The worst reason to innovate is for its own sake. No teacher, parent or child likes to feel that education is an experiment. So schools have to be careful about when and how they try something new. But being careful doesn’t mean not innovating at all. And I’d argue many secondaries don’t.
When observing five “outstanding” primary schools, variety and regional references abound. The opposite is the case in five “outstanding” secondary schools. With the latter, I am only rarely surprised.
Recently, I have begun to consider why this perceived difference might exist. Why might doing things differently be challenging for, or even avoided by, many secondaries?
At a local level, we could look at staffing. It is a safe bet for schools to stick to what they know if personnel cannot embrace flexibility or stay with a programme of change.
There is also a worry that parents may view the start of secondary education as the start of education “proper” - where schools need to be seen to be serious. This, of course, is counter to the increasing evidence that it is the primary years that are most crucial in shaping a lifelong learner, but the received wisdom remains a worry for many schools.
At an organisational level, secondaries can fail to create an environment where staff feel safe enough to innovate - which will inevitably give rise to setbacks, as well as to successes.
At the system-wide level, secondary schools are assessed in terms of narrow targets, through inspections and by the students’ performances in life-altering standardised tests. This can drive a culture of safety-first and iterative, small changes, if any at all.
A philosophical discussion about the purpose of education is needed
Also, the government’s narrative of what makes a “good” secondary school is stronger than its narrative of what makes a “good” primary. The conviction that secondaries must borrow ideas from private schools when it comes to uniforms, textbooks, division of the curriculum by subjects and segregation by ability has strengthened over the last decade.
But secondaries can - and should - embrace innovation where it is needed.
First, a philosophical discussion about the purpose of education is needed.
Second, success or failure of new practice relies on many factors that individually are the components of a school’s culture. Shift these components until a critical mass is reached.
The components below are some of those that I see most evidently championed in schools with successful innovative practice.
Foster a systematic learning community
Offer support and challenge in development and offer no hiding place behind received practice. Concurrently, create an environment in which mistakes are OK and successes widely celebrated. In general, there should be shared responsibility for results and traditional management hierarchies should be flattened.
Keep the learning community to a human scale
Help staff to feel part of a small and supportive team, mirroring the professional environment of many primaries. These teams could be facilitated via a school-in-school system, by year group or vertically. They should not be not subject-specific. Intersubject collaboration can give rise to fruitful practice development.
Develop a shared understanding of the purposes of the education offered
Set your eyes on a bigger prize: the most innovative schools often talk about Ofsted and exam results being by-products (albeit vital ones) of the education they offer.
Be ruthless about discarding what doesn’t work
Be wary of innovative practice that adds to workload unnecessarily. In order for it to be successful, there needs to be sufficient time for planning, reflective implementation and rigorous monitoring and evaluation.
Involve all stakeholders in the enterprise
Never forget the particular needs of students. Parents need to be informed at the very least to avoid anxiety, but preferably to be positively on board with new practice. Governors and the community should also be fully informed.
Recognise the wellbeing benefits
Innovative practice, however small, can invigorate both staff and students. For staff, it can create a feeling of ownership and pride in their professional practice. For students, if it is goal focused, it can result in an engaged and motivated learning community.
Tom Welch is the owner of education consultancy EdYou. He tweets @tom_w_welch
