Get going. Then get better. (Ahmed/ Olander)

Photo by Ross Findon on Unsplash

Cutting edge, leaders in innovation, the tip of the arrow.

Recently, I've heard those phrases a lot. What do all these phrasas mean and what's needed to attain that status, and stay there? After all - everyone is doing their best to be cutting edge, right?

George Couros is my go-to-guy on innovation in education. 

Here he is on what it is and what it isn't:

To simplify the notion of innovation, it is something that is both new (either invention or iteration) and better. Innovation is not about the “stuff”, but about a way of thinking. 

For example, it is not the iPhone that is innovative, it was the thinking that created it in the first place. Innovation is about mindset more than anything. In fact, if you made an iPhone that looked more like the first version than the current one, it would no longer be innovative, but simply replication. There is no new thinking, nor is it better than what we have now.

What qualities are needed to be innovative?

The Velocity boys (Ajaz Ahmed and Stefan Olander)  are still my go-to-guys on this.

This is what they have to say:

It takes 'courage, focus and determination, but gives back efficiency and rewards intuition, iteration and gutsiness'.

Their warning is always one I aim to keep in mind:

For organisations with structures that sand down all rough edges and desiccate anything juicy, something terrible will happen: nothing.

We can be Heroes, for ever and ever. What d'you say? (David Bowie)

Only a few more weeks of holiday remaining! 

But let's not dwell, let's luxuriate in some fine writing and analysis.

Here we go...

1 Three cutting edge schools
A look at three schools doing great innovative things. Every school is different but you can always pick up new ideas right?

2 Hollywood
This article details the Bechdel test for films - it measure how male directors and female directors treat females in their films. It's a fascinating area and data rich but that's not why I'm including it on my education blog. Oh no. 

Why then? Because it forces us to analyse the types of movies we show our students and the subtle and not so subtle messages they give our male and female students. We may not like what we find!

3 School Culture
I love studying school cultures - the peculiar way things are done about your school. This article subtitled 'school culture rewired' highlights a new book by Steve Gruenert and Todd Whitaker.

I'm a fan of Whitaker's work so I'll need to track down a copy.

4 Lesson planning
Given our experience with blended and personalised learning within an inquiry model, this article examining 'the problem with lesson planning' seems apposite. It's written from a UK perspective and the call for freeing up the timetable is always worth reading about!

5 Radical visions
Finally, this mind/shift article looks at a radical vision for new schools. Cool. I love mind/shifts!