NCETM Conference May 18 th 2011 Queens Hotel Leeds Seizing the Agenda The purpose and approach to professional development in the current landscape David Crossley Executive Head, Wildern School, Hampshire, Director of Strategy Inspirational Schools Partnership, Tribal

Schools are better today than they have ever been…?

 In 1988, only 25% of pupils were awarded a qualification at age 16 that was valued. In 2009, 70% of pupils gained % A*-C; 50% including English and Maths  In 1988, those staying on post-16 was less than 10% and progress to University was only 3-5%. In 2008, 50%+ of all students stay on post-16 and in 2010 the new A* at A level challenged critics of dumbing down in terms of subjects taken and of outcomes achieved  In 2000 there were 600 out of 3000 secondary schools with results below 25% 5 A*-C by 2006 there were less than 40. In Autumn 2007 there were 600 schools with less than 25% 5A*-C including English and Mathematics in summer 2010 this had reduced to approx 130 (200 32% or below)  There has been a revolution in the availability of technology in schools and classrooms Schools are better today than they have ever been…?

“ Anything that exists in the world before you are born is part of the normal way in which the world operates. Anything invented while you're between the ages of 15 and 35 is revolutionary - and quite possibly something you can get a career out of.” Anything invented after the age of 35 is against the natural order of things. Douglas Adams

The core underpinning aim is surely to be committed to high standards and at the same time being a centre of creativity, innovation and enjoyment “ Learn to Transform Developing a 21 st century approach to sustainable school transformation David Crossley and Graham Corbyn Aiming to offer a positive but rigorous model and n journey Recognising the both / and of professional development and school improvement…

Background and Key Influences: Raising Achievement; Transforming Learning (RATL) a major school improvement program involving 700 schools Always ask the question does it raise achievement and how do you know? Embed use of performance data – know every student and know their potential Sequence, harmonise and integrate the short, medium and longer term Raising Achievement Transforming Learning Raising Achievement with Dignity “It combined a sense of urgency and a push for success with a culture of optimism and inspiration". Professors Hargreaves and Shirley Boston College, 2006

Key Influences: How the world's most improved school systems keep getting better ? You can have the best curriculum, best infrastructure and best polices but if you don’t have the best people… (but is the key focus satisfactory to good?) McKinsey – How the World’s best systems come out on top All improving systems (schools) use a similar set of interventions at a similar stage in their development. Context determines how not what you do. McKinsey - How the world's most improved school systems keep getting better

Help more young people to achieve their potential in mathematics? Make sure less can be more? – you can do anything but not everything Enable a greater degree of informed professionalism to drive the next stage in school improvement? How do we achieve our moral purpose? Foster a positive “culture”? Learn from how the world's most improved school systems keep getting better? Sustain what we achieve? Help raise the ceiling as well as the floor?

Moral Purpose “combining vision, optimism and realism” “There are good grounds for thinking that we are underestimating the potential of many students, even entire groups and communities.” “The reality is that in learning we do not know what the boundaries of human capability are – What we do know is that barriers that seem impossible are eventually broken and performance gets better.” Ben Levin - How to Change 5000 Schools If you believe you can or can’t you are right!

How much has and how can organisations like NCETM through the professional development of teachers best contribute to the improvement of our schools and life chances of our students... -fostering creativity and innovation? and how do we know?