Fueling innovative practice
Sep 27th, 2007 by robynjay
This year NSW LearnScope offered places nationally in three ‘leadership’ teams. The aim was to provide a professional learning ‘space’ for our e-learning leaders; those critical thinkers and innovators who are driving change in the sector but lacking opportunities to connect with like-minded peers.
The teams have focused on a) the use of 3D virtual worlds in teaching and learning, b) new and emergent mobile learning technologies, strategies and issues and c) vet pedagogy – teaching and learning issues for the sector.
Essentially it has been an opportunity to explore emerging opportunities and issues. The challenging thing for team members is that these explorations are outside the scope of normal day to day duties and activity. The challenge for their organisations is to accept this challenge; to find time for this to occur, to value what it will bring to the organisation.
Of course this tension, this challenge, is nothing new. It’s what faces innovators and change agents, and organisations that are prepared to embrace new ways of thinking and working, every day. It’s this that Marie Jasinski’s Innovate and Integrate research project explores - the focus of the morning session on 18 October before Alan’s afternoon forum.
What Marie presents in her report is a complexity perspective as the best system to enable innovation to thrive. These complex systems are adaptive, largely self organised, networked and highly connected, where interactions are fluid and interdependent and there is flexibility to embrace both radical and incremental changes (Carlisle and McMillan 2006).
If an organisation is too stable, there is resistance to change. If it is too unstable, disintegration is possible. Innovation requires both exploration and utilisation and these may require different roles, talents, ways of doing things and support system requirements (Jasinski 2006).
I have been assisted in the facilitation of the teams by the capable expertise of Anne Paterson and Alex Miller who have done a truly superb job. It has been a challenge for participants who have been handed the freedom to design the project based on their interests and needs. I’m learning as we go – I’ve learned that finding momentum is difficult, that many people like more structure than we were prepared to provide, that they take a lot of time. But I’m also seeing how individuals are blossoming as a result and how sustainable professional relationships are being formed that will continue to grow as the projects draw to a close in the next two months.
Check out the teams’ activities linked from our wiki and feel free to join in if you are inspired to do so.
It is vital for us to find the space, to give permission, for these innovators to do their ‘stuff’. Our future as creative, adaptive, responsive, competitive organisations depends on it. You can’t stop innovators from innovating, you may as well stop them breathing. They will find a way. If it’s not with you it’ll be where they are valued and where they can meet their need to create and innovate.
[source: Dave Pollard]