Innovation Configurations
Learning Forward's groundbreaking work in Standards for Professional Learning is strengthened when the standards move from paper to practice. Innovation Configuration (IC) maps describe in behavioral terms what each standard looks like in practice. These tools facilitate and accelerate implementation of each standard by identifying what actions key education stakeholders take in support of each standard.
An IC map identifies and describes the major components of a new practice -- in this case, standards for staff development, as defined by the Standards for Staff Development (Revised 2001). The IC maps create a mental image of what each of the Standards for Staff Development looks like in practice when implemented by members of many different role groups responsible for educator and student learning. The IC maps differentiate what each role group does relative to the standards so that a rich picture of practice emerges for each standard.
During the 2011-12, the IC maps will be revised to align directly with the new Standards for Professional Learning. Between now and the release of the revised maps, stakeholders responsible for professional development can continue to use the existing IC maps by using the crosswalk between the 2001 and 2011 version of the standards.
Download the Crosswalk with Previous Standards (PDF).
Learning Forward (formerly NSDC) has created books and CD-ROMs with IC maps for a variety of stakeholder groups. See below to link to the online bookstore for each product.
Learning Forward has also published a guidebook with a process leaders of professional learning can use to introduce ICs to other educators and enable them to develop deeper understanding about the ICs and how to use them in their work: See
User's Guide: Innovation Configurations for NSDC's Standards for Staff Development in the online bookstore. This document will be useful for the existing IC Maps and easily adapted to the new versions when they are available.
To read how schools and districts are already using the ICs to deepen their understanding and implementation of Learning Forward's standards, see the following articles in Learning Forward publications:
"Meet a useful tool: The Innovation Configuration Map," by Joellen Killion.
Teachers Teaching Teachers, Sept. 2007, Vol. 3, No. 1.
"Innovation Configurations light the way for deeper learning," by Joan Richardson.
The Learning Principal, Sept. 2007, Vol. 3, No. 1.
"Boost the learning power of school-based staff," by Pat Roy.
The Learning System, Sept. 2007, Vol. 3, No. 1.
Entire Tools for Schools issue on Innovation Configurations. Aug./Sept.2007, Vol. 11, No. 1.
"NSDC tool: Central office Innovation Configuration maps". The Learning System, Spring 2010, Vol. 5, No. 5.
Entire Tools for Schools issue on Innovation Configurations. October/November 2004, Vol. 8, No.2.
