What's Up with Innovation...

*Disclaimer...I have tried a few times to write a blog, but never felt as if I wanted to put my words out for others to read. Simply put, I have lacked confidence. In an attempt to put myself in an uncomfortable place and model growth, I am here again.  Bear with me! 


Merriam Webster defines innovation as: 

1:the introduction of something new 

2:a new idea, method, or device :novelty

Seems pretty simple, right? People have been innovating for years. Or have they? 

Since the beginning of my educational journey in 1990, I have been challenged with the notion novelty. Educators seem to always be chasing the elusive silver bullet. Finding the latest book, method, website, instructional practice, etc has been part of my existence. Only when it has not been. 

At the same time when we are looking for the new way to be the best for our students, there are voices popping up that saying things like: 

• We have always done it this way.
• Why should we change when we have good results?
• What about traditional methods? 
• Back to Basics has worked, let's do that! 
• And on, and on. 

So here we are...two sides...let's try new things and let's just use traditional methods. Which one is right?  I will tell you what I believe. 

I believe we owe it to our students and to the future to TRY NEW THINGS. TO INNOVATE. We cannot just take the file out from last year and do the same things. Don't get me wrong, I am not suggesting that each year we throw out the baby with the bathwater. We have to be wise about how we do this. It's a delicate situation. This is where the art and science of teaching comes into play.  We must reflect on what worked and what didn't, consider the new students who are in front of us, and make appropriate changes.

Sounds simple enough, right? It is, if we build it correctly. What I have learned along the way is we need to build structures in for classroom teachers to try new things out. Structures that include visiting other classrooms, talking with other practitioners, reading, reflecting, taking risks, and being encouraged to fail.

So, I whole-heartedly agree that innovation is an imperative in education.