2020 is an opportunity for schools to re-explore their relationship to digital citizenship. The growing erosion of our privacy as well as our amplified cohabitation with Artificial Intelligence (AI) present…
Category: Leading a Learning Community
Building trust in teams comes through true connection with everyone who is on the team. We know that the best teams flourish when trust and connection has been established and…
Read More First steps to sharing vulnerability in teams – choose low stakes items
School leaders spend a lot of time developing strategic plans, setting goals and writing action plans. Often the best laid plans and intentions are often derailed and not realised owing…
Read More What are the key decision-making drivers in your school?
Communication is such an important element of leading schools successfully, yet the amount of time we spend planning communication is grossly underestimated. Good communication within and external to a school…
Knowing when it is your turn, or your time, as a leader is an important skill to master that if done well can have a significant positive effect on those…
Read More Leaders need to learn when to go first and when to go last
Every school I have ever worked in or visited is keen to improve. When school leaders often talk about improvement, they more often than not consider what is needed to…
Read More Creating headspace for professional growth and development in schools
One of the greatest challenges, I believe, facing school leaders today is the doom and gloom in education. There is so much material out there about what is wrong with…
Read More The problem of presenting a ‘deficit model’ to teachers
What will happen? How will they react? How will I be viewed? These are some of the questions that will go through the minds of school leaders when faced with…
Read More What can happen when school leaders commit to courageous decisions and feedback?
There’s so much that we can improve in our schools, the trouble is where do we start? Prioritizing the work that needs to get done in our schools is a…
Read More When it comes to school improvement, remember where we came from
Going around someone in order to ensure that something gets done is not uncommon in most workplaces, including schools. Yet it can create significant issues for school culture and challenges…
Read More Circumvention without a conversation – what it means for school leaders
In every school there are teachers who may be fabulous and make teachers who are good look quite ordinary in comparison. In so many ways it is wonderful to have…
Read More What is reasonable? When great teachers make other teachers look bad
Ask teachers about how they feel about the parents in their school community and responses will probably be wide-ranging. We have heard of the ‘helicopter’ parents, the ‘tiger moms’ and…
Read More 3 ways for keeping parents informed and involved in our schools
When new leaders are appointed to their various roles in schools, they are often eager to make change, to help the school improve and move forward. There is nothing wrong…
Read More Changing school culture – Push too far, then face the kick back
One of my favourite quotes is: “If I take care of my character, my reputation will take care of itself.” from D.L.Moody. Our character is very much defined by our…
School leadership is a tough business. Our colleagues can be harsh critics at times and greatly supportive at others. Over the years, I have worked with some wonderful people who…
Read More Relationships matter, so beware of your leadership iceberg
School leaders receive many suggestions from other leaders, teachers and support staff for what can be improved in their school. In some instances, people are taking action themselves, often on…
Read More Towards a ‘Slower Ed’ movement – when to move fast and when to move slow?
Understanding our role and responsibilities as leaders in schools is better understood by examining the way relationships change in the building as one moves up the leadership ladder. When we…
Read More 4 ways to lead school improvement with and through others
“We must teach them good habits,” I overheard my football coach say when I was 15 years old. I can remember that saying and how it was said like it…
Read More Commitment not consistency is the key to student success
The degree to which school leaders are involved in actual teaching practice varies considerably between schools, which brings us to the question: Should school leaders teach more? To clarify for…
Bringing new teachers and support staff into a school can give the energy boost it needs, or maintain the momentum of positive change that may have been built up over…
Read More Recruiting the ‘Tweeners – why staff induction programs matter