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 for school leaders wherever they may be in the hierarchy of operations. People circumvent when they feel the person in front of them is blocking... Continue Reading →
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 committed great teachers who may go beyond the norm in delivering their classes, communicating with parents and contributing to the school as a whole. There... Continue Reading →
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 those parents who make life for teachers, well, inconvenient. On the other hand, some teachers feel that a number of parents are not interested, have... Continue Reading →
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 with wanting to make change but how one goes about it is crucial to its success and the impact change will have on the school... Continue Reading →
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 begin teaching, our main interactions, on a day-to-day basis, are with students. As we take on leadership roles within the school, direct contact time with... Continue Reading →
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 the purpose of this post, school leader refers to senior leaders in schools, assistant principals, principals and directors / superintendents. The demands of these senior... Continue Reading →
A large number of schools use teacher surveys for different reasons during a school year. To some teachers on the receiving end, it can feel like there are a lot of surveys to complete. Requests to complete surveys do not solely come from within the school, with education bodies, education researchers and conference and workshop... Continue Reading →
Alongside their mission and vision statements, schools often have a set of core values. Personally, I prefer schools to have 2 or 3 values that they can really focus in on when they work with students to help them understand the importance of those values not only in their school community but to also apply... Continue Reading →
Professional sports teams have coaches and they have leaders. Leaders in sports teams do not have to be the coach. All sports teams, however, have a person that must be the coach and a leader. Professional teachers and teaching teams require the same. Schools have a responsibility to provide leaders who are not just instructional coaches but they coach collaboration.
