Exploring others’ definition of innovation, creativity, teaching and learning was a clarifying experience. Each of us brings different knowledge, experience, resources and expertise. However, it has become clear that many of us view these definitions are almost part and parcel with one another. According to Leyton Schnellert, “Innovation floats on a sea of inquiry and that curiosity propels change” (Kaser & Halbert, 2017). It is visible that innovation is fueled by inquiry. As well, through reviewing these definitions, we can best see how to develop innovative teaching and leadership (guiding) strategies for what is best for learners. By reflecting on the working definitions and the discussions we engaged in, we can better understand the meaning of innovation, creativity, teaching and learning.
Innovation
According to Badran, “innovation is adding something new to an existing product or process” (Badran, 2007). In education, innovation may not be the creation of something new, it can be more the improving on previous teaching and learning. One example that stood out to me in the readings was the references to the Wright Brothers and Da Vinci being more creative than innovation (Badran, 2007). Both creativity and innovation may be connected, but innovation may not experience as much uncertainty. It is the improvement of a current system. As stated by Badran, “innovation requires a lower degree of risk, due to the fact that the progress of achievement is incremental and innovation can be terminated at any stage of development” (Badran, 2007). Innovation is the development of something new from a previous system that has evolved over time through the process of inquiry.
While innovation can be exciting, it is the opportunity to share that may often go missed. As mentioned by Donohoo, “inquiry teams [should] celebrate their [innovations] and share the knowledge and insights gained with their colleagues” (Donohoo, 2011). One of the resources I found particularly interesting was the article written by Leyton Schnellert, Supporting Innovation Across the System. Schnellert mentions much about the sharing of innovations in education in rural areas. He explains, “The Growing Innovation in Rural Sites of Learning study has surfaced visible and tangible examples of innovative practices derived in rural communities in response to a local need, but shared with other rural teams across the province” (Schnellert, 2020). However, the lasting impression from Schnellert’s work was the focus on local need, collaborative inquiry and the opportunity to share innovation. He says, “when educators have opportunities to collaboratively inquire into innovative pedagogies and new curriculum and create and adapt practices to meet local needs, meaningful and sustainable change is possible” (Schnellert, 2020).
Badran I. (2007). Enhancing creativity and innovation in engineering education,
European Journal of Engineering Education, 32:5, 573-585, DOI: 10.1080/03043790701433061
Donohoo, J. (2000). Collaborative Inquiry - Facilitator’s Guide. Learning Forward Ontario.
Kaser. L. & Halbert, J. (2017). The Spirals Playbook. C21 Canada – Canadians for 21st Century
Learning and Innovation.
Schnellert, L. (2020). Supporting Innovation Across the System. EdCan Network.
https://www.edcan.ca/articles/supporting-innovation-across-the-system/
Creativity
Creativity can often be confused with innovation, however, creativity is derived from the fundamental term “to create.” Creativity essentially means to be original and unique. According to Mueller et al, “creativity is the engine of scientific discovery and the fundamental driving force of positive change” (Mueller et al, 2012). Furthermore, Badran states, “creativity can be expressed as the ability to make something new, whether a thought or idea, an object, a product or a process, a work of art or performance, or an interpretation” (Badran, 2007). Innovation, on the other hand, can be attributed to building on what we already know. As stated by Morrison and Johnson in Enhancing Creativity and Innovation in Engineering Education, “making connection with an existing knowledge base, using imagination, experimenting, taking risks, having fun, and making the jump from what is already known or experienced to what is, or might be” (Badran, 2007). Creativity will bring about something new. Therefore, creativity is the development of something new that has not yet had the opportunity to evolve over time, and often has uncertainty, novelty and has a need to improve.
