the thing that keeps me from letting students take on more creative tasks. There’s also a good argument for teaching with a more systematic approach in such a way that all necessary topics get covered with a reasonable amount of depth in a reasonable amount of time. This reminds me of the discussion surrounding Paul Lockhart’s essay (my response here).