Teacher driven change : interpretations from the Ascent of Man

This article reports an analogical interpretation of attempted change in education. Analogies consist of a comparison of a target and source domain. In this study, Bronowski's (1973a) The Ascent of Man provides a source of analogies in the interpretation of change including: nomad, technician, technologist and scientist. The target is derived from an extended case study of a group of teachers, which recognised a teaching innovation, and attempted to promote this innovation throughout their science department in an Australian secondary school. Data about this attempt were obtained by questionnaire, discussions with teachers and students, and observations over a period of fifteen months. The teachers experienced difficulties in initiating, interpreting and sustaining their change. The analogies suggest alternative ways of thinking about educational change. This analysis indicates that the teachers were constrained by their environment and culture in their attempt to generate, test and communicate ideas. Thus, there is a need to recast the role of teachers in teaching innovation.