DOES LEADERSHIP MAKE A DIFFERENCE? 1 The importance of school leadership on the quality of schools and the achievements of pupils: England

1. WHERE HAVE WE COME FROM? 2

20 years of education reform in England Financial delegation to schools - autonomy New powers for governors National curriculum Assessments at 7,11,14,16 Parental choice of school Regular inspection Annual published results Freedom from local authority National literacy and numeracy strategies Zero tolerance of failure Benchmarking and value added National leadership college School partnerships Qualification for principals ‘Every Child Matters’: integration of services

20 years of education reform in England Rhetoric Rhetoric 4 Zero tolerance of failure Reliance on better managed schools 15,000 teachers are not doing a good job Challenge and support Raising the baseline and reducing the achievement gap Government’s ‘New Relationship with Schools’ Personalised learning Leadership development

The quality of schools in England: 2007/ Special schools Primary schools Secondary schools OutstandingGoodSatisfactoryInadequate

PISA 2006 Results (~57 countries) 6

2. LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT 7

Difference between leadership and management 8 “Management is about producing order and consistency” “Leadership is about generating constructive change.” ( Kotter 1990)

20 years of education reform in England Financial delegation to schools - autonomy New powers for governors National curriculum Assessments at 7,11,14,16 Parental choice of school Regular inspection Annual published results Freedom from local authority control National literacy and numeracy strategies Benchmarking and value added measures National leadership college School partnerships Qualification for principals School diversification ‘Every Child Matters’: integration of services

3. WHAT RESEARCH SUGGESTS 10

The three thing that matter most in high performing school systems 11 1) Getting the right people to become teachers 2) Developing them into effective instructors 3) Ensuring that the system is able to deliver the best possible instruction for every child (McKinsey 2007)

The effect of teacher quality 12

The effect of continuous professional development 13

The two most important roles of the principal in raising pupils’ achievement are: 14 i) Promoting and participating in teacher learning and development – through leadership that not only promotes, but directly participates with teachers in, formal or informal professional learning. ii) Planning, coordinating and evaluating teaching and the curriculum – through direct involvement in the support and evaluation of teaching through regular classroom visits and the provision of formative and summative feedback to teachers. Direct oversight of curriculum through school-wide coordination across classes and year levels and alignment to school goals. Robinson 2007

4. WHAT THE MOST EFFECTIVE SCHOOLS DO 15

i.To procure high quality teachers 16 Schools have autonomy to recruit teachers They advertise for and appoint the best They train their own, where they can, in partnership with higher education They induct, mentor and support new teachers They provide professional development pathways and career opportunities

ii.To improve instruction, the best schools… 17 Provide a stimulating learning environment Provide rich, well-planned curriculum Have high expectations of teaching and learning Monitor quality of learning and performance of teachers Focus professional development on constantly improving teaching Seek the views of students and parents

iii. Success for every child? The best schools… 18 Create a culture of expecting success Personalise learning Assess and track the progress of every child, with targets for learning and support or intervention where needed Continuously evaluate the quality and effectiveness of everything the school does Work as a consistent team Learn from others

5. The role, expectations and development of school leaders 19

National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH) 20 Six areas: Shaping the future (strategic vision) Leading learning and teaching Developing self and working with others Managing the organisation Securing accountability Strengthening community

Characteristics of outstanding headteachers as school leaders 21 Clear vision and purpose, very high expectations Gets the best out of people Motivating: Providing opportunity; Promoting professional development; Encouraging initiative; Showing interest and being generous with praise; Building teams and empowering them. Approachable Innovative Enthusiastic Determined and decisive Focused on quality and every pupil’s achievement Matthews 2006

Structure and principles of school leadership in England 22 All leaders must be responsible and accountable Every teacher is a leader Middle leaders have responsibility for the quality and effectiveness of their areas Senior leaders have corporate and distributed responsibilities The principal has ultimate responsibility for the effectiveness of the school

System level support for school leadership 23 Development programmes available for middle and experienced leaders; National College for School Leadership Assessment instruments for student progress Data for school benchmarking Encouragement of innovation and diversity within national Framework Cross-provider work to ensure that ‘Every Child Matters’ Encouragement of networks, partnerships and federations of schools Highly autonomous schools and school boards, with rigorous accountability systems

6. POWER TO PRINCIPALS: FROM SCHOOL TO SYSTEM LEADERSHIP 24

CHARACTERISTICS OF HEADS WHO BECOME SYSTEM LEADERS They are committed to young people achieving their potential. They know how to improve schools They lead very good or excellent schools They are influential beyond their schools and communities They see the benefits of partnering and networking with other schools They seek new challenges

The quality of schools in England: 2007/ Special schools Primary schools Secondary schools OutstandingGoodSatisfactoryInadequate

THREE CHALLENGES FOR SYSTEM-LEADING SCHOOLS: 1. ACHIEVING EXCELLENCE Leadership with vision, courage and conviction High expectations and ambitions for children Staff consistency Personalised learning Tracking learners’ progress Distributing leadership Constantly reflecting on what they do and analysing impact Investing in professional growth Recognising everyone as a learner Next aspiration: To be consistently outstanding

2. SUSTAINING EXCELLENCE Seeking to improve further Raising attainment; reducing the gap Growing leaders Systematically improving teaching and learning; be a training school Researching and innovating Opening their doors to other professionals Systematically reducing barriers to children’s learning and wellbeing Extending their frontiers; in the community, nationally and internationally Next aspiration: To help other schools improve

3. SHARING EXCELLENCE, THROUGH Active school partnering Assessing need and engaging with purpose Strategic clarity and setting high expectations Injecting commitment and expertise Addressing underperformance Modelling principles Earning trust Challenging and supporting Monitoring progress Building capacity Next aspiration: To become ‘World Class’

The three core beliefs: 30 “The quality of an education system cannot exceed the quality of its teachers” “The only way to improve outcomes is to improve instruction” “High performance requires every child to succeed” (McKinley/Barber 2007) The only way to achieve this is through effective and determined school and system leadership.