Despite the clear importance of creativity and other core values, it appears that much of the research shows that people are less accepting of creative ideas in education. After reading The Bias Against Creativity, it is visible that not all teachers share the same value. In fact, Mueller and others mention that it is common for educators to stress the importance and how much they value creativity, but the research shows otherwise. Mueller et al. state “research has documented that teachers’ dislike students who exhibit curiosity and creative thinking, even though teachers acknowledge creativity as an important educational goal” (Mueller et al. 2012). But why is this occurring among educators? It is mentioned that people generally prefer ideas that provide more certainty and creativity tends to provide more uncertainty. Mueller et al. say “uncertainty is an aversive state that people feel a strong motivation to dimmish and avoid” (Mueller et al. 2012). Perhaps the methods of how to harness creativity and curiosity effectively in classrooms has not yet been developed and creates too much uncertainty.
This research is troubling and makes one wonder how much more we must embed and embrace creative thinking into our teaching practice. This has become obvious for many Ministries across Canada; they have developed Core Competencies highlighting Thinking (Creative and Critical) as main areas of focus. We should try to identify more opportunities to be creative, and acknowledging that this will provide some uncertainty and possible chance in decision making. Badran mentions, “engineering creativity as a process should tolerate a certain degree of risk and acceptance of possible failure to achieve any outcome” (Badran, 2007). Some of the most valuable professional resources related to creativity have been developed by Roland Case and The Critical Thinking Consortium.
Badran I. (2007). Enhancing creativity and innovation in engineering education,
European Journal of Engineering Education, 32:5, 573-585, DOI: 10.1080/03043790701433061
Mueller. J., Melwani. S., & Goncalo, J. (2012). The Bias Against Creativity: Why People Desire
but Reject Creative Ideas. Psychological Science. Vo. 23, No. 1. Pg. 13 – 17.
Teaching
Teaching may have many conceptual definitions and has certainly changed, but the main purpose is about intentionally educating children or youth. According to Kline, “teaching is a behavior that evolved to facilitate learning in others.” However, as teaching has evolved and society has changed, there appears to be many more areas of focus for teaching. As mentioned by Alain Michel, there are four main areas that make up teaching:
• “Transmission of knowledge, including aspects which concern cultural and historic heritage
• Helping each pupil or student to be motivated to learn and to become self‐confident
• Providing to each student with the capacities required for an active citizenship and a successful working life
• Reduction of social inequalities and helping to establish an equality of opportunities through affirmative action.” (Michel, 2019).
As the definition of teaching becomes much clearer, it is the instilling and engineering of innovation and creativity that permit learners to eventually participate effectively in their eventual sector of society. According to Badran, “engineering education should enable the engineering graduate to perform successfully his/her essential function” (Badran, 2007).
As much of the research emphasizes definitions and purpose, I was drawn to the works based on “good teaching” by author Christopher Day. He writes about teacher’s professional and student achievement, good teachers as educators, the challenges of always being a good teacher, and teaching to one’s best. Day’s excerpts resonated with me, particular the statement, ‘“good” teachers strive to influence their students' minds beyond mere absorption, re‐gurgitation or reproduction to embrace access to, processing and evaluation of existing information, knowledge, social formation, embodied artistic and spiritual experiences” (Day, 2019).
Day C. What is teaching about? Professionalism and the limitations of standards
and competences. Eur J Educ. 2019;54:315–318. https ://doi.org/10.1111/ejed.12348
Michel A. What is teaching for? Eur J Educ. 2019;54:319–322. https ://doi.
org/10.1111/ejed.12358
Eshchar Y. and Fragaszy D. (2015). What is teaching? A clear, integrative, operational definition
for teaching is still needed. Cambridge University Press.
Learning
According to Michelle A’Court, “Chefs need to eat, and writers need to read, and
teachers need to learn and find new ways of doing things” (Kaser & Halbert, 2017). Learning can be defined as the capacity to acquire and ascertain core competencies such as: communication, thinking (critical and creative) and personal and social competencies.
