APPRECIATING THE APPROACH

Appreciative Inquiry in your School

Thanks to Dr Liz E Mellish

Appreciative Inquiry – what is it?

Appreciative Inquiry is an approach to organisational

development and change which grows out of social

constructionist thought.

The appreciative inquiry approach offers us all the process and

potential to positively explore, collectively imagine,

collaboratively design and jointly commit to a path forward.

 Assumptions of Appreciative Inquiry:

In every society, organisation, or group, something works.

What we focus on becomes our reality, created in the

moment, and there are multiple realities.

The act of asking questions of a group influences them in

some way.

People have more confidence and comfort to journey to the

future (the unknown) when they carry forward parts of the past

(the known).

If we carry parts of the past forward, they should be the best

parts.

It is important to value differences.

Principles of Appreciative Inquiry

Appreciate the best of what exists, values and hopes for the

future.

Apply knowledge of what works, what is possible

Provoke new ways of organising, creative

improvements, ideas and proposals

Collaborate through collective capacity building, shared

expertise , resources and participative decision making

4-D Model of Appreciative Inquiry