NZ Principal Magazine Term 4 2019 by NZ Principal Magazine

November 2019 Volume 34, Number 4

COACHING TRANSFORMS WHAKARONGO SCHOOL Also

featuring

• Intermediate Schools – a history • Looking After Ourselves

• Wellbeing in Christchurch Schools • The Forty Hour Principal • ACET

CONTENTS

Editor Liz Hawes Executive Officer PO Box 25380 Wellington 6146 Ph: 04 471 2338 Email: Liz.Hawes@nzpf.ac.nz

November 2019

2 EDITORIAL Liz Hawes

Magazine Proof-reader Helen Kinsey-Wightman

Editorial Board Whetu Cormick, NZPF President Geoff Lovegrove, Retired Principal, Feilding Liz Hawes, Editor

Advertising For all advertising enquiries contact: Cervin Media Ltd PO Box 68450, Wellesley St, Auckland 1141 Ph: 09 360 8700 or Fax: 09 360 8701 Note The articles in New Zealand Principal do not necessarily reflect the policy of the New Zealand Principals’ Federation. Readers are welcome to use or reprint material if proper acknowledgement is made. Subscription Distributed free to all schools in New Zealand. For individual subscribers, send $40 per year to: New Zealand Principals’ Federation National Office, PO Box 25380, Wellington 6146 New Zealand Principal is published by Cervin Media Ltd on behalf of the New Zealand Principals’ Federation and is issued four times annually. For all enquiries regarding editorial contributions, please contact the editor.

11 17

PRESIDENT’S PEN

Whetu Cormick

Intermediate Schools – a history

Lester Flockton

Wellbeing in Christchurch Schools

Michelle Cole

Looking After Ourselves

Geoff Lovegrove

The Forty Hour Principal

COACHING TRANSFORMS WHAKARONGO SCHOOL

The benefits of a coaching approach for teachers

Steve Zonnevylle & Dave Armstrong

Liz Hawes

Lisa Cuff

27 ACET

Cedric Croft

30 33

Science Teaching Leadership Programme

Jenn Corbitt, Royal Society

School Lines

Lester Flockton

35 Opinion – ‘Recruiting the right teachers for your school . . . ’

Helen Kinsey-Wightman

ISSN 0112-403X (Print) ISSN 1179-4372 (Online)

PHOTOS FOR THE MAGAZINE: If you have any photos showing ‘New Zealand Schools at Work’, particularly any good shots of pupils, teachers or leadership staff, they would be welcome.

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MAGAZINE

Whakarongo School

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Editorial Liz Hawes

Editor

The teaching of ‘Aotearoa New Zealand History’ will be own country’s history, were young people exposed to a different compulsory in our schools from 2022. Hooray! Congratulations version. to those leaders of schools, political groups, and historians who Every New Zealander will now grow up with a balanced, not have been promoting this idea for many biased, view of our own history. Not only years. Your sustained focus and energy will this enlighten our young people, it Any formal history have prevailed. has huge potential to help break down Any formal history teaching in our teaching in our schools the ingrained racial prejudices that exist schools has mostly been about the in our society. These attitudes persist, achievements of our settlers. We knew has mostly been about in part, through ignorance of our own more about the history of imperial history. They feed on the biases that have the achievements of expansion – the building of the British been passed down over the generations – Empire as a global powerhouse – than our settlers. that Māori are an inferior race to Pākehā, we did about the land under our own that they were a race of cannibalistic feet. We learned about explorers in the Pacific region such as savages and do not stand alongside Pākehā as equals. the Dutch explorer, Abel Tasman (who turned up on our shores The teaching of our own history is important if we are to 377 years ago) and British explorer, Captain James Cook achieve equity of learning outcomes for Māori. Couple this with (250 years ago), but knew nothing of the journeys of indigenous ambitious targets to increase the number of Te Reo speakers and Māori who reached our shores in waka 700 years ago. we can start to feel the beginnings of a sense of hope for our What little we did learn of our own history was somewhat slowly maturing culture. biased. The colonizers were not presented as taking advantage Unintended discrimination and racism have also been of Māori. They were portrayed as rescuers who had come to highlighted in recent New Zealand studies of principal wellbeing. help educate and provide opportunities for Māori to become Principal wellbeing is a high-profile topic across the globe, and civilized citizens and make progress. On the other hand, Māori especially here in New Zealand. As the role of principal has were presented as the savages, in need of ‘taming’ and teaching. become more complex, pressures have increased. These pressures I don’t recall being told the Parihaka story of passive resistance make principalship less and less attractive to middle leaders, who by Māori leaders, Tohu Kākahi and Te Whiti-o-Rongomai, to the once may have aspired to take over the ultimate leadership role. Taranaki military invasion. Nor did I know that these leaders and Elsewhere in this issue of NZ Principal we include three their followers were split up and imprisoned and their women articles that relate to wellbeing. Each has its own approach. The raped by the soldiers because they refused to sell their land. But ‘Forty-hour Principal’ is a great read by two practicing school I do recall stories of revenge attacks by Te Rauparaha on Ngāi principals who share many years of experience. They know from Tahu, for example and I remember the story of ‘Murderers Bay’ first-hand experience the pressures on principals and have some and Tasman’s men being slaughtered by local Māori. excellent and practical advice to offer. Sometimes, principals can I also recall ‘lectures’ on the Treaty of Waitangi and drifting be their own worst enemies, so be prepared for some hard-hitting in and out of mental paralysis over who did and didn’t sign it. guidance too. This experience left many a class of young New Zealand kids, at Geoff Lovegrove, retired experienced principal, presents his that time, disinterested in the Treaty. I recall learning about the reflections on principal wellbeing as he saw it a decade ago. You charitable ways of the missionaries who educated Māori out of may be surprised at how little has changed. The third in the their dark ignorance into the bright lights of Christianity. But I wellbeing trilogy explores the research of Michelle Cole who didn’t learn that Māori had extensive knowledge of astronomy, has been working with Canterbury schools. She presents her seamanship, climate, weather and science which they used to research findings on Wellbeing and support and the creation navigate the Pacific Ocean to settle in Aotearoa New Zealand and recreation of the school space. You may be surprised that in the first place. small changes to the seating in your staff room might actually What little we learned of the land wars were about unreasonable make a difference to the wellbeing of your staff. Māori resisting progress. The term land confiscation wasn’t As this is the last issue of NZ Principal for the year, I will take used until much later and so stories like that of Bastion Point the opportunity of wishing you all a safe and Summery break remained untold. Only in those truly progressive schools with and you can take this magazine on holiday with you! teachers interested enough to have sought out the truth of our

