OCC2011 Keynotes: Stavros Savvas

Decentralisation of the
educational system as a vehicle
for innovation

Stavros Savvas
Ellinogermaniki Agogi

2011 Open Classroom Conference – Ellinogermaniki Agogi

21st Century Challenges and
Education
The Information and Knowledge Society has emerged as a result of
technological advancements of the World Wide Web, the Internet and
mobile communications over the last two decades. These technological
Developments have had; and still have direct impact to every spect of
our personal and social life, thus changing the way we communicate,
collaborate, work and learn. Europe has been a world driving force
when it comes to these technological developments, however, in many
cases European Member States have falled behind in adopting the
necessary societal re-organisational changes needed in education.

This can be a critical issue for the future of European Union and the
future of its Member States within the complex global challenges of the
21st Century.


ARTICLE I - MEETING BASIC LEARNING NEEDS

Every person - child, youth and adult - shall be able to benefit from
educational opportunities designed to meet their basic learning needs.
These needs comprise both essential learning tools (such as literacy, oral
expression, numeracy, and problem solving) and the basic learning content (such
as knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes). The scope of basic learning needs
and how they should be met varies with individual countries and cultures, and
inevitably, changes with the passage of time.

World Declaration on Education for All:
Meeting Basic Learning Needs
Άρθρο 16

2. Η παιδεία αποτελεί βασική αποστολή του the State και έχει σκοπόat the moral,
Education constitutes a basic mission for Κράτους and shall aim την ηθική,
πνευματική επαγγελματική και φυσική αγωγή των Ελλήνων, την ανάπτυξη
intellectual, professional and physical training of Greeks, the development of
της εθνικής και θρησκευτικής συνείδησης και τη διάπλασή τους σε
national and religious consciousness and at their formation as free and
ελεύθερους και υπεύθυνους πολίτες.
responsible citizens.

Greek Constitution


Aviation


Automobile


Industry


Constructions


Cities


Schools remain unchanged
When it comes to the field of education, this lack of social innovation
becomes even more troubling, due to the fact that failing to “re-engineer” our
national and European educational systems, effects significantly all other areas of
social and economical development, jurpotising Europe’s position in the global
knowledge-based society.

Especially, Schools appear to remain almost unchanged for the most part despite
numerous efforts and investments in technology, teachers’ training and
infrastructure. Yet, the way we organise schooling and provide education remains
basically the same.

To put it in another way: “we still educate our students based on an
agricultural timetable, in an industrial setting, yet telling students and teachers
they live in a digital age”.


During the past years, several reasons have been identified
separately as possible distractions in aligning schools
operations and results to the ones anticipated by the 21st
Century Societies.

The most highlighted ones being:
Lack of funds, not enough computers in the classroom, little
interest from students and parents, out of date teaching
practices, poorly trained teachers, and even a
fundamentally flawed way to measure performance at
schools.

Many national and European initiatives have been
undertaken to tackle these issues separately. Yet, the
improvement has been marginal, if any at all.


“I am not a teacher of “things”, I am an
“orchestrator” of ideas. My educational
institution is not a physical plant with
classrooms and trees, but a “hub” of
resources no longer constrained by time
and place. My students are no longer
“my” students, but we are all students
together”.
Dillon and Granger (1998)


Different Cultures, Different settings,
Different Needs


But we are educating our children
by developing the same curricula


…the same books


…while we are following the same
timetables


Educational Systems have to focus
on the real educational needs.

Current approaches, although are
promising “education for all”, seem
to ignore the real situation in the
local settings.


Main challenge for an effective
educational system


Responsibility of the Total control of the
State to ensure education process from
Education for All state authorities


Characteristics of the (Western)
Educational Systems
TOP DOWN APPROACH

CENTRALLY GUIDED

BINDING FOR THE TEACHER

RESTRICTI
VE

Health


Medicine


Food


Effective Educational Systems
The success of the effective educational systems
(e.g. Finland) can be attributed to shift from
controlling the resources and content of
education towards a focus on better outcomes,
while establishing universal high standards.
These systems have also abandoned uniformity
in favour of embracing diversity and
individualised learning and moved from a
bureaucratic approach towards delegating
responsibilities; from talking about equity to
delivering equity.


The Reform Journey
• For a system’s improvement journey
• to be sustained over the long term, the
• improvements have to be integrated into
• the very fabric of the system pedagogy.
• We have identified three ways that
• improving systems do this: by establishing
• collaborative practices, by developing
• a mediating layer between the schools
• and the center, and by architecting
• tomorrow’s leadership. Each of these
• aspects of sustaining improvement is an
• interconnected and integral part of the
• system pedagogy.
• How the world’s most improved school systems keep getting better
• November 2010 Mc Kinsey


OECD POLICY ADVICE FOR GREECE

downsize the central structures currently devoted to
input-, pre audit-oriented controls.

Complement the centrally-led approach to
Professional development with a more local,
decentralised approach based on school needs. These
needs should be evaluated and examined at school level.

Accelerate the initiative on school self
evaluation with a view to designing and
implementing a comprehensive system of
assessment and evaluation based on results
and outcomes

August, 2011


Bureaucratic School
Systems
EMPLOYERS
ORGANISATIONS
,
GOVERNMENT UNIONS
FUNDING QA
BODY ASSESSMENT ENTERPRISES

MEDIA / IT
TERTIARY
EDUCATION

CULTURAL /
RELIGIOUS
T GROUPS
E F SCHOOL
A O
C R PARENTS
H C
E E
TEACHER TEACHER

R
LEARNER LEARNER LEARNER LEARNER
LEARNER LEARNER LEARNER
LEARNER


Schools as Focused Learning Organisations

SCHOOL SCHOOL SCHOOL
LEARNER
TEACHER INTERNATIONAL
AGENCIES
LEARNING
PARENTS
CONSULTANT
TERTIARY
EDUCATION CULTURAL /
RELIGIOUS
GROUPS

TEACHER
PROFESSION, LEARNING
TRAINING COMPANIES
MEDIA / IT

LEARNING QA FUNDING
MATERIALS ASSESSMENT BODY EMPLOYERS
ORGANISATIONS, ENTERPRISES
GOVERNMENT UNIONS


What is really needed:
Flexibility and Diversity
School-based curriculum development,
steering by information and support
The State only defines the framework.

More freedom of choice to the teacher
Flexibility to the teacher to form his/her lesson
and apply innovative methods and tools

Trust through professionalism
A culture of trust on teachers’ and headmasters’ professionalism in judging
what is best for students and in reporting of progress


Crisis: An opportunity for change

It is not a matter of money!

It is a matter of
creativity!


OCC2011 Keynotes: Stavros Savvas

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