THE most critical element on the path to school innovation is to align precious resources with a forward leaning vision. If your school recognizes the need for innovation, for changing the assembly line model of learning, it is NOT enough to just talk about it. Sooner or later your customers will realize the disconnect between your message and what actually happens every day in the classroom, and that disconnect will lead directly to a drop in your value proposition.
In “High School of the Future?” I shared with you the story of Hobsonville Point Secondary School in New Zealand. Of the schools I have visited, HPSS is right up there at the top in terms of living their vision of a deeper learning future for their students. They, like Design 39 Campus, were able to create a new school in this mold, which is certainly easier than transforming an existing school. But that does not diminish the powerful templates they have built which align resources…primarily time, people, and space…directly, visibly, and intentionally in support of that vision.
If you want to know what is possible, Vice Principal Claire Amos shares an update of the HPSS model, including their creative daily schedule and organizational structure. This and related HPSS resources should be required reading by teams that are serious about innovation and don’t want to completely reinvent the wheel. If Auckland were not so far away, HPSS would be swamped with visiting teams from the USA!
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