Every educator knows that the field is subject to fad and fashion. Although many of us would prefer to think that trends and issues in education are determined primarily by research, program evaluation, and expert opinion, it is obvious that such is not always the case (Maddux, 2003). More than 30 years ago, Benjamin Bloom (1981) alluded to the problem of fads in education. More recently, Masters (2002) has suggested that education today seems to “lurch from one fad to the next” (p. 1), and Haswell (1992) identifies fads as the primary reason for the lack of systematic progress in education.
In the past, we have written about the problem of fads in education and the destructive cycle they often initiate. That cycle begins with early, unrealistic optimism directed at some innovation. A vocal advocacy forms around the innovation followed by practitioner adoption before the development has been subjected to a body of research to help establish its efficacy.
When the innovation fails to live up to the premature and unrealistic expectations fostered by advocates, the innovation is then dropped before it has been given a real chance to succeed. The field then moves on to the next innovation and the cycle begins anew (Maddux & Cummings, 2004).
No comments:
Post a Comment