Frank Cornelissen appointed professor of Innovation in Education
14 November 2023
What teachers need
Back when he was a teacher in primary education, Cornelissen was already aware that educational innovations often missed the mark. The innovations he was asked to implement were often poorly suited to his own teaching practice, leaving him less than enthusiastic. ‘I hope to use this chair to find a better way of doing this, developing innovations that teachers will be happy to use and that will really help the pupils.’
Great social importance
Society and the political sphere are placing great demands on schools and teachers. For example, at some schools nowadays, less than half of the teachers are actually qualified. What can schools do to nevertheless ensure the quality of the education they provide? What is the best way of doing this? With the Innovation in Education chair, Frank Cornelissen aims to study ways to help such schools. Should we organise education differently? Maybe choose a different teaching method? Or what about using a new technology? ‘These are just some of the questions that society is dealing with these days, and schools, pupils and teachers in particular are urgently looking for answers,’ Cornelissen explains.
About Frank Cornelissen
Frank Cornelissen began his career in education as a primary school teacher in Rotterdam and on Bonaire. He later became an independent education adviser, a senior policy adviser at the Education Council and senior researcher at the University of Cambridge and the University of San Diego. Frank has been affiliated with the University of Amsterdam (UvA) since 2016 and became head of the Education Sciences research group in 2019. He has also spent six years as professor of Education Theory at the national Training and Study Centre for the Judiciary (SSR) Alongside his appointment at the UvA, he is a supervisor for primary and secondary education at the Almeerse Scholen Groep (Almere schools group, ASG) and at Stichting Carmelcollege (Carmel college foundation).
About CAOP
The chair is sponsored by Stichting CAOP (CAOP foundation). CAOP connects science, policy and practice, using shared knowledge and experiences to make a social impact on employment-related issues. Every year, it organises debates in different formats on topical themes in the public sector, for the government, society, social partners, academics, administrators, policy officials, members of participatory bodies, students and other stakeholders.
