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Most national systems of education weren't designed to promote creativity: their purpose was conformity. They developed in the 18th and 19th centuries to meet the needs of the industrial economies, which typically needed a workforce that was roughly 80% manual and 20% professional. National education systems were structured accordingly. They prioritized the subjects that seemed most relevant to working life, including math, languages and sciences, and they emphasized particular sorts of academic ability. The system worked well enough. Most people had to do manual jobs and had a fairly basic education: for the minority who went to college, a degree was a passport to a secure job in a suit. Two factors have changed all of that: the emergence of the knowledge economy and the demand for intellectual labor, and population growth.