LEADERSHIP+ The Professional Voice of Principals
Promoting Collaborative Leadership
Reflections from Inspection DR HAROLD HISLOP CHIEF INSPECTOR OF IRISH SCHOOLS In 2018, I published my second Chief Inspector’s Report, drawing on inspection data gathered over the period January 2013 to July 2016. In that time, inspectors had visited more than 2,000 primary schools to carry out a range of inspections, including Whole-School Evaluations (WSE), Incidental Inspections and evaluations of planning in DEIS schools. The context within which school leaders worked during the 2013-2016 period was difficult in many respects. The economic recession impacted significantly on the education system. For example, the reduced levels of capitation grants paid to schools during the crisis had an impact on schools. The moratorium on posts of responsibility meant that the workload of the principal and the deputy principal grew while the number of teachers with paid management responsibilities declined. While teacher and pupil numbers rose because of demographic factors, there was only a small rise in the pupilteacher ratio over this period. Despite these and other contextual factors, the quality of educational provision has remained high in the majority of schools. The data reported in the Chief Inspector’s Report (2016) indicated that the quality of learning in schools was good overall, with evidence of very good quality in between 29% and 12% of schools inspected. Overall, we found that management was satisfactory or better in 89%-90% of the schools in which we conducted whole-school type evaluations (either WSE or WSE-MLL). The challenge noted at the end of the Chief Inspector’s Report in 2013 remains – we have too many instances where aspects of teaching and learning and leadership and management are good rather than very good. However, we have very many of the necessary resources in place to meet that 1 2
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challenge. These include a motivated and professional teaching force, committed school leaders and a quality framework which provides a clear picture of what very good practices in a school look like. Looking At Our School 2016 is built around the two dimensions that directly impact on pupils’ learning outcomes and experiences - teaching and learning, and leadership and management. Building collaborative practice in both these areas of the work of a school provides a mechanism for achieving effective learning for pupils. Through our annual inspection programme in schools we have opportunities to reflect on professional collaboration as we see it in schools. Often we report on the role of the school’s principal and senior management in supporting the development of a collaborative culture in their school. This may be through formal practices such as annual meetings to discuss work or by establishing a culture that encourages teachers to use their individual talents and skills to develop school practices. However, we do find schools where that culture is absent. In these cases, teachers often work in isolation from one another and/or they don’t feel adequately informed, consulted or valued. In these instances, we make recommendations to support these schools in developing greater collaborative practice. WHAT SCHOOLS CAN DO TO PROMOTE COLLABORATIVE PRACTICE Teachers engage in collaborative practice when they talk with one another about their classes and their pupils. However, this is often informal and very closely focussed on the immediate, for example, on a specific teaching problem. The sharing of information and good practice which results is very positive and informal exchanges like this provide a strong
foundation for the ‘professional collaboration’ described by Hargreaves and Fullan.1 Rather than being contrived and regulated, this more goal-directed collaboration is embedded in the culture and life of the school, where the teachers work together in solidarity as fellow professionals to respond to the needs and talents of their students. The recent introduction of a new languages curriculum provides a strong developmental impetus to the system. The Department’s investment in teachers’ professional development, which grew over the time covered by the report, has focussed primarily on supporting teachers’ understanding of and facility to implement the revised curriculum. Its impact, however, must be bolstered by in-school teacher learning, through collaborative engagement between teachers and through professional self-reflection. For schools, this approach will mean investing time in teacher collaboration that enables them to become familiar with the curriculum and to be confident in working with the learning outcomes and progression continua. Ongoing in-school discussion and reflection on both teachers’ and pupils’ experiences of the curriculum will be integral to embedding the changes. By working together and talking about their professional practice, teachers can play an important role in developing their own professional learning and that of their colleagues. We know that collaborative professional practice is at the heart of effective schools.2 Through reflective interactions with one another, teachers share, test and transform practical teaching and learning experiences to help all pupils to develop fulfilling lives of meaning, purpose and success. Achieving this involves deep and sometimes demanding dialogue, candid and constructive feedback and continuous collaborative enquiry.
Hargreaves, A. & Fullan, M. (2012) Professional Capital London: Teachers College Press. Hattie, J. (2008) Visible Learning Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. (2011) Visible Learning for Teachers New York, NY, US: Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group.