Here’s one of the biggest challenges facing our current approach to education innovation: We are designing, to use the proverbial goose and gander proverb, two different sauces for teachers and students when they should be the same.

In preschools and kindergartens across the country, one classroom job is coveted above all others.  It is a position of immense responsibility that requires a significant public contribution: milk carrier. From the start, we expect children in our schools to contribute in a way that is meaningful to everyone. At some point, though, we stop expecting this contribution from our students.  And that, according to Angela Maiers, founder and president of Maiers Education Services, is the moment they stop giving it. Read more about Angela's story and join her at the #BIF9 Summit.

The Business Innovation Factory is thrilled to welcome Northeastern University into the BIF member community. 

How might we transform the aging experience using social connections and participation as our tool set? Could we build solutions around well being, not sick care? Could we transform the future of aging – from a life of increasing burden to one of increasing contribution and meaning?

Experience Designer, Lindsey Messervy, explains how BIF uses capability mapping in our work with Children's Medical Center-Dallas to make new models for care.

Our Chief Catalyst is talking business model innovation at Amplify Fest in Australia this week. Check out a visualization of one of his talks.

Experience Designer, Kara Dziobek, talks about how she is using graphic facilitation in our work with the primary care team and the population health team at Children's Medical Center-Dallas.

Guest contributors, Chris Couch and Kelly Stidham, write about their experiences innovating education. This post was re-posted from their blog Working on the Work, which was published on Monday, May 20, 2013.

What if we connected youth, our burgeoning innovators, with today's most successful innovators? During this year's #BIF9 Summit from September 18-19, 2013, we will break down the generational silos and bring the Quest2Matter's most inspiring young voices to join Angela on stage for one of the leading innovation conversations.