Ideation and Innovation

Excellent teaching requires ideation as  the brainstorming of ideas helps to expand upon our ability  to think our way through potentially new ways of  delivering our units and lessons.  Ideation provides us with different possibilities in regards to  how we assess the next steps needed in the learning journeys of our students.  Ideation  can be  a powerful tool  during the planning process and has a specific purpose. 

Although ideation  plays an important role in the planning process,  it's innovation that  really kicks things into gear and  forces us to take action on these ideas.  Being innovative means that we are willing to  constantly change and refine our units,  redesign our teaching space,  structure our lessons differently, and  expect to experience failure along the way. 

Innovation is very different than ideation in this respect, but both  are needed to  bring out the very best in our teaching and in student learning. 

Innovative teachers rarely teach their units in the same way from year to year.  They understand that there is a lot of room for flexibility in the curriculum to  teach differently. They  never allow themselves to stagnate and are never bored as their teaching always remains fresh and new.  

How innovative are you in your teaching practice?  What  conditions allow you to be your best innovative self?  How do you take action to ensure  you are continually refining your individual teaching practice and the program that your department delivers to students?