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President’s Pen

Ko Tainui te waka Ko Ngāti Raukawa ki Wharepūhunga te iwi Whetu Cormick

National President, New Zealand Principals’ Federation

I am not the first President of NZPF to reach the conclusion and it was an important and valued place. of my term with mixed emotions and I know I won’t be the last. Undoubtedly the MAC has had a significant impact on the For the past few days, as I have been preparing this column, I changing fortunes of hundreds of tamariki across Aotearoa New have done much reflecting. I have looked Zealand and I am proud to have been back on my first few months leading the able to have some influence in ensuring Like so many others, Federation and thought, what were my funding has continued and increased to ambitions for the Federation then and I also wanted to see accommodate the growing demand for how close did I get to achieving them? this unique PLD. Front of mind for me, was to support radical changes in the As the MAC PLD grew in success and advocate for effective initiatives that and numbers, Pasifika principals began delivery of learning thinking about how the model might be would make a difference to the learning success rates of tamariki Māori and our support. adapted for lifting the achievement of Pasifika students. Like so many others, Pasifika students. I also wanted to see radical changes in the delivery of learning Associate Minister Jenny Salesa needed no convincing and support. NZPF is a membership driven organization. I also became an immediate partner in the process, which now oversees wanted to know that throughout my presidency I was, to the best of my ability, representing your views. As we all know, in 2008, national standards had been Build a Better Future.. introduced with the intent of lifting the achievement of what became known as priority students. These included Māori, Pasifika, special needs and those from lower socio-economic groups. By the end of 2017 and after almost a decade of national standards, it was clear that they had proved singularly ineffective. Is it any wonder that at our NZPF conference in Queenstown that year, when Nikki Kaye announced her policy for national standards plus, a collective groan swept across the auditorium? That conference was just 48 hours out from the general election. When the Labour, Greens and New Zealand First parties formed the new coalition Government, national standards knew they were on death row. Successive NZPF Presidents had worked very hard with all three parties when they were in opposition, pointing out the flaws of national standards and promoting alternative ways to address the inequities in learning outcomes. The scrapping of national standards signaled a new era and a Saris Bike Repair Stands & Pumps new direction for education. Now Available in New Zealand At the same time, the Māori Achievement Collaborations (MACs) PLD, established through the joint efforts of NZPF, Te Akatea Māori Principals’ Association and the Ministry, were Improve Student Wellbeing & Promote an Active Lifestyle beginning to show how effective they were in changing school Talk to us about your Cycling Infrastructure Requirements culture. Principals were lining up to join in and only resource limitations prevented more schools from creating school environments that were conducive to tamariki Māori succeeding at higher rates. Tamariki in MAC schools reported their opinions now counted. They felt proud to identify as Māori and had a Check out our website for more information - www.rtl.co.nz strong sense of belonging. These attributes were identified as key contributors to the learning successes of these students. They 0800 785 744 rtl.co.nz wanted to attend school every day – they had found their place

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two pilot clusters trialing the first iteration. The Pasifika PLD is led by the Pasifika Principals’ Association and a board of academic, professional, Ministry and NZPF members. It will develop its own course and evolve as is necessary. The common expectation is however that our Pasifika young people, like their Māori counterparts, will come to feel that same sense of belonging and acceptance and feel pride in who they are as the culture of their schools change and adapt. It is still early days, as it is for learning support. With funding now allocated to 600 Learning Support Coordinators, we hope that the dismal state of special education in New Zealand will soon begin to change. We look forward to working collaboratively to implement the new Learning Support Model and having greater access to the specialist support we have been seeking for so long. I am proud to have played a part in these two critical pieces of work and to have promoted them at the highest level. Equally important has been meeting you, listening to your feedback and following up on your suggestions. I can never thank you enough for your continual support and for the confidence you gave me throughout my presidency. The role can be a very lonely one, perhaps more so than being a principal, but thanks to you, I never felt lonely. It has been an honour and a privilege to serve you, my principal colleagues and I thank you for the opportunity of so doing.

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To be or not to be? We shall see Intermediates . . . Middle Schools Lester Flockton

lester.flockton@gmail.com

Photos Courtesy of Kowhai Intermediate

Almost 100 years after the first intermediate was opened in 1922 (Kowhai Intermediate) it has been recommended that these schools be phased out in favour of a not-totally new model. Given the cost, complexities and logistics of doing this, it might well take another 100 years for them to finally disappear. In 2018 there were 117 intermediate schools with about half of them established over 50 years ago. There were just three Year 7–10 middle schools despite legislation allowing these so-called ‘restricted composites’. Writing in the 1960’s, former NZCER director John Watson noted that the intermediate school had been subjected to almost continuous scrutiny for several decades. The debate has continued to rattle on since then so it is not surprising that the current review of Tomorrow’s Schools (in which intermediates were not the subject of any attention) should take the opportunity to again put them under the spotlight. Tomorrow’s Schools Review: Phase out Intermediates The Tomorrow’s Schools review ordered by Education Minister Chris Hipkins, has recommended the ‘phasing in’ of a new schooling model based on: ■■

■■

primary schools (Years 1–6), middle schools (Years 7–10), and senior colleges (Years 11–13) or: full primary schools (Years 1–8) and secondary schools (Years 9–13) or: Composite schools (Years 1–13).

We currently have all of those school types in various parts of New Zealand – plus intermediate schools (Years 7–8) and extended secondary schools (Y7–13). The effect of the recommendation is two-fold. It would completely eliminate Intermediates over time and replace Year 7–8 schooling with one or more of the options suggested. It would also discontinue the Y7–13 secondary structure favoured by the likes of former Education Ministers Trevor Mallard and Hekia Parata, neither of whom showed much policy appreciation for intermediate let alone middle schools. The recommended options recognise that New Zealand’s considerable rural geography and demography rule out the provision of middle schools for all of our communities and their 6