According to Learning by Design,
Learning may occur in many ways. It may occur within the classroom for students, but it also may develop through collaborative inquiry among educators. Through much of the work of the classroom teacher, collaborative experiences with learning support teachers, professional development, formative assessment, and ongoing summative assessment, learning may be made possible for all. According to Kaser and Halbert, within the learning stage of inquiry, “[one] carefully designs professional learning to test and develop hunches. The goal is to make meaningful changes in educators” (Kaser & Hablert, 2017). However, learning can be even more available and possible with a sense of belonging. Faye Brownlie states, “we have moved from “allowing” students with special needs “in” to welcoming all students and working to build classroom and school communities where everyone feels a sense of belonging and makes academic progress” (Brownlie & King, 2011).
One of the resources that connects well with this definition is Learning in Safe Schools written by Faye Brownlie. Brownlie mentions, “we generally focus too narrowly on satisfying growth needs, developing children’s intellectual skills. The problem is that children who are hungry or who come from abusive situations will have little psychological energy to put into learning” (Brownlie & King, 2011). Therefore, the needs of children must be met prior to learning. This piece resonates with me as I work in an inner-city community where many students are enrolled in breakfast and lunch programs who require this fundamental need and support. As well, many of the outreach programs at my current school offer students these physiological needs that may not be met elsewhere. I see such an importance here as a safe school with the sense of belonging and physiological needs met which will then lead to learning.
Brownlie, F., & King, J. (2011). Learning in Safe Schools: Creating Classrooms Where All Students
Belong (second edition). Pembroke Publishers.
Kaser. L., & Halbert, J. (2017). The Spiral Playbook. C21 Canada – Canadians for 21st Century
Learning and Innovation.
Surrey Schools Learning by Design. (2021, April 20). Our Vision: Learning by Design.
https://surreylearningbydesign.ca/our-vision-learning-by-design/
After examining the various definitions of innovation, creativity, teaching and learning, the hope is to develop a foundational knowledge to better understand innovative teaching and learning for students. Through these working definitions, we were able to reflect on our own knowledge, learn through the works of our peers and experts in their fields, and begin to advance our understanding of key terms in education.
Innovation
According to Badran, “innovation is adding something new to an existing product or process” (Badran, 2007). In education, innovation may not be the creation of something new, it can be more the improving on previous teaching and learning. One example that stood out to me in the readings was the references to the Wright Brothers and Da Vinci being more creative than innovation (Badran, 2007). Both creativity and innovation may be connected, but innovation may not experience as much uncertainty. It is the improvement of a current system. As stated by Badran, “innovation requires a lower degree of risk, due to the fact that the progress of achievement is incremental and innovation can be terminated at any stage of development” (Badran, 2007). Innovation is the development of something new from a previous system that has evolved over time through the process of inquiry.
While innovation can be exciting, it is the opportunity to share that may often go missed. As mentioned by Donohoo, “inquiry teams [should] celebrate their [innovations] and share the knowledge and insights gained with their colleagues” (Donohoo, 2011). One of the resources I found particularly interesting was the article written by Leyton Schnellert, Supporting Innovation Across the System. Schnellert mentions much about the sharing of innovations in education in rural areas. He explains, “The Growing Innovation in Rural Sites of Learning study has surfaced visible and tangible examples of innovative practices derived in rural communities in response to a local need, but shared with other rural teams across the province” (Schnellert, 2020). However, the lasting impression from Schnellert’s work was the focus on local need, collaborative inquiry and the opportunity to share innovation. He says, “when educators have opportunities to collaboratively inquire into innovative pedagogies and new curriculum and create and adapt practices to meet local needs, meaningful and sustainable change is possible” (Schnellert, 2020).
Badran I. (2007). Enhancing creativity and innovation in engineering education,
European Journal of Engineering Education, 32:5, 573-585, DOI: 10.1080/03043790701433061
Donohoo, J. (2000). Collaborative Inquiry - Facilitator’s Guide. Learning Forward Ontario.
