Innovation...Does it exist alone?

Innovation is not simple to define. Not because there aren’t multiple definitions out there,but because there seems to be a continuum of definitions. In Frank’s article TED Talks are Lying to You, it outlines the idea that innovation exists most greatly in a culture of re-mix. Borrowing ideas from the past and mixing with current ideas to harvest an innovative idea that fits the current need. That same author also references the work of Steven Johnson that resonates with me: “Good ideas may not want to be free, but they do want to connect, fuse, recombine. They want to reinvent themselves by crossing conceptual borders. They want to complete each other as much as they want to compete.” I feel this definition of innovation. Innovation is what the current state of any culture says it is; and it is usually connected to ideas that have existed in a different form and just needed a new director to spin it.

Innovation is easy to talk about. The hard part of innovation is putting your “ money where your mouth is” to put innovative ideas to work! I am currently reading a book about Da Vinci and the author, Walter Isaacson, speaks about innovation that comes from the crossing of disciplines. It might really be a mix of playful curiosity and random passion. He also speaks about how much hard work plays into it. He describes it as being a continuous willingness to observe and to cross disciplines. In education and teaching this is so crucial! In high school especially, we live in silos of content specialty where science doesn’t exist with social studies or math or art. One might wonder if in the pursuit of innovation, educators must begin to be more cross-disciplinary and collaborative if we are to see this definition of innovation unfold.

This also requires us to be resilient. We must accumulate wisdom as we move through our experiences and years of life and be open to re-using ideas and locating innovation.

Sources

Frank, T. (2013, October 13). Ted talks are lying to you. Salon. Retrieved from http://www.salon.com

Isaacson, W. (2017). Leonardo Da Vinci: The Biography.

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