Risk-taking and creativity: why teachers want more opportunities for change in the classroom

Very little research has been carried out looking at teachers’ attitudes to taking risks in their classrooms. Most studies have focused on teachers’ responses to programmes imposed by school leaders or education departments, describing teachers as cautious, conservative, and resistant to change.  However, a study I completed working with teachers from schools in the South of England revealed a very different story – with risk-taking being seen as essential for student progress and teacher development, but also forming an important part of the personal enjoyment teachers derive from their work.

What does risk-taking in the classroom look like?

The teachers in this study described risk-taking as planning to use a different method, technique, activity or strategy in the classroom with the aim of improving student outcomes, but while recognising those outcomes were uncertain. This also included trying an existing method in a different context, such as with a different class, or key stage. In each case, a deliberation decision was made to try something that could have a positive or negative outcome, but where the teacher considered on balance the risk was worth taking. Or as one teacher put it, risk-taking is about 'finding the best way to teach'.

Positive outcomes for students

A big incentive for taking risks was finding ways of increasing student enjoyment and motivation. It was felt that a certain level of variety enthused students leading to greater engagement in lessons. Teachers were clear however, that it was not enough to simply plan fun lessons, there had to be serious pedagogical consideration given to whether the new approach would support learning. In effect, taking risks was about finding better ways to teach, especially where sticking with existing approaches wasn't working (Ritchie & Rigano, 2002). The benefits identified included finding ways to help students overcome misconceptions or misunderstandings; supporting metacognitive skills by showing students different ways to tackle problems; and taking students on a more interesting journey in their learning to widen their understanding and perspectives.

Positive outcomes for teachers

As student progress is our priority in schools, it can be easy to overlook the professional and personal needs of our teachers. However, the positive outcomes for teachers and students are often closely interconnected. I found the positive outcomes of risk-taking for teachers fell into three broad categories:

• improving student outcomes

• professional development

• personal gratification

Improving student outcomes

Teachers often took risks when they recognised what they were doing in the classroom wasn't having the desired outcomes for their students. 'Being a good teacher is recognising when things have to change', realising trying a new approach is now worth the risk. It was interesting that teachers identified there was a point at which not trying something new represented a bigger risk than continuing along the same path. But what has this to do with positive outcomes for teachers? Well, research shows that teachers' sense of well-being and self-esteem improves when their students do well, so taking risks and seeing students enjoy learning and make progress is good for teachers too (Rosenholtz, 1985; Lasky, 2005).

Professional development

When it came to professional development, teachers were equally concerned with not getting stuck in their ways as with improving their classroom practice. They didn't want to continue doing the same thing every day throughout their careers and risk becoming stale or boring. Teachers were clear that trying new techniques and approaches - continuing to learn - improved their practice. Their motivation went beyond supporting students to do well. Teachers derived a lot of personal satisfaction from experimenting, developing new approaches, and improving their professional practice. Taking risks, including being able to make mistakes and learn from them was seen as a crucial part of continuing to develop throughout a teacher's career.

Personal gratification

Finally, teachers described getting a lot of personal pleasure out of taking risks - not just for the altruistic ends of improving student outcomes or becoming a better teacher, but because they enjoyed trying out new ideas in their classrooms. A common theme emerged of teachers valuing opportunities to be creative, often describing planning as one of the most enjoyable parts of the job. Many teachers also said experimenting and trying something new was exciting. When a new approach worked it was a great buzz, and even if it didn't, there were opportunities to learn and refine which were equally rewarding.

Negative outcomes

It is important to point out that teachers also identified negative aspects of risk-taking, largely around concerns that students might not learn or could come away from a lesson feeling less confident. And just as research shows teachers' sense of well-being improves when students do well, teachers feel bad when lessons don't go well. That said, the possibility of failure did not stop teachers wanting to keep trying new ideas – the possibility of success was enough of an incentive to keep developing their practice (Le Fevre, 2014).

The practice gap

This story of teachers' positive attitudes to taking risks is clearly at odds with existing literature that describes teachers as risk-averse, and my study also identified a 'practice gap' between what teachers thought about risk-taking and what they actually did in the classroom. The main barriers to risk-taking related to teachers having enough time to research and plan new approaches; a lack of time in the curriculum; and pressures to teach and prepare for exams. However, teachers did find ways to try out new ideas, spreading out risk-taking by finding small pockets of time, or planning fewer, larger projects, showing a determination to develop their practice in spite of the barriers.

Implications

Rather than being risk-averse, the teachers in my study saw taking risks as an important part of developing practice and supporting student progress. More than that - they enjoyed the process of planning new approaches and trying them out in the classroom and regretted not having more opportunities take risks. It is important to recognise teachers' positive attitudes to taking risks, particularly when developing their own professional practice. And while schools are busy places facing countless pressures, any opportunities they can provide to support and celebrate risk-taking can only benefit teachers and students alike.

References

Lasky, S. (2005) ‘A sociocultural approach to understanding teacher identity, agency and professional vulnerability in a context of secondary school reform’, Teaching and Teacher Education, 21(8), pp. 899-916.

Le Fevre, D. (2014) ‘Barriers to implementing pedagogical change: The role of teachers' perceptions of risk’, Teaching and Teacher Education, (38), pp. 56-64.

Ritchie, S. and Rigano, D. (2002) ‘Discourses about a teacher's self-initiated change in praxis: storylines of care and support’, International Journal of Science Education, 24(10), pp. 1079-1094.

Rosenholtz, S. (1985) ‘Effective schools: interpreting the evidence’, American Journal of Education, 93(3), pp. 352-388.