March, 2010

Leadership / Middle Management / Reflections — No Comments
28
Mar 10

#newleaders – Learning on the Job

This past week was probably the busy week of my professional teaching career to date. Here are the reasons;

  1. New build IT procurement deadline (handed over to me in January)
  2. My wife was away from home Tuesday through Friday on a residential course, experiencing the demands of a single parent to a 19th month old son
  3. Whole print solution for the new financial year (Started in November and perhaps rushed through for April)
  4. Pending Ofsted and extended SLT meetings
  5. HOD interviews (February, interviews planned for pre Easter)
  6. Year 11 coursework deadlines – Headteachers demands for improved performance and increased students marking as the deadline draws closer.

Lack of foresight may be cited as a contributory issue but remove the ‘uncontrollables’ points 1, 2 and 4, I would feel this was perhaps unfair criticism.
What did I learn this week? Lets review the 6 identified factors.

  1. Spare capacity is essential. Always leave room for unforeseen requests, jobs, situations. It is essential to work efficiently and effectively, but not at full capacity.
  2. Simply, I gained more respect for single parent working families / staff and more appreciation for the teamwork and support my wife offers me every week.
  3. This links to capacity, but realistic time-scales are essential. Knowing we needed to be ready for April 2010, we started the print solution way in advance, so far in advance that at the start we thought we started too early. Simple lesson, those jobs that are ‘programmable’ plan with time to spare.
  4. The schools pending Ofsted means longer meeting. Somethings are not under your control – I am still unsure how to best manage / influence those things.
  5. I sincerely believe in investing time in recruitment. Recruitment is not the weeks leading up to advertising the post, its listening, observing and talking with teaching professionals at every opportunity. Our last three appointments have been recommendations or internal staff development.
  6. Results – teaching is about building relationships with learners to support learning. This year we held ‘Accelerated ICT Workshops’ in February half term (we were the only dept offering ‘revision.’) This has led to stronger relationships with students earlier, more students completing the course with time to spare, therefore more student peer support for one another and increasing capacity for staff to support the students less likely to achieve. Still the pressure remains firmly on us.

All this personal reflection in same week that Twitter offers #newleaders a range of tweets to digest. On the point of New Leaders, I have been collecting writings on the subject of challenge and inspire. Many of these have a leadership slant. I hope you can find a use for them or simply enjoy reading them.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Uncategorized — No Comments
21
Mar 10

The Touch of the Master’s Hand

I am chatting to Nick Dennis via Twitter about this and that, SCVNGR and VLEs. I know who he is, but little more. So, I asked him if he was a passionate moodler and he replied
Think it is a great tool, if used correctly. Comes down to people, of course.. :)
His response made me think of – what I thought was a story, but it turns our to be a poem. Late night learning.
he made a point about VLEs -  if used correctly. Comes down to people, of course.. :)
The Touch of the Master’s Hand
’Twas battered and scarred and the auctioneer
Thought it scarcely worth his while
To waste much time on the old violin
But held it up with a smile
“What am I bid good folks ” he cried
“Who’ll start the bidding for me?
A dollar a dollar Then two! Only two?
Two dollars and who’ll make it three?”
“Three dollars once; three dollars twice;
Going now for three ” But no
From the room far back a grey haired man
Came forward and picked up the bow;
Then wiping the dust from the old violin
And tightening the loosened strings
He played a melody pure and sweet
As a caroling angel sings
The music ceased and the auctioneer
With a voice that was quiet and low
Said: “What am I bid for the old violin?”
And he held it up with the bow
“A thousand dollars and who’ll make it two?
Two thousand! And who’ll make it three?
Three thousand once; three thousand twice
And going and gone ” said he
The people cheered but some of them cried
“We do not quite understand
What changed its worth?” Swift came the reply:
“The touch of the Master’s hand ”
And many a man with life out of tune
And battered and scarred with sin
Is auctioned cheap to the thoughtless crowd
Much like the old violin
A “mess of pottage ” a glass of wine
A game—and he travels on
He is “going” once and “going” twice
He’s “going” and almost “gone ”
But the Master comes and the foolish crowd
Never can quite understand
The worth of a soul and the change that is wrought
By the touch of the Master’s hand
—Myra Brooks Welch

Popularity: 1% [?]

Management — No Comments
17
Mar 10

Who Are You

360 feedback, questionnaire this, leadership style that. There are many different tools to apply. On a recent course we were asked to complete a simple A4 sheet that outlined your communication / leader preferences. It was very simple and seem to offer very simple and quick feedback to the middle leaders in the room. I then considered how accurately I know my department and how accurately the school leadership team knew school teaching community?

With the help our our E-resources manager and our Assistant Headteacher and xls guru, we created this quick and easy spreadsheet tool Who Are You? Help yourself.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Digital Leaders — 4 Comments
17
Mar 10

BCSE

A few weeks ago I met Ty Goddard. Director for the British Council for School Environments (BCSE). We had a brief conversation and I asked him if we could help create some media for the BCSE. I appreciate how busy he is, so to answer our students emails and to personally accept our phone calls made a big impact on the students.

Our brief: Why School Environments Matter.

That was it. No statistics, no school environment information, no further details, zip, nada.

Two Digital Leaders meetings later, a poem co-authored on a wiki, a video camera and a youtube account, this is what our students created.

One of our poem co-authors contributed a little more than most, so well done Victoria attributed in name in the next BCSE document and one student stayed a few hours after college to ensure the editing was finished on time, good work Ashwin.
One thought that tweeked the teacher in me was, with so little BCSE input, such an open brief and such a very short time frame really challenged the students. Their mutual success relied on a creative sparkle and ability to work together. One students sparkled on ideas, another on her writing ability, one of their acting skills, another on editing skills. Talents were uncovered and others reinforced. Could this be recreated in a regular Hamble College classroom?

Popularity: 8% [?]

CPD and INSET — No Comments
16
Mar 10

People Intelligence

As a part of the middle leader development at Hamble College, I met with Maureen Bowes from People Intelligence. People Intelligence offer

personalised development for top teams and high potentials who want to be emotionally intelligent and facilitative leaders. People who know that great work results from more sophisticated people skills.

We discussed career aims, work life balance, leadership strengths and opportunities. The final action was to identify a negotiated  leadership focus and action plan. Later that afternoon I spoke with our Deputy Head and invited her to contribute to personal development. Our Deputy was slightly caught off guard but courteously accepted. This invitation I felt to be a significant move forward in our professional relationship, establishing her seniority and my willingness to ask for help and guidance. Reflecting, it was Maureen Bowes skill as a ‘coach’ and her suggestion to invite feedback that I will add to my leadership ‘buy-in’ tactics for supporting staff at a future point. If you were wondering, my target is to develop and refine formal leadership etiquette skills, to hone my chameleon attributes.

Popularity: 1% [?]

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