For a while I’ve been wrestling with what the term ‘innovative’ means, at least in terms of teaching and learning…and I think I may have come to some conclusions, however the key word is ’some’. I’ve been struggling to decide when exactly a lesson becomes innovative, in other words, what makes it innovative? We seem to have a dichotomy between innovative and not innovative, but clearly there are not only two ways to design a lesson.
The idea of innovation seems very complex to me because you can have a seemingly innovative activity that ends up being not very innovative because there was no big picture or connection to other learning and experiences which renders that possible innovation useless. You can also have an innovative lesson or unit that has seemingly non-innovative activities within it, but when viewed in the context of the big picture, becomes innovative. Are you confused yet? Let’s try an example…
Exhibit A: Student centered activity physically exploring and constructing a model of DNA by fitting the backbone and base pairs together (made out of a physical material) and thus learning what makes up DNA by exploring the pieces and connections and kinesthetically figuring out how they fit together (maybe not quite total inquiry, which should be saved for another post, but I would consider it innovative).
This activity is centered around student exploration and could be considered innovative, but if their explorations and experience are not shared, discussed, reflected upon and connected to the bigger picture, then it served no purpose and thus becomes non-innovative.
Exhibit B: A power point delivering notes which the students write in a notebook. This learning activity is a common occurrence in schools and leaves little room for creativity, inquisition, explorations etc. So we could agree that this is not innovative.
However, if you conduct this activity with student-centered demonstrations and frequent class discussion and use it as a tool to make sure students have the specific vocabulary and facts for understandings that have already or will be explored (preferably have already been) AND situate it within a lesson and larger unit that are connected by a bigger picture…it can become innovative.
SO… given these examples, we can pull out some common themes that must be present for a lesson or unit to be innovative and I would challenge the notion that any specific activity can be classified as innovative or not innovative. We have to look at the bigger picture (which fittingly is what we need to help our students do).
Laura’s Rules for Innovation
1. Student centeredness: for the most part, lessons and activity must be centered around the student and their learning and not on the teaching or method of delivery.
2. Big Idea: lessons and even units need to be connected under an overarching big idea or essential question and this connection must extend to other disciplines and out of school life experiences that the students have had.
3. Community: strong relationships between your students and between you and your students will enhance and support the other components of good lesson design such as student-centeredness, ownership, and inquisition. Each student must feel like they are included in this community.
4. Ownership: This ties into student centeredness, big ideas and having a community of learners. If the students see connections between their life and what they are learning and co-create information with their peers (and teacher!), they will feel like they have the most important role in their learning. This kind of student investment will help ensure deep understanding and meaning making that will benefit the student beyond their school years.
5. Inquisition: Call it inquiry, call it questioning, call it exploration…call it whatever you want, but the outcome is the same…students actively seeking understanding, students wanting to learn more. This is essential for student-centeredness, ownership and fostering a community of learners and it is supported by having big ideas that connect learning to life.
Each of my rules cannot properly exist in the classroom without the other four. This list is not exhaustive, but I think that if you plan with these desired outcomes as your big idea, your lessons and units will be innovative.
In conclusion...it doesn’t really matter what activities you are choosing to do (well they help, but don’t look there first) if you want to be innovative. You must ask yourself “Am I creating an environment that is student-centered, fosters deep understanding, provides a sense of community and creates ownership over learning?” If not, step back, take a look at the big picture and see if you can change your design so that these important “rules” are included. The activities you create can certainly help you with these aspects of good lesson design but they wont be enough on their own, they will only become innovative if they are centered within this big picture. And if you are fretting over an activity that you think is not innovative, don’t worry, it can become innovative if given the proper support and structure around it to be meaningful for you and your students.
