Quality innovation matters

A report published in July by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) Centre for Educational Research and Innovation finds that countries with greater levels of innovation in education see improvements in certain educational outcomes, including higher performance in mathematics, more equitable learning outcomes across ability and more satisfied teachers.

Measuring innovation in education, which looked at the education systems of 22 of its member countries and identified the top five innovations at both the organisational and classroom levels, also finds that innovative educational systems generally spend more than non-innovative ones, though their students are no more satisfied.

OECD, the organisation that runs the PISA tests for 15-year-olds in science, mathematics and reading, comments that the report represents the first attempt by OECD, or any other organisation, to measure innovation. 'The ability to measure innovation', the report states, 'is essential to any improvement strategy in education'.