Excitement, hope, and eagerness are just some of the adjectives of a new school year approaching. While I certainly experience many of these same emotions, this time of year usually brings me deep thought and reflection. Today is no different. For many years now we've been hearing about the need to innovate our practice. If you've been in education for any amount of time you've heard this. Our education system is dated and was created to support an economy that no longer exists.
Today I heard a great conceptual idea from Tony Wagner. He suggested that schools invest money in Research and Design. It's ok, I probably would have rolled my eyes at this several years ago as well. I get it, budgets are tight, the needs of the kids make it tough to think about reallocating funds to such an undertaking and much of the research is done without schools having to invest a penny (not really, but more on that in a minute). There's also the underlying feeling that such a position would be nothing more than an expedited way to filter central office initiatives down to the campus level. They're all very valid concerns. Any significant change doesn't come without a reason to be concerned and/or cautious. It's the gains I believe a school district would make that make this a valid undertaking. First of all, think of how much a school district spends on purchasing the work of the research that's already been done. Think of the speakers that are paid to come, the books that are bought to be read. The list could go on. What if a school was creating all of this (and more) on their own? Not only would it pay for itself, but it would also change the daily climate and eventually the culture. Work for us (and our students), by us and because of us. Work, research and design that's tailored to what we need in the here and now. Who knows, it just might lead to some great exposure for your district on top of all the other benefits. It might not take much. Simply having a "Director of Innovation" with the ability to connect and work with all professionals from across an entire school district looking for ways to innovate our practices. "What could replace a faculty meeting?" What impact is "X" having on our students?" "How do staff feel about..." You could devote days with teachers to travel to multiple campuses in search of great and innovative practices or creating networks of district-wide PLC's You could also utilize this structure to connect to your community in ways you haven't before. Connect with businesses, community governments, and others to showcase what your students are doing in school and see if it's truly meeting the real-world application threshold. You could also get great ideas on what it is these community partners are doing daily to further the authenticity of your curriculum. I am certain that the possibilities for this are far greater than anything I could illustrate in any single blog post. Each summer we ask our employees to invest some time in R&R and we're better off for it. The same would be true if we invested in some R&D.
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AuthorJeff Lahey Archives
January 2020
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