Districts of Innovation: Combating a Wicked Problem in Education

The word innovation can mean a number of things to different stakeholders and policymakers. This discourse analysis examines how the Texas Education Agency (TEA) has used an initiative called Districts of Innovation to attempt to support and empower districts throughout the state of Texas. The question becomes whether those attempts are symbolic or actually do innovate school districts to appropriately improve and reform their schools. A critical case study of three Independent School Districts in Texas provides a policy framework to examine the intersection between autonomy and innovation and how this inevitably impacts school improvement. Findings indicate absences of realistic assessment, the desire to do “too much too soon,” and the absence of meaningful oversight.