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students. So for some, especially those in small rural areas, the options given in the review would be Y1–8 primary schools and Y9–13 secondaries or compositive (area) schools, but not Y1–6 primaries followed by Y7–13 secondaries. There is sound argument in favour of the review recommendations. Nolan and Brown (2001), for example, contend that the primary school, perhaps with the exception of very large primaries, is not best suited to students in their middle years. Little evidence can be found to support the inclusion of Year 7 and 8 students in primary schools. This is because students in these age groups are generally more influenced by peers than by parents. They need a school culture more responsive to them as a group than the primary school is or could be. (p. 27) While they don’t completely dismiss the attachment of Y7–8 to secondary schools it is not an option that fits well with middle school philosophy, and one that carries risks. It is argued that for this ‘school type’ (Year 7–13) to be acceptable, there would need to be resolute ring fencing for Years 7–10 that gives substantial autonomy to the leadership and management of the middle years. It would require that it be largely under the direction of a fulltime head of school supported by interdisciplinary team leaders for each year level. But there is always a risk that they would end up as second rather than first cousins within the school. In my experience, I have only seen this arrangement working well in one school, Southland Girls, but others are likely. Mostly, I have seen examples where it is far from ideal. The Tomorrow’s Schools review has been well advised in excluding the attachment of Y7–8 to secondary schools in its recommendation, despite its convenience to some policy people and politicians. Why were intermediates set up in the first place? In his time, Watson lamented that it was ‘no matter for rejoicing’ that the history of intermediate schooling in New Zealand was so little known. Men may judge without history, of course, but no sound judgment of the circumstances or value of intermediate

see! chools, or . . . ? schools is possible without an understanding of the history of the problems they have been expected to overcome, and the difficulties that have attended their introduction. (p. 1) In charging ahead to change things, education policy and politics in New Zealand generally pays scant attention to what has gone before and what we might learn from it. However, the circumstances that initially led to the creation of intermediate schools are most certainly no longer relevant today (times when many students didn’t qualify for secondary education because they didn’t pass Standard 6 or because they were faced with attending either technical or secondary schools depending on their academic aptitudes). Yet after those circumstances disappeared, the establishment of new intermediate schools continued but for different reasons. Clarence Beeby, labelled the father of modern education, a visionary educationist and psychologist who served as director of education in the 1940s and 1950s, was significantly responsible for the growth of intermediates. Beeby’s 1938 student-centred report, The Intermediate Schools of New Zealand, argued that early adolescents should be free to explore different subjects and experience a critical period of what he called ‘socially integrative education’. The paper became the blueprint for intermediate schools for the next 4 decades, during which time around 100 were built. Education Central, October 24, 2018 Through all of this, Year 7–8 schools came to be recognised as a transitional or ‘intermediate’ step from primary (general) to secondary (subject-based) teaching and schooling. There was and continues to be wide-spread satisfaction that they are good for many students and that they are relevant, despite a persistent range of opinions that are either positively or negatively persuaded. In possibly the most comprehensive research ever conducted on the performance of intermediates, Watson (1964) set out to discover ‘whether different kinds of school create different conditions for learning that are of significance in judging the quality of education provided by them’ (p. 127). In his study, he identified four major problems that historically presented themselves at the intermediate level of schooling in New Zealand:

■■ ■■

■■

Easing the transition from primary to secondary schooling. Provision of a broad, expansive, and common curriculum that provides a maximum opportunity for the growth of individual talents and interests. Making effective and economic use of the relatively expensive equipment needed to provide a richer and more practical curriculum. ■■ Ensuring that the fullest possible use was made of the qualifications of teachers to provide a more consistent and balanced treatment of the syllabus at this stage of schooling. (p. 305–397)

Wat s o n’s c o n c l u s i o n s f r o m h i s investigation acknowledged that various positions could be taken on a number of fronts depending on the opinions and perspectives of those making the judgments. Those fronts range over academic performance, student social and maturational factors, economies of resourcing, administrative arrangements, curricular provisions, etc. But taking everything into account from his extensive inquiry, and for good reasons, Watson concluded that wherever possible intermediate schooling (Years 7–8) should not be attached to primary or secondary schools (i.e. Y1–8 or Y7–13 schools) and, significantly, he recommended that the intermediate school system should be continued, extended, and strengthened. In saying ‘extended’, his recommendation was twofold: extend the number of intermediate schools and extend the year levels beyond Year 8. Following its evaluation, the Currie Commission (1962) also supported the concept of intermediate schooling, and following a review of intermediates for Phil Amos, Minister of Education in the 3rd Labour Government, an additional 29 intermediates were established during the 1970s. Middle Schools: Agree or Disagree? In a review carried out in 2007 by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) for the Ministry of Education, they found strong views both for and against the concept of the middle school, noting that it has been relatively slow to develop in New Zealand. Among others, this mix of views was shared among primary and intermediate teachers according to Nolan and Brown (2002) who note, however, that while many of them appeared to be opposed to the four-year (Y7–10) model of schooling they were nonetheless increasingly adopting the philosophy and approaches of middle schooling. So, what is

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that ‘philosophy’? Middle School Philosophy There is little robust and dependable evidence to suggest that one schooling type is more or less superior when it comes to measures of academic performance. But schooling is much more than the singularity of academic achievement despite what some might think or say. Educational provision needs a much richer and deeper rationale and attitude. When it comes to the question of philosophy, Nolan and Brown (2001) place the focus of middle school clearly on the distinctive nature and needs of emerging adolescents. They quite rightly argue that,‘the principal reason for assigning such importance to middle years education comes from human development researchers’: In terms of growth and development that takes place, the period from 10 to 15 years is second only to infancy in its significance for lifelong learning. It could be that infancy is our first chance, emerging adolescence is our secondbest chance – and possibly the last – to keep students ‘switched on’ to education and lay the motivational foundations for educational success at this critical turning point in their lives. (p.26) Translating our understanding of the uniqueness of the adolescent years into definable educational philosophy and well-tailored practice is absolutely the critical issue for middle schooling. Nolan and Brown say this should include such features as holistic curricular programmes, active, interactive and inquiry-oriented pedagogy, dedicated student guidance and counselling, and flexible timetabling. They remind us that this is a time of reciprocity, give and take, along with energy and enthusiasm. For many it can also bring times of personal confusion as they transition from childhood dependency to youthful independence and a growing sense and assertion of self. For these things to be understood and reflected in the school’s culture and practices, the ability of the principal to collaboratively lead strong positioning on policies, programmes and practices that recognise differences in students’ intellectual capacities, their spiralling physical maturation, their social and emotional ups and downs and their cultural identity, is crucial. These are years of heightened personal and social development and they are not always ‘easy’. They benefit from a school setting that is sympathetic to their needs yet clear and capable in its counsel. To pin down an educational and pedagogical framework for middle schools that is entirely consistent with the special character of early adolescence, we would do well to follow the propositions along the lines offered by Nolan and Brown (2002): ■■

■■

Positively recognise the distinctive characteristics, interests and needs of young adolescents, and commit to developing programmes that incorporate all three. Focus on educating the whole child, intellectually, culturally, socially, emotionally and personally.

