Reinventing education: Self-inquiry as a generator of new variety

In a public school organisation in the Netherlands a number of problems was met, failing internal governance being the most crucial one. In this kind of situation, the demand for change and improvement often leads to the adoption of a blueprint. A blueprint is a model for change, which has been applied elsewhere, and functions as an example for the situation at hand. Sadly enough, maintaining a blueprint of some sort often leads to meagre results and a number of negative side effects. A principal reason for this failure is that the efficacy of the blueprint depends on the control it exerts. However, most of the problems in society and institutions do not have to do with a lack of control, but with the problem that our institutions are not sufficiently capable of dealing with unexpected variation generated by the actors in a changing environment. In this paper we argue that this problem exists because often actors behave as if they were restricted instances of a category (e.g.: manager, teacher, parent). What is needed is an alternative approach. Hence, a construct is introduced, which was later articulated in terms of the myth of the round table. It is argued that the round table bypasses the imposition of a blueprint, by stimulating a process of selfinquiry and actor-configuration.Change programs, management theory, management development, blueprint, source of authority, actor position, actor configuration, self-inquiry, reinvention, variation generator.

Pioneers of innovation : an experiment in the field of primary education

In this introductory paper we will successively describe: 1.The difficulties of innovation in the field of education. 2.The role of the education professionals. 3.Two different perspectives on innovation; an ‘external’ approach and an ‘internal’ approach. 4.Why education needs the internal approach and the professional as co-innovator. 5.The experiment: Pioneers of Innovation in primary education, an example of the internal approach. 6.Five concepts as guiding principles for the experiment. 7.A short description of the action research with the aim to improve this intervention and explore and sustain the effects of it