Inspiring Leadership In Challenging Times

Are We Brave Enough?27th June 2014

#MKInspiringLeadership

So What is The Challenge ….

…. Our Education System is Good but

Stuck ….

…. Whilst the System is Good

Overall it is Too Variable

The 17 Camel Conundrum

A Father left his seventeen camels to his children. The Will gave half to the eldest, a third to another & one ninth to the youngest.

After many years of squabbling & fighting they went to see a Wise One to resolve the issue…

…. You are that Wise One. What would you do?

The 18th Camel

Reframing the Leadership Challenge

Thanks to Bolton Association of Secondary Head Teachers for my 18th Camel Mug

Is Your School Like This? Should It Be?Photo Credit: Sergei Golyshev (https://www.flickr.com/photos/29225114@N08/2778223048/) via http://compfight.com

Photo Credit: Douglas Brown (https://www.flickr.com/photos/11556508@N00/9465142412/) via http://compfight.com

Is Your School Like This? Should It Be?

Imagine There’s No OfstedIt’s Easy If You Try

The Changing Face of Accountability

Ofsted 1990s

Ofsted 2000+

Acknowledgement:www.change-management-coach.com

The Emperor’s New Clothes

Narrow Accountability

Tail Wagging the Dog“Keep Ofsted Happy”

I’m Not Just Part of a Broken System…

… I’m Perpetuating It

What Do We Think?

• Aping Ofsted• Schools’ Predicted Grades• Students’ Projected Grades• Lesson Grading• Performance Related Pay for

Teachers

Reframing Our

Thinking

(18th Camel Thinking)

Accountability•What

•Who•When•How

McKinsey Report (2010) How the World’s Most Improved School Systems Kept Getting Better

Embedded System Wide Change

• Peer Led Support & Accountability• Greater Pedagogical Autonomy• Rotates educators throughout the system in

order to spread learning• Sponsors and identifies examples of innovative

practice within schools• Develops mechanisms to share these across

schools

McKinsey Report (2010) How the World’s Most Improved School Systems Kept Getting Better

http://www.jarche.com/2010/03/pkm-a-node-in-the-learning-network/

Carpe DiemI believe that up until now we have been dabbling in system leadership. It is now time for the profession to take charge as we move into the next phase … Educational leadership includes but should not be limited by locality or groups of schools. The next phase in system leadership is leadership of the education system itself.

Brian Lightman (2014) ASCL Debate

Imagine All the Teachers,Working Successfully

What Can You Do More Powerfully Together?Building Professional Capital

From On Distributed Communications by Paul Baran, 1964

The Changing Face of Professional DevelopmentFrom Known Nodes to Wild Networks

Create Opportunities for People to Grow

• Go outside of the school’s structure– Build a little Babylon (Wild Places)

• Innovation Fellows• System Redesign TLRs (use TLR 3)• R&D Communities• Voluntary INSET #OutstandingIn10Plus10• Leadership Development Programme– Getting Better Project

We Need to Increase Stickability in

Knowledge Transfer• Knowledge Transfer Involves a “sender” and a

“receiver”– No shortage of sending!– Are people increasingly deaf to the node? – More “Wild Network” PD is Appearing

• From Sharing Good Practice to Joint Practice Development– NMP Joint Primary/Secondary Mathematics

Project

BEB CMAT• Executive Headteacher– Chief Builder of Professional Capital

• Assistant Headteacher – Maths & Numeracy– AHT Literacy & English to Follow– Professional Development Department

• In-house CPD Programmes– Leadership Programme– #OutstandingIn10Plus10– Maths KS 1-3 Group

Imagine There’s No Chaos, Coherence is the Key

Clockwork & Ecosystems.Complicated or Complex?

Is Your School Like This? Should It Be?Photo Credit: Sergei Golyshev (https://www.flickr.com/photos/29225114@N08/2778223048/) via http://compfight.com

Photo Credit: Douglas Brown (https://www.flickr.com/photos/11556508@N00/9465142412/) via http://compfight.com

Is Your School Like This? Should It Be?

Complexity TheoryQuantum theory and complexity science remind us that our world is unified. Many problems with school reform stem from continuing to use mechanistic views to examine parts of problems rather than the whole and the context. The concept of self-organization gives us a new perspective. Self-organization refers to how an organization looks within itself to find self-supporting dynamics.

Bower, D. (2006) Sustaining School Improvement. Ohio University (USA)

Complex change is not linear but holistic

• Complicated systems may be understood by examining their parts. They are “predictable sums” of those parts.

• Complex systems, however, may not be understood by examining parts; they exceed their parts and may only be understood in relation to the parts.

• Complex systems are “self-organizing, self-maintaining, dynamic, and adaptive”

Bower, D. (2006) Sustaining School Improvement. Ohio University (USA)

Acknowledgement:www.docstoc.com

Beyond Powerful Reform with Shallow Roots

The core of the organization, characterized by principles, philosophy, and values, influences processes like feedback, communication, dialogue, sense making and relationships. These processes in turn support what emerges from the organization - ownership, renewal, creativity, a safe and trusting environment, engagement and self-organization.

Bower, D. (2006) Sustaining School Improvement. Ohio University (USA)

Beyond Powerful Reform with Shallow Roots

Wheatley (1992) explains that freedom and order, while seeming to be a paradox, actually are partners. Allowing autonomy at the local level creates freedom that finds a natural order through self-organization. The result is more coherence and continuity.

Bower, D. (2006) Sustaining School Improvement. Ohio University (USA)

Acknowledgement: http://mckennasgoogleearthproject.blogspot.co.uk/2014/02/tropical-rainforest-food-web.html

Photo Credit: incurable_hippie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/49503155381@N01/4914098416/) via http://compfight.com

How’s Your Reservoir of Hope

& Joy?

Photo Credit: Eustaquio Santimano (https://www.flickr.com/photos/25509772@N00/5211134786/) via http://compfight.com

How Will You Refill Your Reservoir?