School Leadership: Distinctive issues for leading an international school in the UAE

Overview Increased Scrutiny on improvement CLTM Readiness for Change Three Key Fundamentals Understanding school context How actioned ACE Results In order to successfully lift student achievement at a school-level, educators and policymakers need a clear understanding of which initiatives and strategies are most effective in achieving sustainable improvements in student performance. Knowing stratiegeis and initiatives is one thing, but are the staff ready to implement and do they have the capacity?

School Improvement High Value Add Schools…... effective collaboration engaging and sharing in professional learning setting whole-school goals and strategies for change using explicit and effective teaching strategies creating an environment that promotes learning and high levels of student engagement setting high expectations for achievement Schools that have…….. explicit improvement agenda analysis and discussion of data a culture that promotes learning targeted use of school resources an expert teaching team systematic curriculum delivery differentiated teaching and learning effective pedagogical practices school-community partnerships. the common factors associated with the performance improvements observed in High Value-Add (HVA) schools.

Hattie Effect Size Improvement

Background Davey, Lynn (1992). The case for a national testing system. Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation, 3(1). Available online: http://PAREonline.net/getvn.asp?v=3&n=1. Hargreaves, A. (2006), “Educational change over time? The sustainability and non sustainability of three decades of secondary school change and continuity”, Educational Administration Quarterly, Vol. 42 No. 1, pp. 3-41. Hopkins, D., Stringfield, S., Harris, A., Stoll, L. and Mackay, T. (2014), “School and system improvement: a narrative state-of-the-art review”, School Effectiveness and School Improvement, Vol. 25 No. 2, pp. 257-281. Lynch, D., Madden, J. and Knight, B. (2014), “Harnessing professional dialogue, collaboration and content in context: an exploration of a new model for teacher professional learning”, International Journal of Innovation, Creativity and Change, Vol. 1 No. 3, pp. 1-15. Lynch, D. and Smith, R., (2016) Readiness for School Reform. International Journal of Innovation, Creativity and Change. Vol. 2, Iss. 3, May, 2016. Located at http://www.ijicc.net/images/Volume2issue22015/Readiness_Lynch_and_Smith.pdf Lynch, D., Smith, R., Provost, S., & Madden, J. (2016),"Improving teaching capacity to increase student achievement", Journal of Educational Administration, Vol. 54 Iss 5 pp. 575 - 592 Schiemann, W.A. (2012), The ACE advantage: how smart companies unleash talent for optimal performance, Society for Human Resource Management, Alexandria, VA. Scheerens, J. and Demeuse, M. (2005), “The theoretical basis of the effective school improvement model (ESI)”, School Effectiveness and School Improvement, Vol. 16 No. 4, pp. 373-385.

Education in the Middle East Kamel (2014) notes the three key educational challenges facing the Middle East: 1. An increase in education inconsistency within the countries of the Middle East; 2. A marked decrease in the quality of student learning despite an increase in per capita education expenditure; and 3. A mismatch and growing divide between market needs in terms of capacity in skills and what the education system has to offer in terms of output (Kamel, 2014, Education in the Middle East: In Azoury, N (ed), Business and Education in the Middle East: Challenges and Opportunities, London UK,Palgrave Macmillan).

Given the educational change what has AYPS been up to?

International Journal of Innovation, Creativity and Change Volume 3, Issue 1, May, 2017 ISSN 2201-1323 http://www.ijicc.net/

Alignment Capability Engagement Key Findings Teacher Diversity High Teacher Turnover Staff Communication and Languages Pedagogical Differences Teacher Professionalism Performance Management Regulations Data Collection Staff Survey Analysis of MAP Data Interviews - Middle Leaders

Contemporary Teacher Learning Model So What did we do? CTLM Diagram

Key Initiatives Alignment Capability Engagement Visioning Goal Setting CMF Job Embedded PD Pilot Programs Staff Led Workshops Action Research Projects Classroom Observation & Appraisal

Teachers TEACHing Teachers How teacher learning improves student learning Teachers wanting to improve their own practice Job embedded professional learning Focus on improving instruction Student centred approach

And the result…

Contact Details Dr Jake Madden Principal: Al Yasat Private School, Abu Dhabi Adjunct Senior Lecturer: Southern Cross University 1jakemadden@gmail.com Mob: +971 5 64 686 902 https://www.linkedin.com/in/1jakemadden/ https://twitter.com/JakeMaddenUAE https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jake_Madden