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<\/a>Recently, the\u00a0#vted Twitter chat focused on innovation<\/a>, and the conversation brought a mix of practical tips, brilliant insight, and positive sentiment. The take-home message for me was that innovation thrives in an environment with a balance\u00a0of risk-taking, moral support, and professional learning.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Looking for a definition<\/h2>\n
Here are some of my favorite definitions of innovation from the #vted Twitter chat:<\/p>\n
- \n
- “Innovation is something new, something scary, something worthwhile and something exciting.”<\/li>\n
- “Innovation is going beyond the comfort zone into risky and potentially fruitful territory.”<\/li>\n
- “Innovation is hard work that doesn’t seem like work. Messy learning. Lots of chatter and debate.”<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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I have been participating in these chats since I came to Vermont last summer. Each time, I\u00a0gain great ideas and find professional inspiration.<\/p>\nAlong with ongoing collaboration with my Tarrant Institute colleagues and the intensive growth that I’ve experienced alongside the partner teachers and administrators of Washington West Supervisory Union, I feel like I am immersed in innovative practices.<\/p>\n
How is innovation defined elsewhere?<\/h2>\n
Innovation is often associated with technology. Look no further than this\u00a0blog<\/a> to see tons of<\/a> examples<\/a> of educators<\/a> creating new learning opportunities<\/a> in tech-rich<\/a> environments<\/a>. Yet even the most enthusiastic tech integrationists recognize that technology will not benefit student learning without major shifts in pedagogy and structures.<\/p>\n
There are two other ways innovation is often defined in education:<\/p>\n
1.\u00a0Data-driven decision making<\/h3>\n
The standards-based reform movement has largely focused on the use of standardized assessment to guide strategic planning and to make high-stakes decisions about students and teachers.<\/p>\n
A recent report<\/a> by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development titled “\u201cMeasuring Innovation in Education: A New Perspective, Educational Research and Innovation\u201d lists the top U.S. innovations in school organization as:<\/p>\n
- \n
- More use of student assessments for monitoring school progress<\/li>\n
- More use of assessments for national or district benchmarking<\/li>\n
- More use of assessment data to inform parents of student progress<\/li>\n
- More external evaluation of secondary school classrooms<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
As pointed out in an Answer Sheet commentary on the report<\/a>, other countries are moving away from this approach, but “The United States at this point appears to be standing alone in its obsessive use of standardized tests as important measures of accountability in education.”<\/p>\n
Please note that being an outlier does not make us innovative.<\/p>\n
2. Charter schools<\/h3>\n
Innovation in U.S. education is frequently equated with charter schools and the injection of entrepreneurship and managerial practices from the private sector.<\/p>\n
My experience working in and with charter schools, however, suggests that though these school are often started with good intentions and transformational ideas, they end up seeking legitimacy by either (a) reverting to traditional practices that are more recognizable as school or (b) pursuing demonstrable results via strategies that boost test scores but do not necessarily nurture creativity.<\/p>\n
Fast Company magazine, which focuses on innovation, recently ran an article<\/a> that argued that charter schools are not very good at innovation. As one example, the article questioned\u00a0the “no excuses” student discipline approach of many charter schools:<\/p>\n
No excuses’ has been shown to deliver strong results in math and reading \u2014 witness the impressive standardized test scores at Success Academy Charter Schools, among others. But in a world where personalized instruction and socio-emotional learning are gaining traction, the idea that students should be memorizing math concepts by singing in unison \u2014\u00a0a tactic made famous by KIPP<\/a>, a charter school pioneer \u2014 is beginning to look archaic. Individualization is in, and individualization has not been charters\u2019 strength.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Yes but, Vermont<\/em>.<\/h2>\n
![\"innovation](\"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/life_postcard_small.jpg\")
<\/a>This postcard is circulating in Washington West Supervisory Union to launch community-wide innovation efforts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n It’s interesting to note that while education technology is thriving in Vermont, the other two prevailing notions of innovation in the U.S. are de-emphasized here in the Green Mountain State: there are no charter schools in Vermont and the State Board of Education has\u00a0warned of the limitations of standardized testing<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Compare Vermont to Massachusetts, where I spent 14 years working in education in a variety of contexts (including private, charter, and public schools, as well as the state agency).<\/p>\n
If you look at the #MAedu<\/a> hashtag, you will find a lot of energetic debate replete with heated rhetoric and shameless advocacy. The discussion centers around two issues: yep, they’re testing and charters schools.<\/p>\n
Now, this is not surprising since the Massachusetts policy context involves a recent ruling by the Board of Education to abandon the\u00a0PARCC testing consortium<\/a>, along with constant battles over\u00a0the charter school cap<\/a>.<\/p>\n
But if you scroll back through the education hashtags for these two\u00a0states, you can’t fail to notice a\u00a0marked contrast.<\/p>\n
#VTed is more positive and inspirational. It is full of uplifting stories about student accomplishments and blog posts presenting rationales for bold moves like getting rid of homework<\/a>.\u00a0There are more references to technology, to personalized learning<\/a>, and ultimately, to genuinely innovative practices.<\/p>\n
Meet Washington West
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<\/h3>\nWashington West Supervisory Union (WWSU) is pursuing educational innovation with purpose.<\/p>\n
This fall, Tarrant partner schools in WWSU rolled out Personal Learning Plans for every single student<\/em> in grades 5-8 AND for their teachers. WWSU has committed huge amounts of time and resources to increasing personalization and proficiency based education practices over the next several years.<\/p>\n
And what is the motivation? Not accountability mandates or privatization threats.\u00a0It’s the moral urgency of equity and a commitment to professional\u00a0growth.<\/p>\n
Although educators elsewhere are similarly committed to improvement for the benefit of their students, they are often\u00a0struggling with stresses and distractions that make it difficult to take risks and unleash creativity.<\/p>\n