Kaser. L. & Halbert, J. (2017). The Spirals Playbook. C21 Canada – Canadians for 21st Century
Learning and Innovation.
Schnellert, L. (2020). Supporting Innovation Across the System. EdCan Network.
https://www.edcan.ca/articles/supporting-innovation-across-the-system/
Creativity
Creativity can often be confused with innovation, however, creativity is derived from the fundamental term “to create.” Creativity essentially means to be original and unique. According to Mueller et al, “creativity is the engine of scientific discovery and the fundamental driving force of positive change” (Mueller et al, 2012). Furthermore, Badran states, “creativity can be expressed as the ability to make something new, whether a thought or idea, an object, a product or a process, a work of art or performance, or an interpretation” (Badran, 2007). Innovation, on the other hand, can be attributed to building on what we already know. As stated by Morrison and Johnson in Enhancing Creativity and Innovation in Engineering Education, “making connection with an existing knowledge base, using imagination, experimenting, taking risks, having fun, and making the jump from what is already known or experienced to what is, or might be” (Badran, 2007). Creativity will bring about something new. Therefore, creativity is the development of something new that has not yet had the opportunity to evolve over time, and often has uncertainty, novelty and has a need to improve.
Despite the clear importance of creativity and other core values, it appears that much of the research shows that people are less accepting of creative ideas in education. After reading The Bias Against Creativity, it is visible that not all teachers share the same value. In fact, Mueller and others mention that it is common for educators to stress the importance and how much they value creativity, but the research shows otherwise. Mueller et al. state “research has documented that teachers’ dislike students who exhibit curiosity and creative thinking, even though teachers acknowledge creativity as an important educational goal” (Mueller et al. 2012). But why is this occurring among educators? It is mentioned that people generally prefer ideas that provide more certainty and creativity tends to provide more uncertainty. Mueller et al. say “uncertainty is an aversive state that people feel a strong motivation to dimmish and avoid” (Mueller et al. 2012). Perhaps the methods of how to harness creativity and curiosity effectively in classrooms has not yet been developed and creates too much uncertainty.
This research is troubling and makes one wonder how much more we must embed and embrace creative thinking into our teaching practice. This has become obvious for many Ministries across Canada; they have developed Core Competencies highlighting Thinking (Creative and Critical) as main areas of focus. We should try to identify more opportunities to be creative, and acknowledging that this will provide some uncertainty and possible chance in decision making. Badran mentions, “engineering creativity as a process should tolerate a certain degree of risk and acceptance of possible failure to achieve any outcome” (Badran, 2007). Some of the most valuable professional resources related to creativity have been developed by Roland Case and The Critical Thinking Consortium.
Badran I. (2007). Enhancing creativity and innovation in engineering education,
European Journal of Engineering Education, 32:5, 573-585, DOI: 10.1080/03043790701433061
Mueller. J., Melwani. S., & Goncalo, J. (2012). The Bias Against Creativity: Why People Desire
but Reject Creative Ideas. Psychological Science. Vo. 23, No. 1. Pg. 13 – 17.
Teaching
Teaching may have many conceptual definitions and has certainly changed, but the main purpose is about intentionally educating children or youth. According to Kline, “teaching is a behavior that evolved to facilitate learning in others.” However, as teaching has evolved and society has changed, there appears to be many more areas of focus for teaching. As mentioned by Alain Michel, there are four main areas that make up teaching:
• “Transmission of knowledge, including aspects which concern cultural and historic heritage
• Helping each pupil or student to be motivated to learn and to become self‐confident
• Providing to each student with the capacities required for an active citizenship and a successful working life
• Reduction of social inequalities and helping to establish an equality of opportunities through affirmative action.” (Michel, 2019).
As the definition of teaching becomes much clearer, it is the instilling and engineering of innovation and creativity that permit learners to eventually participate effectively in their eventual sector of society. According to Badran, “engineering education should enable the engineering graduate to perform successfully his/her essential function” (Badran, 2007).
