On the surface, this trickle-down view of educational change--what T. Nichols calls "innovation-from-above"--makes sense. Teachers learn about new devices, apps, teaching techniques, and leadership strategies as they show up in articles, reports, and other professional resources, or after they have already been implemented elsewhere.…

High school instructional leaders describe how they reframed professional learning around autonomy with structured support. The new system, guided by trust and teacher inquiry, sparked innovation that proved critical during the pandemic.

In a study of highly innovative young people in their 20s, the author found that although many people in the millennial generation want to do meaningful work and make a difference in the world, conventional high schools and colleges are not preparing their graduates to be innovators and entrepreneurs. This is a serious problem, he asserts, because…

What would happen if schools offered all students the same challenges and opportunities that some schools now offer only their "best" students? The Southern Regional Education Board addressed that question in 1987, when it developed the High Schools That Work Model. Blending challenging college-preparatory content with modern vocational and…

A recent employer survey sponsored by the Partnership for 21st Century Skills found that the skills new job entrants most need for success in the workplace--oral and written communication, time management, critical thinking, problem solving, personal accountability, and the ability to work effectively with others--are the areas in which recent…

A commitment to either traditional or innovative education practice virtually defines the professional identities of most educators, writes Ferrero. Traditional practices emphasize basic skills, ability grouping, subject-matter disciplines, academic mastery, standardized testing, and a canonical curriculum; innovative practices focus on…

Two years ago, Shorecrest High School in Shoreline, Washington, committed to making each student's sojourn a personalized learning experience, even in a school of 1,500. The teachers at Shorecrest took a closer look at their student population and found out several unmet needs of the significant minority group of students. Among those findings…

David Niguidula, an education consultant who helped research the effectiveness of digital portfolios as an assessment tool in the mid-1990s, discusses core questions for schools planning to use digital portfolios. Schools must take time to identify the purpose of portfolios, plan what will go into portfolios, and decide how to assess portfolio…