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■■ ■■

Develop demanding yet personable and trusting relationships. Structure learning to think critically through disciplined inquiry referenced to appropriate bodies of knowledge in ways that will help students to live healthy lives, behave ethically and lawfully, and share responsibility for their own learning and development.

The lingering myth of disruptive transitions The review committee’s justification for its recommendation to phase out intermediates is their view that it would provide more stability, better transitions for students and better support for their learning and wellbeing. They are of the view that the twoyear intermediate schooling model is ‘unnecessarily disruptive of learner/akonga pathways’ (p.61), whatever those pathways might mean or be, let alone the questionable presumption that intermediates somehow ‘disrupt’ them. Regardless, middle schools could have the advantage of allowing teachers to know their students ‘as well as possible’ according to Rototuna principal Paula Wine. But claims by a train of policy people of the supposed deleterious effects of school transitions, is often without strong evidence or argument. As Sharon Keen, principal of Casebrook Intermediate correctly observes, transition is often talked about negatively, whereas it is arguably an important life skill. In the real world we are constantly faced with having to make and adjust to changes in our life and work situations; some are easy, some are tough. It’s part of life, because in life you do have changes. So you have to learn to manage those, and that’s our job. To be a successful intermediate we have to be good at transitioning. Education Central, October 24, 2018. p.7 But what do students say about all of this? A notable feature of the literate and outpourings on intermediates has one thing in common: the absence of student voice. Does it matter? Of course it should! While we don’t have the resources of a well-funded research institution, it seemed nonetheless important to give students the last say on the matter of the Tomorrow’s Schools review recommendations. All 468 students at Tahuna Normal Intermediate responded to a survey intended to capture their preferences, thoughts and feelings. For many, their preferences revolved around age appropriateness, making friendships, wider curricular opportunities, and having teachers who understand the early teenage years. I like intermediate because you are separated from younger and older kids, and you make new friendships. In a middle school you wouldn’t be there for too long or too short. It’s preferable. Being at an intermediate for 2 years isn’t long enough and middle school is more popular globally. I think that it should be an intermediate or middle school because most kids would be coming into their teenage years and they will need teachers who can potentially relate to them.

When asked for their preference of school type, the intermediate school was the strongest option followed by the middle school. In contrast, preferences for Year 7–8 education in primary or secondary schools were similarly weak. Moreover, preferences were substantially similar for boys and girls, and for Year 7 and Year 8 students. The data speak for themselves. Table 1 Percentage preferences of Years 7–8 students for the type of school they would like to attend (N=468 students) Y8 Y7 & 8 Girls & Girls & Boys Boys

School Type

Y7 Girls

Y7 Boys

Y7 Girls & Boys

Y8 Girls

Y8 Boys

Primary School Y1–8

Intermediate School Y7–8

Middle School Y7–10

Secondary School Y7–13

Concerns for the effects of transitioning from one school type to another is something that is not sufficiently substantiated by well-rounded evidence, so the students were asked questions to help give some substance to the matter. A small percentage of students said they found changing from primary to intermediate very hard, and that it took them a long time to feel okay at intermediate. By contrast, the large majority made the transition with little or no trauma. This is no reason for dismissing the plight of the small minority and a good school will always be aware of these students and provide them caring support. This is unquestionably about differences in personalities rather than transitions across schools – or a least within the school zone surveyed. Table 2 Percentage student responses to the question: What was it like for you changing from your primary school to your intermediate school? (N=468 students) Changing from Primary to Intermediate

Y7 Girls

Y7 Boys

Y7 Girls & Boys

Y8 Girls

Y8 Boys

Y8 Y7 & 8 Girls & Girls & Boys Boys

Very hard

Little bit hard

Easy

Table 3 Percentage student responses to the question: How long did it take for you to feel okay being at your intermediate school? (N=468 students) Y8 Y7 & 8 Girls & Girls & Boys Boys

Y7 Girls

Y7 Boys

Y7 Girls & Boys

Y8 Girls

Y8 Boys

Long time

Little time

No time

Time to feel okay at Intermediate

What, then, might we conclude from all of the foregoing? Intermediates are unlikely to be out of favour or fashion for those communities where they are proving to be in tune with their students’ needs. Regardless, they continue to be criticised for their two-year brevity. Their extension to Year 10 through the creation of Y7–10 schools that are intermediate to primary and secondary is arguable, particularly with regard to the strong educational implications of the unique time and needs of adolescence. There is little good educational justification for simply retaining Y7 and 8 students at primary schools where this can be avoided, or for tacking them onto secondary schools. Arguments around harmful effects of transitions are overstated and flimsy. Good schools will always work caringly and professionally to monitor and help ensure that their students experience smooth transitions and develop the life skills and personal resilience needed to face and manage changes, including those from one school to another. If our system is to successfully ease out intermediates and phase in middle schools it would require widespread belief and commitment, a lot of money, industrial resolution, absence of botched processes, and a long time. Acknowledgement Appreciative thanks to principal Tony Hunter along with the students and teachers of Tahuna Normal Intermediate who happily and helpfully participated in the survey reported here. Author Lester Flockton’s parents moved him from his Y1–8 Primary to an Intermediate for his Y7–8 schooling. His first and only assistant teacher position was in an intermediate, followed by principalships of two Y1–8 primaries, a Y1–6 primary, and two intermediates. References Nolan & Brown, SET. NZCER: Wellington. 2001 Nolan, C., & Brown, M. (2002). The Fight for Middle School Education in New Zealand. Middle School Journa 33(4), 34–44. Watson, J.E. (1964). Intermediate Schooling in New Zealand. Wellington: NZCER. Education Central, October 2018 Teaching and Leaning in Middle Schooling: A Review of the Literature, Ministry of Education, March 2009. Our Schooling Futures: Stronger Together (2018). Tomorrow’s School Taskforce. Ministry of Education: NZ. November 2018. Recommended For those interested in knowing more about Intermediates in New Zealand, an excellent account is given in Derek Lucic’s sabbatical report, A riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma, August 2013.

