What is innovation? A fairly incisive definition of innovation, which is applicable to all aspects of life, could go like this: people using new knowledge and understanding to experiment with new possibilities in order to implement new concepts that create new value. Given the emphasis on people and the suggestion that innovation is something related to change that creates a new dimension of performance makes the innovative process important to teachers and schools. Similarly, the fact that innovation usually springs from a problem that needs to be solved is what brings into sharp relief the need for innovative practices in education.
There is no doubt that there is a problem with education in general in South Africa today, or that the problems surrounding science and mathematics education contribute significantly to the crisis. We know that learner achievement is generally very poor, that there are a large number of under-qualified teachers who do not have the knowledge and skills to teach these subjects competently and that the problems are intensified by the fact that teaching and learning in most of our schools takes place in a second language.
Some people have even gone as far as to say that South African teachers appear unable to communicate the attitudes of curiosity, respect for evidence and critical reflection that is necessary for the development of higher-order thinking skills. Others say that many of our learners’ listening, speaking, reading and writing skills are so poorly developed, in both their first language and in English, that they are unable to read the learning material provided for them. They also say that the tasks and exercises they are given are often conceptually too difficult and beyond their competence. Finally they lament that this situation leads to a heavy reliance on rote learning and makes the learners dependent on the teachers for everything they learn.
So what can be done about it?
One innovation is the integrated strategies approach to scientific literacy that has been developed at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU). Researchers at the university have worked with hundreds of teachers and thousands of learners to find out if different strategies used in different parts of the world can make a difference in our context, particularly in disadvantaged schools. Ideas from England and Europe were used to workshop with some teachers on how to get authentic discussion going in their classrooms. Others were taught how to get their children to generate questions that they are interested in and which they can really investigate in their classrooms. Ideas from the United States were used to get children to have fun doing inquiry and to write up their results in ways that made sense to them. Finally, some teachers were shown how to get their learners to present (argue) their findings in such a way that others would really believe them — just as real scientists have to.
The research findings were encouraging. The problem-solving abilities of children who engaged in real discussion in their classrooms, in other words those who were asking questions of one another and their teacher as well as disagreeing and giving reasons as to why they disagreed, taking time to make sense of what was being said by others and learning to argue their points logically, improved dramatically on a respected test of problem-solving abilities. Other studies showed that, even in very deprived situations, our teachers could use the scientific notebooks approach used in the US and get their learners to write science that not only made sense, but which was enjoyable. Finally, and most notably, they could get their learners to engage in logical (and friendly) arguments. And they could do it in their home language and English at the same time — as much or as little as they needed.
Was this innovative? Not really. These researchers were simply testing what had been done elsewhere to see if they would work here. Also, a depressing fact is that in other countries where these techniques are used they do make a difference, but as they are usually used in isolation, and therefore are not always applicable to what was being taught at the time, the techniques are not particularly sustainable and teachers often revert to their original practice (a depressing but common phenomenon worldwide).
However, what these researchers and teachers had done was an important step in the innovation process. There is often a tendency to jump into brainstorming sessions as the first step in being more innovative, and this does sometimes make for some progress. People do this because what they really want to do is simply pick an answer, fix the problem and get on with other things. However, experience shows that the two steps they leap over all too often are firstly, stopping long enough to gather new information about the situation and, secondly, testing the ideas that show up. In terms of the research done, this part of the process had been achieved. Possibilities had been tested against reality. So what was the next step in the innovation process that had to be carried out?
Innovation is about taking something new into the world. The truth is that all innovations spring from new ideas, but innovation must also create new value for customers.
What could be done that might be of new and real value for teachers? One possibility was the issue of integration. It seems that nobody had ever tried to put all these ideas and techniques together as an integrated strategy for teaching science. So the researchers got together and developed an exemplar of how to do it.
Books were written for children to grab their attention and give them something to discuss.
The processes of helping teachers get their children to come up with investigable questions from their discussions and how to help them plan their investigations were refined. The techniques of Science Notebooking, argumentation, presenting findings and ways of assessing children’s scientific literacy were written into a book for teachers. Suitable materials and apparatus were identified.
The next thing that needed an innovative response was the issue of scale. How could they get their ideas to as many teachers as possible?
A stroke of innovative genius was the realisation that there is a very real link between scientific literacy and general literacy. So the researchers joined with the Read Educational Trust to work on the reading, writing, talking, doing a science project (more formally known as the Integrated Strategies Scientific Literacy Project).
The Sasol Foundation liked the idea and funded the initiative, which will begin next month in seven provinces. The NMMU researchers will track the project’s successes and failures over time, after which they will know how successful their attempts at innovation have been.
After all, the proof of the pudding is in the eating — innovation must create new value for customers. If the strategy does not create new value for science teachers, it can’t be considered innovative as yet, and might need even more innovative ways of looking at the problem by both the originators and the teachers concerned. Innovation is a creative idea realised.
Professor Paul Webb is director: research, technology and innovation unit, faculty of education at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
Get creative
Remember:
– Innovation is about taking something new into the world.
– All innovations spring from new ideas.
– Innovation must create new value for customers.
– Systems and tools may support the process, but only people can produce the magic that is innovation.
Being innovative means you need to:
– Identify a need that you are passionate about.
– Get a clear vision of your goal
– Do your homework on what others have done.
– Enlist support from others.
– Seek feedback from them.
– Recognise that you will probably be working on your own time without recognition.
– Share your successes.
– Persist despite setbacks.