Ready for Anything. Suzette Lovely
not part of an innovator’s mindset. Innovative educators welcome a sense of not-yetness—when things aren’t fully under control—by paying heed to the fact that learning and doing are messy.
5. Innovative educators use technology correctly. Innovative educators embrace a coherent approach to technology integration that generates relevant insights. Digitally rich learning comes from using the right technology, at the right time, in the right dosage.
6. Innovative educators are comfortable with mistakes. Innovative educators push the boundaries of teaching by taking risks. Along with risks come mistakes—mistakes with lessons, mistakes with technology, mistakes with timing, mistakes that students make. When teachers make mistakes, they get back up, dust themselves off, decide what went wrong, and have another go at it.
The formula to bring innovative practices into the classroom is actually not formulaic (Couros, 2015). Instead, it’s a combination of methodology, structure, work practices, and ad-libbing. Words like teaching lean, bottom up, and participatory underscore the experience. To avoid innovation limbo, any creative undertaking has to be student-centric and accessible to all.
Eight Themes of Practical DREAMING
By and large, teachers are better executors than innovators. From personal observations and decades working with, supervising, and teaching teachers, I have found that most succeed by sticking with what’s already in place rather than trying something new. With little time to analyze and reflect on professional practice, it’s easier to repeat what learning has been instead of focus on what learning could be. Moreover, the majority of teachers is conditioned to teach students from their own worldview and life experiences. Classroom practices tend to conform to a teacher’s personal beliefs, opinions, and biases.
Within that framework, innovation is an ambiguous term. It can feel like a race with no defined finish line. Hesitation exists among some educators who worry that a less conventional approach won’t work in their classrooms. One California teacher described her own skepticism this way:
Sometimes I think education is a circus. We’re just contained in this tent and we take it down in the summer and we put it back up every fall. In fifteen years of teaching, it never occurred to me to look outside of the tent …. Optimism is not lacking in schools, but it’s all reserved for our students …. If teachers viewed themselves as designers and believed they could affect [sic] change, and really believed in themselves, I think a much better system is possible. (IDEO, 2013)
Clearly, our mindset about the best way to design and deliver content is essential to any innovative process. In his 2011 State of the Union address, President Obama reminded the nation that thirty years before no one predicted something called “the Internet” would lead to an economic revolution. The President noted that while the future is ours to win, we cannot stand still to get there. To compete for the jobs and industries of the era, America has to “out-innovate, out-educate, and out-build the rest of the world” (Obama, 2011, p. 4). So what will give teachers the confidence and permission they need to “out-educate” the rest of the world? And how do we create more fluid learning environments in order for students to become the innovators and entrepreneurs the nation expects?
I would like to present eight themes that underscore high-imagination learning environments that set us on a path to “out-educate’ the rest of the world. Educators who adopt these strategies actualize innovation through practical DREAMING (see the following acronym). Practical dreamers resist the lure of appearances to convert aspirations into reality. They envision a better future for students and take practical steps to get there.
To encourage innovation in classrooms, practical dreamers:
1. Discover—Practical dreamers look through multiple lenses to provide a deeper sense of what learners want, need, and deserve. They pursue opportunities to refine instructional approaches beyond the world of education. Practical dreamers pay attention to random events that lead to interesting results. A key question for the Discover theme is, Do I have imaginative, yet actionable, insights that translate into winning propositions for students?
2. Reach—Practical dreamers quantify their compelling vision of classroom innovation with a set of clear goals and metrics. They view innovation as a critical process for student growth. A key question for the Reach theme is, Do I have a compelling vision, clear goals, and reachable targets that are substantial enough for me to act without being over the top?
3. Explore—Practical dreamers distinguish worthy ideas from flavor-of-the-month pursuits. They study shifts in pedagogy to separate inconsequential changes from changes that revolutionize learning. A key question for the Explore theme is, Do I pursue with high value opportunities and technology that promote experimentation?
4. Accelerate—Practical dreamers eliminate barriers between a great idea and the end user (students). They test their ideas to ensure they reap the intended outcomes. A key question for the Accelerate theme is, Do I launch new ideas through fast implementation and assessment without throwing the baby out with the bathwater?
5. Mobilize—Practical dreamers infuse engagement and collaboration throughout the school day—not just during “innovation” time. Their classroom structures allow ideas to flow freely. Their students see themselves as leaders of innovation too. Key questions for the Mobilize theme are, Do I foster a learning environment where ideas flow freely, no matter if they come from my students or me? Do students have the knowledge and resources to contribute?
6. Inventory—Practical dreamers select activities and assignments through discerning choices, even when something is too new to know if it’s worth the effort. They weed out low-yield activities in favor of high-yield experiences. A key question for the Inventory theme is, Do I conduct ongoing reviews of activities and assignments and determine the value of these activities and assignments for optimal effect?
7. Network—Practical dreamers use vertical and horizontal networks to connect to thought partners within their own schools, districts, and regions. They pursue experts outside the field of education as valuable contacts and inspiration. A key question for the Network theme is, Do I strategically engage with a variety of practitioners and partners to pursue novel perspectives and new learning?
8. Gauge—Practical dreamers test new concepts against the capacity and infrastructure necessary to sustain them. They ensure that both teachers and students have a chance to react to a concept before getting too far down the road. A key question for the Gauge theme is, Do I conceive and test concepts at the right time, at the right magnitude, with the right intentions?
Consider the type of innovator you are now. Are you visionary—someone who sees a shift coming before anyone else? Or are you more strategic—someone who carefully plans innovation around a specific purpose to gain an advantage? Perhaps you’re a fast follower. Fast followers may not come up with an idea, but they get on board quickly to out-deliver innovation over others. Or are you a disruptor? Disruptors don’t wait for new technology or new approaches to find them. Disruptive innovators, and others like them, are always looking for the next thing that will radically change their work. However you define yourself as an innovator, your actions should align with your goals. Practical DREAMING boosts job performance and brings out the inner innovator in you.
Having introduced the characteristics of innovative educators and the mindset necessary to dream big, this chapter now moves on to strategies educators can use to implement innovative practices in their schools and classrooms.
Strategies to Increase Innovation in the Student Environment
The following sections introduce several strategies readers can use to increase innovation in their schools and classrooms. The strategies include:
• A Lesson in Subtraction
• Habits of Mind That Make Schools Shine
• Hot Teams and the Design Thinking Framework
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