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Canterbury primary school principals’ perceptions of wellbeing in the context of their school environment: Wellbeing, schools, people, place and time. Michelle Cole

Wellbeing is an increasingly discussed topic in education and wider society, the use of the term was found to have risen in newspapers, from 117 mentions in the late 80’s to 2243 in 2003, being used less in association with collective wellbeing, and more with individual wellbeing (Sointu, 2005). The rise in the interest in wellbeing in education is led by the OECD who hypothesise that when individuals take responsibility for their own wellbeing there will be increased benefits to the economy (OECD, 2018). Schools have therefore been identified as providers of wellbeing in Aotearoa, where wellbeing is being conflated with success (ERO, 2016), subsequently there has been a proliferation of wellbeing programs, activities and surveys. The 2015 Health and Safety at Work Act (HSWA), has also put staff wellbeing into the spotlight and whilst proponents of positive psychology and other wellbeing programs often suggest that there are numerous benefits, there have been few critical studies of wellbeing in schools. Canterbury schools have experienced a sequence of events both natural and human induced that have challenged the wellbeing of students, families, teachers and leaders. A constellation of factors including Aotearoa’s poorly managed educational property portfolios (Officer of the Auditor General, 2006, 2017), the ‘blindsiding’ of some schools with closures or mergers (Boshier, 2017) and the OECD’s invention of Innovative Learning Environments (ILE’s), brought increasing changes to many schools in the post-quake recovery period. This qualitative research study was undertaken in 10 Canterbury schools, including state, special character and kura. Principals were first asked semi-structured interview questions including defining wellbeing and challenges and supports to wellbeing, as well as who they thought they were responsible for in terms of wellbeing. After these initial questions the interview method transitioned from a seated interview in the principal’s office to a walking interview, where principals were asked to lead the researcher around the school, showing where and how they thought wellbeing was evident in the context of their school environment. Their comments were digitally recorded, and photographs were taken as references for transcription. Interviews were transcribed and then the data were analysed thematically. This study took a constructivist approach where wellbeing knowledge is believed to be co-constructed through uniquely

ascribed meanings, experiences and ideas, and was informed by theories that conceptualise space as political and politicised, local and localised, as well as personal. Methodologies such as qualitative walking interviews can enhance the limitations of quantitative school wellbeing survey data which can generalise, discount and strip away meaning and meaningfulness, resulting in the ‘untelling of places and people’ (Booth, 2015). While principals were used to giving school tours, none had undertaken a mobile enquiry of wellbeing in their school, and initially some reported uncertainty as to where to start. By the end of the walking interviews principals reported they found the process to be illuminating, enjoyable and worthwhile. For the brevity of this article, only two topics from the findings are briefly covered, the creation and recreation of school space and navigating the intersections of wellbeing and support. The creation and recreation of school space Contestation School spaces were found to be in a constant process of being remade by those who used them, whether it was single cell classrooms being converted to open space classes, the creation of smaller quieter subspaces like tents within new ILE’s, or students turning long jumps into sandpits. Space was also being contested, as new ideas about the use of space saw the traditional conceptualisation of libraries and classrooms being challenged by different stakeholders. The process of rebuilds and new builds was frequently expressed as a long, challenging and stressful experience, requiring unforeseen and considerable revision. Notably, whilst MoE funding favoured large modern teaching spaces, there was a distinct negative funding bias towards playgrounds, staffrooms and offices. This funding model appeared to stand in contrast to the HWSA (2015) focus on worker wellbeing, and United Nations, Article 31 (2009), which protects the rights of children to rest, play and leisure: ‘So when we arrived here we had nothing, just the buildings. Some children went through our school minus a decent playground for their whole time at school’ Principals described their roles observing and advocating for children’s rights to have access to play spaces, they encouraged

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interaction with students through their office windows and enjoyed roaming around their schools connecting with students. Principals success in championing children’s rights to play was dependent on the resources of their community, as playgrounds were community funded. Similarly, whilst principals appreciated peaceful, natural spaces, their advocacy for restful places for their busy staff could also be constrained by funding prioritisation and bias.

Sentimental spaces In contrast to the sleek architectural make overs of some schools, principal’s offices were often galleries of sentimental artefacts that could date back over decades. Gifts and art from students who were now adults, family photos and mementos, certificates and treasures. Principals were therefore found to be passionate historians of their schools, reminiscing and reflecting on the social, whakapapa, and material connections, old and new photographs, plaques or objects representing celebrations of time, events or memorials of staff who had passed away. Wellbeing was also experienced as mediated through mauri [life force] within a relationship with whenua: ‘Well this is where the mauri is, we believe there is a life force of whenua but the life force can be represented in any way, so when we first came here there was a mauri, an object placed into the whenua to create the life force of the land, so this is an area of significance’ When principals discussed wellbeing they also talked about values, pointed out places and objects that were embedded in materiality, such as a large oven in the staffroom that represented manaakitanga, or the way the seats were positioned in the staffroom, enabling everyone to face inwards, after having tried other ways that had not ‘felt right’. Wellbeing in school space could be vulnerable to change, reflecting Charteris, Smardon and Nelson’s (2017) observations that change and spatial reframing of schools could ‘collapse bodies, feelings and histories together’.

The intersections of wellbeing and support Principals and principles at the intersection of wellbeing The school gates were described at times as thresholds between different worlds, and principals could feel the weight of their limited ability to manage their students’ experiences outside of school: ‘I have come to a clear understanding that I can only change the things that I can change. I can’t change the home 12

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backgrounds for a number of children at this school. I can’t change the circumstances that some children are finding themselves in or the experiences they have outside of the gate but I sure as heck can when they are inside the gate.’ Within the school gates, principals described a significant contrast between the gritty realities of wellbeing and the growing conceptualisation by external agencies of wellbeing in schools as being entwined with success, and as being teachable. Experienced principals reflected on the changes they noted in parenting over time, often comparing this with their own upbringing or parenting experiences, observing a loss of parenting confidence. They saw an increase in parental and family busyness and increased expectation from many stakeholders, for schools to accommodate the health, social, emotional and material needs of students. Whilst most schools received little or no resources or funding for feeding hungry children, principals got on with providing food and material support. While some members of parliament blame parents for hungry children (Education [Food in Schools] Amendment Bill – First Reading, 2015), principals did not: ‘I think I am in a bubble at [name of school] because if you come to work here you can’t be like that [blaming families and holding limited world views], people who work here don’t have that kind of thinking, they have a very strong belief in social conscience but I know it is still out there in the wider world and it really concerns me’ Therefore, principals’ discourses were encoded with their beliefs about care and their intimate and intricate understandings of the effects of broader social and economic policies and pedagogy on wellbeing that were situated in what Milligan and Wiles (2010) describe as the ‘landscape of care’. Principals of longer tenure cited times that they indirectly or directly buffered systems that they believed did not reflect their strong and sometimes personal values, including their sense of social justice. ‘Buffering’ has been described as a ‘cognitive act in which principals make rational choices about policy and in certain instances will shield their school out of compassion for teachers and students’ (Wenner & Settlage, 2015).