As much of the research emphasizes definitions and purpose, I was drawn to the works based on “good teaching” by author Christopher Day. He writes about teacher’s professional and student achievement, good teachers as educators, the challenges of always being a good teacher, and teaching to one’s best. Day’s excerpts resonated with me, particular the statement, ‘“good” teachers strive to influence their students' minds beyond mere absorption, re‐gurgitation or reproduction to embrace access to, processing and evaluation of existing information, knowledge, social formation, embodied artistic and spiritual experiences” (Day, 2019).
Day C. What is teaching about? Professionalism and the limitations of standards
and competences. Eur J Educ. 2019;54:315–318. https ://doi.org/10.1111/ejed.12348
Michel A. What is teaching for? Eur J Educ. 2019;54:319–322. https ://doi.
org/10.1111/ejed.12358
Eshchar Y. and Fragaszy D. (2015). What is teaching? A clear, integrative, operational definition
for teaching is still needed. Cambridge University Press.
Learning
According to Michelle A’Court, “Chefs need to eat, and writers need to read, and
teachers need to learn and find new ways of doing things” (Kaser & Halbert, 2017). Learning can be defined as the capacity to acquire and ascertain core competencies such as: communication, thinking (critical and creative) and personal and social competencies.
According to Learning by Design,
- “Learning prioritizes the needs and gifts of individual students, helping them to demonstrate the core competencies in all aspects of their learning.
- It emphasizes their unique ability to contribute based on their experiences, cultures, heritages, languages, and diverse abilities.
- Learning is rooted in the principle that all learning is driven by individual passions and interests, and must be connected to real-world experiences and challenges” (Surrey Schools Learning by Design, 2021).
Learning may occur in many ways. It may occur within the classroom for students, but it also may develop through collaborative inquiry among educators. Through much of the work of the classroom teacher, collaborative experiences with learning support teachers, professional development, formative assessment, and ongoing summative assessment, learning may be made possible for all. According to Kaser and Halbert, within the learning stage of inquiry, “[one] carefully designs professional learning to test and develop hunches. The goal is to make meaningful changes in educators” (Kaser & Hablert, 2017). However, learning can be even more available and possible with a sense of belonging. Faye Brownlie states, “we have moved from “allowing” students with special needs “in” to welcoming all students and working to build classroom and school communities where everyone feels a sense of belonging and makes academic progress” (Brownlie & King, 2011).
One of the resources that connects well with this definition is Learning in Safe Schools written by Faye Brownlie. Brownlie mentions, “we generally focus too narrowly on satisfying growth needs, developing children’s intellectual skills. The problem is that children who are hungry or who come from abusive situations will have little psychological energy to put into learning” (Brownlie & King, 2011). Therefore, the needs of children must be met prior to learning. This piece resonates with me as I work in an inner-city community where many students are enrolled in breakfast and lunch programs who require this fundamental need and support. As well, many of the outreach programs at my current school offer students these physiological needs that may not be met elsewhere. I see such an importance here as a safe school with the sense of belonging and physiological needs met which will then lead to learning.
Brownlie, F., & King, J. (2011). Learning in Safe Schools: Creating Classrooms Where All Students
Belong (second edition). Pembroke Publishers.
Kaser. L., & Halbert, J. (2017). The Spiral Playbook. C21 Canada – Canadians for 21st Century
Learning and Innovation.
Surrey Schools Learning by Design. (2021, April 20). Our Vision: Learning by Design.
https://surreylearningbydesign.ca/our-vision-learning-by-design/
After examining the various definitions of innovation, creativity, teaching and learning, the hope is to develop a foundational knowledge to better understand innovative teaching and learning for students. Through these working definitions, we were able to reflect on our own knowledge, learn through the works of our peers and experts in their fields, and begin to advance our understanding of key terms in education.