Innovation Archives - Page 3 of 3

Nov 02 2016

Innovation May Be a Buzzword, But It’s a Term I’ve Grown to Love

By John Spencer Innovation, Podcast 2 Comments

Subscribe to YouTube Channel I used to hate the word “innovative.” See those quotes right there around the word? Those are actually air quotes that I would use whenever I used the term. “It’s a buzzword,” I would say. “It’s overused,” I would point out.…

Oct 11 2016

Should School Be More Confusing?

By John Spencer Innovation 4 Comments

I recently listened to a 99% Invisible podcast where they mentioned an excavation of a ship deep underground in the San Francisco business district. I paused the podcast and pondered how a ship would end up buried deep within the city. Who put it there?…

Sep 30 2016

10 Tips for Global Collaboration Projects

By John Spencer Future of Learning, Innovation 2 Comments

Two years ago, I had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity of speaking at the White House and sharing the story of a global collaboration project. It was part of the Future Ready initiative and I spoke about the need to leverage the connective and creative power of technology…

Jun 30 2016

How Would Students Redesign the Learning Space?

By John Spencer Creativity, Innovation 4 Comments

A quick disclaimer: I don't know a thing about redesigning learning spaces. I love thinking about the creative process and I believe creative thinking can happen anywhere. Anywhere. Some of my favorite creative work in high school happened when I was sitting in a row,…

May 24 2016

You Can Be Innovative Even When the System Discourages It

By John Spencer Innovation No Comments

My friend Josh Stumpenhorst once wrote an excellent post about the chasm between what teachers are told to do and what teachers can actually accomplish in the system. One line in particular stood out to me. "They will insist that innovation, creativity, risk-taking and failure…

May 13 2016

Why Aren’t Universities Developing More Teacher-Innovators?

By John Spencer Innovation No Comments

This week, I asked my cohort to analyze different unit planning models. This is a challenging part of the graduate classes, when teachers are learning the nitty gritty craft of creating units and lessons from scratch. I walked over to the group analyzing the design…

Feb 23 2016

How to Move Beyond a Deficit Mindset

By John Spencer Innovation 3 Comments

A few years back, I was sitting in an office with my best friend Javier, scribbling out a web of ideas for our upcoming STEM Camp and Lab School. “What if we . . .” He stopped mid-sentence and looked at his phone. “You were…

Feb 01 2016

Why Vintage Tools Totally Belong in a 21st Century Classroom

By John Spencer Creativity, Innovation 6 Comments

With the click of a button, I can send my work to the entire world. It can feel empowering. I tap a screen and suddenly my ideas can reach a larger audience. But what if that’s not always ideal? True, audience matters. But so does…