Navigating wellbeing The sentiment that getting to a place of personal and professional wellbeing was at times inhibited by demands, which Starrett and Leeman (2011) describe as ‘a multiplicity of daily problems’, was commonly expressed, with one principal noting that: ‘I’m not sure if you actually get into that professional wellbeing state because the nature of the beast with principal-ship is if you see the light in the tunnel it is always an oncoming train, it never is actually the light at the end of the tunnel and there is just something else coming on’ Principals described managing professional demands by having

developed rituals that delineated where the school day ended, and home and family began. In relation to wellbeing and proximity to their school, some principals purposefully lived out of their school area, however, others felt an enhanced sense of wellbeing through living locally, immersed in the community. The long hours, stressful situations and role could also blur boundaries and disrupt sleep and self-care and principals shared stories of mortality, heart attacks, cancer and illness: ‘I’m the first one to say to any one of these [sick] teachers don’t come to school you know, can’t afford to get sick but if I’m sick I’ll just be the last one to actually take sick leave’ However, principals felt their connection with students kept them going and also described receiving support from their families, a reciprocally responsive network of colleagues, supervisors, mentors and leadership teams. There was a strong emphasis on the importance of their leadership teams for trust, ‘having each other’s back’, enjoying humour and caring which contributed to principals’ sense of ‘how we are here’, the undercurrent of their collective values that underpinned leadership team relationships.

Boshier, P. (2017). Disclosure: An investigation into the Ministry of Educations engagement process for school closures and mergers. Office of the Ombudsman. Retrieved from http://www. ombudsman.parliament.nz/ckeditor_assets/attachments/486/ disclosure.pdf?1497928935 Charteris, J., Smardon, D., & Nelson, E. (2017). Innovative learning environments and new materialism: A conjunctural analysis of pedagogic spaces. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 49(8), 808–821. Retrieved from https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/1 0.1080/00131857.2017.1298035 Education Review Office. (2016) Wellbeing for Success: A Resource for Schools. Education Review Office. Retrieved from http://www. ero.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Wellbeing-resource-WEB.pdf Milligan, C., & Wiles, J. (2010). Landscapes of care. Progress in Human Geography, 34(6), 736–754. Retrieved from https://journals. sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0309132510364556 OECD. (2018). The Future of Education and Skills, Education 2030. Retrieved from https://www.oecd.org/education/2030/E2030%20 Position%20Paper%20(05.04.2018).pdf Office of the Auditor General. (2006). The Ministry of Education: Management of the School Property Portfolio. Retrieved from https://www.oag.govt.nz/2006/school-property/docs/property.pdf Office of the Auditor General. (2017). Managing the School Property Portfolio. Retrieved from https://www.oag.govt.nz/2017/schoolproperty/docs/school-property.pdf

Conclusion By utilising a methodology that was qualitative and mobile this study found that principals describe wellbeing as contextual, experienced in relationships between people, space, place and time. Space was in a constant process of being remade by the people within it and ministerial thoughts about educational space, values and wellbeing were found to not always be aligned with principals’ perceptions of wellbeing. A strong theme from this research was the pressure and stress generated from the lack of attunement between policies, funding and resources, in contrast to the realities of student and staff supports that principals were attempting to deliver. This method provides a practical way to take stock of how wellbeing exists in the school environment and celebrate, it also illuminates areas for practical interventions and action. The final quote acknowledges the principals who gave their time and honest, brave accounts of wellbeing and concludes this article. ‘The responsibilities are huge [for the principal], it’s not just for our kura it’s for the wider community and then it can even go nationwide, everything has to connect, and that’s why it’s [the role] called Tumuaki, we are the tumu, the head of the waka, the waka can’t go anywhere unless everyone is rowing the same way, so our job is to help guide it, not behind, not ahead but beside the people as well as through the rough waves and the calm waves as long as we are going in the right direction’ References Booth, K. I. (2015). What a difference place makes: Place gestalt and some methodological thoughts. Qualitative Inquiry, 21(1), 20–27. Retrieved from http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/ abs/10.1177/1077800414542689

Sointu, E. (2005). The rise of an ideal: tracing changing discourses of wellbeing. The Sociological Review, 53(2), 255–274. Retrieved from https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1467– 954X.2005.00513.x United Nations. (2009). Article 31 of the UN convention. Retrieved from http://article31.ipaworld.org/IPA%20World,%20IPA,%20 International%20Play%20Association,%20Article%2031, %20 UN%20Article%2031,%20Rights%20of%20the%20Child/unitednations/ Wenner, J. A., & Settlage, J. (2015). School leader enactments of the structure/agency dialectic via buffering. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 52(4), 503–515. Retrieved from https:// onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/tea.21212 Worksafe. (2015). The Health and Safety at Work Act 2015. Worksafe. Retrieved from https://worksafe.govt.nz/laws-and-regulations/ acts/hswa/ About the Author Michelle Cole is a child, adolescent and family mental health specialist and researcher. She has completed a Bachelor of Nursing and postgraduate certificates in infant child mental health, specialist mental health nursing and assessment and treatment of addiction. Her recent Master of Health Science at Otago (Dept of Population Health), thesis research focussed on principal’s perceptions of wellbeing in the context of their school environment. Michelle has worked closely with principals in schools in North Canterbury & Kaikoura in school mental health and is a member of the development team for Sparklers, the free wellbeing resource for schools. Michelle currently contracts to schools for professional development, supervision and special projects, is developing a participatory action research project for a child and youth led wellbeing hub for Area Schools with Cheviot Area School, and works with The Collaborative Trust (youth research) to provide the Wellbeing Snapshot method for schools, based on her research. Michelle also provides face to face therapy in North Canterbury.

