@article{oai:nagoya.repo.nii.ac.jp:00010296,
 author = {Jónsdóttir, Svanborg R.},
 journal = {技術・職業教育学研究室研究報告 : 技術教育学の探求},
 month = {Sep},
 note = {Innovation Education and Practical Use of Knowledge was introduced into the Icelandic National Curriculum for compulsory schools in 1999, where it is defined by the curriculum writers as a "school subject" but is not allocated any direct time in the recommended guidelines for subjects. This paper describes a master's research project from the University of Iceland, Faculty of Pedagogy and Education which focuses on how Innovation Education emerged in Iceland and how the subject has developed; what makes the subject special; and what factors, internal and external, have influenced its dissemination. The paper will include an overview of the data collection and analysis methods and an overview of the findings. In Innovation Education it is assumed that everyone can be creative and the emphasis is on enhancing creative activities of students through direct connections, to everyday life. Educational innovations based on this kind of approach have struggled against the strong underlying factors inherent in the institutional culture of education. There are several factors influencing the implementation of the Innovation Education curriculum in Iceland, and whether or not it is maintained. As identified by this research, these factors include the role of teachers and their professional philosophies; school culture; the role of the head teacher; assessment; emphasis on academic learning; and access to information and teaching materials. Diverse research methods have been utilised during this research. The bulk of data collection can be categorised as having used qualitative methods; statistical methods such as questionnaires were used to measure the dissemination of the subject. Interviews and observations were used to gather data from students, teachers, head teachers, pioneers in Innovation Education, entrepreneurs and ministry officials. Documentation of various kinds was also consulted, including reports, laws, curriculum, teaching materials and products from Innovation Education lessons. The research indicates in conclusion that curriculum formulation and implementation is a complex interplay of connected factors that are not completely predictable. It seems of more use to view changes within education systems as an organic rather than a linear progression, more comparable to biological evolution than to the production process of a factory. It is important to recognize the fundamental factors, inherent in the hidden curriculum, and verify their powers to influence the development of the subject. In this research an attempt is being made to understand and analyse how a new school subject is emerging. The subject researched here is Innovation Education (IE) which started emerging in Icelandic compulsory schools in the early 1990s and was formalized in the National Curriculum for Compulsory Schools in 1999 (Aðalnámskrá. Upplýsinga og tæknimennt, 1999). I had been a compulsory school teacher for well over twenty years and had experienced that many students were bored in school, but when I started teaching Innovation Education ten years ago I found that students were more interested and active than in any other subject I had taught before. It seemed that IE was not being taken up in many schools in Iceland, so I was interested in finding out if that was indeed the case and in looking into factors that affected its development. Only one other research project had been done on IE in Iceland which was Rosa Gunnarsdottir's PhD research Innovation Education. Defining the Phenomenon (Gunnarsdottir, 2001). Not much research has been conducted on the formation of school subjects and perhaps the best known is Ivor Goodson's research on Geography, Biology and Environmental Studies (Goodson, 1993) where <br/>he points out that in order to gain status, the new school subjects had to adapt to the constraints of academic standards. I looked into the historical background and the work that preceded the introduction of Innovation Education into the national curriculum and through that gained an understanding of the ideological work that is the predecessor of the formal curriculum. In my research I interviewed officials in the Ministry of Education, the catalysts of IE and Entrepreneurship, IE teachers, former IE students and principals and administrators in compulsory schools. I also conducted field observations in IE lessons and Icelandic lessons of the same groups. This way I was able to get a variety of views of the complex reality of schoolwork and how different parties experienced Innovation Education. I also researched laws, curriculum, reports and products of IE lessons. I use curricular concepts as a frame and a tool to understand the findings of this research. I am planning further research in the area as my doctoral project.},
 pages = {20--30},
 title = {THE EMERGENCE OF A NEW SCHOOL SUBJECT. INNOVATION EDUCATION IN COMPULSORY SCHOOLS.},
 volume = {4},
 year = {2007}
}