Monday 16 July 2007

"Approaching innovation in the right way can help build a broader, stronger community of support and contribution around our existing educational system. The challenge is to build the foundations of a system that would support it, and then to pursue them consistently and rigorously over time."
Bentley and Gillinson

Following on from my meeting with colleagues from NCSL today I have been looking the Innovation Unit web-site. It is worth looking at since it brings together so much innovative and creative work going on across the country. It also has details of a new publication calling for more education research in general and for greater teacher involvement. Written by former Demos Director, Tom Bentley together with Sarah Gillinson, 'A D&R System for Education' makes a number of recommendations for the two newly-formed education departments - the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) and the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) and also for the government's new National Council for Educational Excellence, which the Prime Minister himself will be chairing.

This publication, the latest in a series, draws on what we know about innovation and research within education and in other sectors. In effect, this signals a shift from Research and Development (R&D) to Development and Research (D&R) and the publication calls for greater support for the involvement of teachers and school leaders in this process. If you want to find out more visit the Innovation unit website at http://www.innovation-unit.co.uk
Chris

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