Having made the decision to join the connected world by investing in an iPhone, I’m surprised at how much more productive I’m being. Instead of my online updating being feast or famine, I’m using the odd five minutes here and there to catch up. Good to be able to connect via the mobile network, as my factory is still not enlightened enough to allow staff access to the wifi network.
So instead of having to sort out laptops and cables, I was able to browse through the twitter feeds and found @josiefraser ‘s interview with Stephen Heppell about innovation and ingenious schools.
Since I lead a module called ‘Innovation in Teaching and Learning’ I’m constantly aware of the fact that I’m trapped into a culture of perpetuating Grade 1 performance for Inspections. I’m not really sure of how up to date ESTYN inspectors are (many of them have left education or are seconded managers) and I’m aware of the need not to be too radical because there is a risk that they may not understand content or process. The old thorn of learning styles still keeps appearing despite Coffield’s 2004 report.
In Heppell’s conditions for innovation was the following statement:
Proper reflective practice as learning professionals including research (“Let’s try…”), scholarship (“What have others done…?”), and iteration (“Let’s learn from that and do even better the second time…”);
Being hypercritical of all and any existing practices – for example, “Why have these these timetable blocks?” “What happens if we have a two-block teaching day?” “Why 25 children not 60, or 10?” “Why not mix ages?” “Why age not stage?” “Why did we waste so much money building corridors when the children don’t need to move any more?”
And remembering which century you are in…
In order to attempt ‘let’s try …’ there needs to be support for those who are trying, and in this there needs to be trust and also the ability to learn from practice without criticising.
Daloz Model of Support and Challenge
Daloz’s model is useful for visualising where we all might be. It seems that in many cases, the level of challenge is too high, whilst the level support is too low. There is plenty of support for getting the VLE wheelbarrow loaded with information, but little for learner engagement, or understanding how learning technology might better be applied. Maybe technology is moving forward so fast, or the Web 2.0 cloud so big, that people are happier denying what is happening outside. Speaking of clouds, a blizzard is just spreading across the hills outside my window.
I’m lucky that in my job as a teacher trainer educator I’m expected to be developing new resources and methods, but I rarely have time to make any properly structured changes. Gilding lilies springs to mind; trivial tinkering is the reality. Strategic planning of courses with a proper embedding of a delivery philosophy which embraces learning technology is not easy and is positively resisted in some areas. We still start from the old models in planning delivery (and I’m guilty as I realised I had got to slide 49 on a powerpoint presentation last week) rather than starting from what technology might offer.
This year, for the first time, trainee teachers are more positive about using learning technology to move things forward. Several are on Twitter, and the use of quality blogs in advising journals and assignments is increasing. There has been a good level of risk-taking in the microteaching, and there has been a positive outcome as a result. As a result of this cohort’s development, we have been able to look at what has made a difference, and in that exploration is the beginnings of a strategic plan to keep things moving forward.
Whilst the strategy of ‘poisoning minds with good ideas’ at teacher training seems sound (as sound as a hearts and minds campaign built on bombs and kalashnikovs), there is still the need to make proper, structural and embedded changes at an organisational level. Perhaps as well as insisting on Literacy and Numeracy qualifications, we should insist on ICT skills.
However, too much lip-service and top gloss will not get the results necessary. At the moment I keep seeing people organising deck chairs, rather than steering the boat.
