Welcome to our fourth edition of Innovate
Our opening article by Tom McLeish on the interdisciplinary relationship between art and science reminds us of the human tendency to impose categories on experience in ways that can be misleading , sometimes even false . Education can also fall foul of this inclination – for example in the way the academic and pastoral are often placed in opposing camps , or the way cognitive and affective learning processes can be described in isolation from each other . And it also exists in relation to educational research . Science now tells us a great deal about how learning happens , as well as the teaching strategies that are likely to have the most impact . And yet , of course , implementing outcomes from this research is never straightforward , as our second opening article from Jonnie Noakes describes . Research must be subjected to scrutiny , must consider local contexts , and must undergo careful interpretation if its impact is to be felt . Practical application of researchinformed classroom teaching is , in other words , as much an art as it is a science ; it combines rigorous intellectual thinking with empathic understanding of the way individuals learn , and how they feel about their learning .
Creating opportunities for professional reflection to take place is an essential ingredient for any school that declares itself research informed , and within the ITL we seek to encourage and embed various kinds of reflective habit . From the formal , such as ITL Research Fellow Elen Harris ’ research on retrieval practice undertaken to achieve Chartered Teacher Status , to action research projects , reading groups , and individual reflection activities , all embarked upon by our teachers and described within this latest edition of our journal .
For this issue many of our contributors have been concerned with the complex theme of equality , diversity , and inclusion . Our Senior Deputy Head , Clare Ives , describes how a school focus on the principal of equity , and providing those who need it with more support , can have transformative effects and ultimately led us further down the road towards genuine equality . This key principle is central to our new school strategy and reflected in the work of Giuliana Savini , Tau Wey , and Cat Davison who discuss how Sevenoaks departments have reflected on how diversity and inclusivity can be meaningfully addressed in the content we teach through the curriculum and co-curriculum , and how we involve and engage students in critical and open discussions on this topic .
We have had the pleasure of working over the last two years on a substantial research project with Research Schools International and Harvard Human Flourishing Program . In this second year of our project ,
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