The three criteria against which innovative practice might be judged in Finland are:
- Chosen practices and solutions are learner based.
- The transferability, diversity, flexibility and functionality of practices and solutions in both individual and communal use.
- Chosen practices enable change in old procedures, provide alternate roles for those who adopt them and support goal-oriented use of various resources.
An innovative participant is cooperative, has good social interaction skills and is able to view the future with an open mind. A wide pedagogical and didactic knowledge is the basis for a strong, work supporting theory-in-use. Typical characteristics of an innovative participant are human-centred attitude towards work, a way of thinking that creates ideas, and a desire to learn. The activities of a participant like this show courage to leave old procedures and try out new ones. An innovative participant masters various teaching and learning methods and is able to integrate technology into a natural part of teaching and students’ work. With the help of these characteristics and skills, an innovative participant can build a communal, inspiring and enabling operational culture. Characteristics that are typical of an operational culture like this are need-drivenness, open mindedness, permissiveness and future-orientedness.