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LOOKING AFTER YOURSELVES:

– A Survival Guide for Principals Geoff Lovegrove

Geoff Lovegrove, a previous president of the NZPF 10. NEVER allow surprises at Board meetings. Thank the person for raising the issue, then only respond when you’ve had time (1999–2001) wrote an article for principals, following a survey to properly investigate it. on principal stress levels in an earlier edition of the New Zealand 11. Relationships are everything. Decide which ones take priority. Principal magazine. His comments then are even more relevant now, and we reprint an updated version of the article first 12. Your key people are your partner, your Deputy Principal, published 13 years ago. your Board Chair, your Secretary/Office Manager and your Staff Trustee. Treasure them. Value The author served as a primary school them. principal for many years, in a range of The role of principal 13. There is no secret formula for New Zealand schools, large and small, success, but try this: Value People, rural, provincial, urban, high and low can be demanding, Employ the Best, Trust Them. decile. During that time he gathered invigorating, and 14. Find out why children remember together a range of quotes and general great principals. They are your advice from well-respected colleagues.

deeply satisfying. It is

models.

The role of principal can be demanding, 15. Only you can provide the big invigorating, and deeply satisfying. It always challenging. picture for staff, board and is always challenging. There has been community. an increasing awareness of the difficulties being faced by 16. Take some time every week to read and reflect. school leaders, and many good people have left (or are 17. When a crisis or traumatic event occurs (yes, it will), take a seriously considering leaving) the profession. NZPF has little time to consider how you will handle it. always placed great importance on Principal Hauora – the 18. When writing a difficult letter (or preparing for a difficult well-being of its members, and we all know that there are conversation), sleep on it before reviewing its content and no easy solutions. However, there are some things we can tone before sending it. do today, tomorrow or next week to help our colleagues 19. Always check every message before hitting SEND. and ourselves. Here are two sets of random thoughts from 20. Always share a problem with a trusted colleague. the author, who has used many of these himself . . . SURVIVAL KIT FOR PRINCIPALS (Try putting these in your own priority order): 1. History has shown that, no matter how dedicated, capable or hard-working you are, you are absolutely no use to anyone if you are dead. 2. No principal has ever been dismissed for failing to fill in a form. 3. Only your Board of Trustees can dismiss you. Not ERO; not the Ministry. 4. The commitment and dedication of New Zealand principals is killing too many of them. 5. Your most useful file is your rubbish bin (or your delete button). Fill that bin every day with everything unrelated to the real needs of your learning community. If you don’t fill it, find some files and empty them into it. 6. Receive emails and messages from each other, including jokes. Then reply. 7. Phone each other regularly. Keep in touch with colleagues, especially those you haven’t seen recently. 8. Make a list every day of what must be achieved. Start each day’s list with #1: “Make a list”. 9. Your job is only as secure as your last board meeting.

21. Holidays are for rest, recovery, refreshment and rejuvenation. Only a fool ignores that. 22. Don’t complain about the interruptions. The job is all about the interruptions. Deal with them. 23. Experts and life coaches talk about life balance. Do not expect total health and sanity if you have everything out of kilter. 24. It’s really all about kids, but it’s also all about you. Refer again to #1 above.

And another list of thoughts, taken from a speech to a Small Schools Principals’ Conference: ¾¾ ¾¾ ¾¾ ¾¾

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Get better at saying NO. Delegate more (not easy if you’re in a sole charge school!). Never lose your sense of humour. Have a trusted mentor you can share your thoughts and concerns with. Take part in your cluster groups and association activities. Take time for yourself. Never take your partner for granted. Maintain a balance (some sport, some spirituality, some pub; not too much of any one of these). Be unavailable sometimes.

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Take risks, make mistakes, learn from them (isn’t that what we say we want our children to do?). Always Iook like you are enjoying the job. Make it clear that you are not the property of the community, to be used, abused and discarded as they see fit. Do the basics really well. Your community will forgive you if you fail to fill in those returns, those forms, even those health & safety compliances, but they will never forgive you if you fail to teach their children well. Maintain an excellent relationship with your Board Chairperson. Show how much you value learning by demonstrating that you too are a good learner. Pick your issues. There are things that will take a lot of emotional energy. In the end, you have to say, ‘Was that battle worth fighting?’

Nothing is simple. School leadership is complex, and every day brings a range of challenges and satisfactions. Many things are beyond our control, but what we can control is the balance. At the end of each day, take a minute to reflect on the events and pressures you dealt with, and always ensure that the positives outweigh the negatives. Best wishes – enjoy the privilege of principalship!

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The Forty Hour Principal David Armstrong and Steve Zonnevylle

Timaru principals, David Armstrong and Steve Zonnevylle are taking time out over coffee at a quiet cafe away from the bustle of their schools. They’re contemplating the ongoing journey that’s resulted in the publishing of their first book, The Forty Hour Principal. On the face of it, the process from writing to publishing seems remarkably quick – just over seven weeks, but they are quick to confess that in reality, this journey started a long time ago and is the result of many, many coffee sessions and discussions. The title, The Forty Hour Principal is quite provocative isn’t it?, asks NZ Principal. ‘Yes it is. We’ve had quite a debate about it over the years. Basically it came from NZEI Well-being research showing that principals are spending huge, but variable, hours at school each week. We wanted a title that would push a few buttons for school leaders and that would get people wondering. We all grew up with this idea of a 40 hour work week. So where has that gone? Why is it that our working week has changed so much? Have we allowed this to happen somehow, and what can we do to make the job sustainable? We all know that it’s near impossible to fulfill our role in 40 hours, but there are natural waxes and wanes in our job that we should, and can, take advantage of when thinking about our own well-being’ David picks up the thread, ‘If you consider the fact that the average age of a principal in New Zealand is 54, it’s clear that there is change coming. Not to put it too finely, our principal workforce is an ageing one. It’s in the interest of everyone that we make this job sustainable. Let’s face it, there aren’t thousands of teachers clambering at our doors asking about the steps that it would take for them to be a school leader. The reality is that the role of principal is something that very few now aspire to.’ ‘So somewhere along the line we need to look at how to make our chosen vocation more sustainable – more

Timaru principals

desirable, so that we’re keeping the current principals in their jobs longer, and encouraging future leaders to look at it as something they’d love to have a crack at.’ ‘And, to put it bluntly,’ adds Steve, ‘the current model of school leadership in New Zealand is straining under pressure and is not effective. The support is limited, and does little to help people stay in the job,’ ‘We ran our own unscientific study and found that 1 in 5 principals have, or are, using anti-anxiety medications. That’s a lot of people needing ongoing medicated support just to do their daily job. These figures don’t reflect those who use other strategies such as alcohol as their crutch’. David is on a roll, and it’s highly evident that the two of them have put a lot of thinking into this work, ‘Many of the parameters shaping our roles are simply outdated. The issue is not one of individual capacity, it is so widespread that clearly it is the conditions of the job that need to be changed.’ Outside the weather is turning. Timaru certainly enjoys it’s southerly and it’s not long before the weather outside matches the conversation inside. Steve continues, ‘Look, things can certainly be viewed negatively, but we do this job because it’s a damn important one. Every day is different, and the positives are amazing. However just like the dinosaur that we post out with our book, the way that we, (principals and the wider profession), think about, and are expected to undertake our roles, needs to become extinct. And that’s what we are trying to achieve. We’re not gurus by any stretch of the imagination, and we certainly don’t have all the answers, but we do want to promote a conversation about doing all this quite differently.’ Both have been in principalship for over 20 years. Their work has always been in the Timaru area. ‘Although we’re working in provincial New Zealand, we certainly aren’t immune to the pressures and stressors that our changing society continues to force on us’.

