Rigorous innovation: leading for real improvement

1. Rigorous innovation: leading for real improvement Daniel Muijs University of Southampton, UK

2. Innovation in Education • Increasingly competitive international environment • Importance of human capital • Rapid societal changes • The changing nature of technology • The changing requirements of learners?

3. Many calls for innovation… • Robinson (2014): current systems lack creativity • Greenstone & Looney (2012): education faces an innovation deficit • Dede (2011): Lifewide learning • Trilling & Fadel (2009): 21st century skills • ‘Classroom of today hasn’t changed for a century’

4. Many calls for innovation… • New approaches, e.g.: • flipped classroom, • mobile learning, • blended learning

5. So we need innovation… • But what does this mean for school leaders? • Some of the calls are systemic, creating inherent constraints for leaders • Curriculum • Accountability • Assessment systems • Resources • Parents

6. But do we really need innovation? • Yes, but: • What really are 21st Century skills, and what do they rest on? • What is the basis of creativity? • Is knowledge really just searchable? • Is there really no innovation in education?

7. And what exactly requires innovating? • Willingham (2012): Knowledge remains foundation for learning • Required to make connections • Processing in short-term memory • Expert studies

8. What is innovation? • Adopting a so-called innovative approach? • Employing approaches that have existed for half a century or more (‘learner-centred’ approaches)? • Using expensive technology to do the same thing you always did? • Educational Innovation = new ideas that benefit learning

9. What we know • Four established principles of world-class teaching (Muijs et al, 2014): • Direct instruction in basic skills and knowledge • Developing self-regulated learning and metacognitive skills • Feedback and target-setting • Subject knowledge • Where innovation is coming from • Cognitive science • Big data • New technologies

10. Cognitive Science • Rapidly evolving field • Transfer to classroom practise is not straightforward • Findings do have important implications around • Structure of memory • Modular and pattern-making properties of the brain • Learning has significant emotional components • Role of genetics

11. Big data • The ability to collate large amounts of data on pupils’ learning • The ability to use this data to inform decision-making • Target-setting and performance management • Personalised learning

12. New technologies • Mobile technology • The flipped classroom • Blended learning • But: what is the evidence?

13. The role of leaders in innovation • Creating a climate for innovation • Creating a structure for innovation • Overcoming a culture of fear • Developing thoughtful innovation strategies

15. Thoughtful innovation • Means looking critically at claims • Keeping what is good in traditional approaches, such as Direct Instruction • Studying the evidence base for claimed innovations • Above all, trial in school, evaluate and adapt

16. Key aspect: Improving classroom practise • Key leadership task is improving conditions for teaching and learning • This requires changing classroom practise and instructional leadership

17. Instructional leadership • Instructional leadership: • Confirmed in a variety of school effectiveness studies (Teddlie & Reynolds, 2001) and more recent research (Leithwood et al, 2011) • Those actions that a principal takes, or delegates to others, to promote growth in student learning • Making instructional quality the top priority of the school and brings that vision to realization

18. Instructional Leadership • A leader, not an administrator • Instructional leaders have a pedagogical vision and expertise • Instructional leaders focus on teaching and learning • Often start with a particular initiative promoting a teaching strategy • Professional development focussed on teaching and learning

19. Changing classroom practise • So how can we develop thoughtful innovation in teaching and pedagogy? • Some strategies: • Changing behaviour • ‘Mini-experiments’ • Collaborative lesson study • Teachers as researchers • Collaboration and networking

20. Changing behaviour • Mathematics in primary schools in Stockton-on-Tees: • Top down model • Leadership puts in place strategies, and models desired strategies and behaviours • Professional development programme put in place • Change behaviours first, beliefs follow

21. Mini-experiments • A way of introducing innovation • Spaced Learning in a secondary school in North-East England: • Experimental and control groups • Pre- and post tests • Evaluation of effects before making whole school

22. Lesson study • Lesson study in in an Academy in Manchester: • Teachers work in small groups • Plan a ‘research lesson’ collaboratively • One teacher teaches, others observe and evaluate • Revise and report

23. Teachers as Researchers • Teachers developing their own research • Action research projects • ‘Research Leads’ • The teacher research movement • ResearchEd • TLT

24. Collaboration and networking • Collaboration with other schools to plug ‘structural gaps’ • Found to be effective in improving student outcomes under the right conditions(Muijs, 2015). • Leadership support • Openness to change • Clear agreed goals • Mutual observation • Imitation

25. Leading for innovation • Key is to encourage the testing of innovative approaches • License to fail • But: • Check quality and reliability of evidence base • Monitor and evaluate! • Evaluate: • Changes in beliefs • Changes to practise • Student outcomes

26. Conclusion • In a changing world, innovation is essential • But… • Not everything sold as innovation is innovative • Not everything sold as innovation evidence-based • Not everything sold as innovation is harmless • What we need is thoughtful innovation • Evidence-based • Tested and adapted in schools • Focussed on better learning outcomes • Need for rigorous evaluation of new developments and methods

27. Conclusion • Thank you for your attention! • D.Muijs@soton.ac.uk • @ProfDanielMuijs