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And although they’ve been in the game for a significant period of time, the experience doesn’t necessarily equate to an easier ride in their respective schools. ‘I’m still seeing and experiencing things that I’ve got no idea about. Increasingly, I find myself waiting for the cavalry to arrive to help us out, only to discover the cavalry is actually me. That leads to an increased feeling of isolation in the job,’ says Steve, ‘That’s an uncomfortable reality that we all share.’ David continues the theme, ‘Yes, and this isn’t always well understood by those around us who are meant to be supporting us. I know of a BOT chair who simply legitimized the stresses reported in the NZEI report by telling his principal that those stress levels are exactly what he’d expect to see in any CEO position. None of this helps.’ The book, The Forty Hour Principal and the accompanying blog, 40hourprincipal.com (which is added to weekly) promotes this different thinking. ‘Again, we want to stress, we’re not the experts, we just want to help people think about things differently,’ says David. So what are three key take outs from the book and the blog so far for each of you? ‘Easy,’ says Steve, ‘for me it’s the following’, ■■

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Do what makes your school human – encourage those things that make your school special . . . no kid will ever remember the photocopied sheets handed out in Yr4. They’ll remember the human elements. Be appreciative of everything in and around the school. Set up your appraisal inquiries based on what’s going right in your schools and use that appreciation to move forward in the areas not working so well. Don’t feel guilty about sometimes leaving school early. You need to leave when you need to leave. Work will always be there tomorrow. Look after yourself.

schools. Outside the southerly appears to have blown through and the sun is shining in its uniquely Timaru manner. Although there are stressors waiting at school, things are looking up. As they walk out of the door, Steve adds a last thought, ‘Look, our job is important, but it’s not the most important thing in our lives, and our role as a principal plays a huge part in who we are as an individual, but again, it’s not the most important part. Enjoy your families, your friends, and keep well. Do that, and your principalship will be more productive, more sustainable, and even more fun.’ The book, The Forty Hour Pr incipal, can be found through the website 40hourprincipal. com. Weekly articles are added to the blog, and their Facebook page (search for The Forty Hour Principal) so join in the conversation. Our book is purchased via our website https://40hourprincipal. com/book/ or directly from https://shop.realnzbooks.co.nz/ shopn/spi/books_16146

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‘I agree’ says David, ‘and I’d add’ ■■

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The important work always involves people. At the heart of a school are children and the biggest influence on their school day are their teachers. When work needs to be prioritised, people should always be first. Busyness is the opposite of being focused and productive. So many school leaders (and teachers) seem to wear busyness as a badge of honour. This has to stop. Maximum points for doing the important work, zero points for being busy. If you want (or need) change, it’s you who has to do it. No one will do it for you. As Steve said earlier, the cavalry is not coming so now is the time to step up and make the changes that you and your school need.

David’s phone rings. It’s his school. Almost at the same time Steve’s phone rings too. There’s a blocked drain to sort and a child running off down the street. They’re both needed back at their 20

N Z P r i n c i p a l | N o v e m b e r 2 0 19

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N Z Principal | N o v e m b e r 2 0 19

COACHING TRANSFORMS WHAKARONGO SCHOOL Liz Hawes

EDITOR

‘Isolation is the enemy of improvement’. So says the message on Principal Jaco Broodryk’s office wall. This is not just some random aphorism to fill a space. At Whakarongo School, it is an underlying tenet by which teachers and students structure learning and teaching. Learning and teaching is a collaborative team effort. As the article adjoining this story attests, the key to success at Whakarongo School is ‘coaching’ which extends right across the school and is already being tested out with student peer groups too. Sometimes the very best research and the very best practices emerge from responding to need. At Whakarongo, three major events intersected. First was the implementation of flexible learning spaces; secondly, extensive school growth meant that seven new middle leaders would be required to lead each of these seven flexible learning areas and thirdly, Deputy Principal, Lisa Cuff, was embarking on a Masters’ degree in coaching. The roll at Whakarongo school did not swell gradually over time. Children arrived as if by tsunami. The school, located on the outskirts of Palmerston North, had long operated as a modest country school, defined by its bordering farmland. As if over-night, houses mushroomed into life, spreading like spores across the nearby undulating sheep paddocks. Urgently needed new classrooms could not keep up with the wave of

soaring numbers. With the escalation in roll came a change in culture and direction for the school, including the arrival of new principal Jaco Broodryk. Jaco’s first challenge was to manage this rapid roll growth whilst recognising that the core, the spirit of his little country school, was fading before his very eyes. ‘We still have an Agriculture Day,’ he said, ‘to remind us of where we came from.’ A brief tour of the school reveals little that would lead the observer to think ‘Agriculture Day’ is more than a little nod to history. As growth pounded its relentless path to his school gate, Jaco was already establishing a new learning approach called flexible learning. This approach turns the lens on the curriculum, on problem solving, project-based learning, exploring, developing and creating. The children all work in pods – seven of them – each with its own Lead Teacher and at least two more teachers. There may also be a Teacher Aide. Freedom of curriculum development is evident throughout but there are a few non-negotiables. These include a respect for and practice of cultural competencies. The school has developed a strong relationship with Rangitāne iwi and Jaco is determined to enhance the relationship. He wants all Māori children to have access to their language and traditions and to gradually make Te Reo and Tikanga Māori normalised. It’s not that his modest population of Māori children are not doing well. They are all succeeding on a par with their peers. He wants his school to be actively showing respect for the aspirations of t he Tre at y of Wait ang i and he wants everyone in his school to be learning more Tikanga Māori and increasing the use of Te Reo in the school. ‘We are all teachers and learners here,’ he said, ‘and we are just beginning.’ The school, embarked on a Tukutuku Project, Kaokao, in 2015 as part of an indepth learning programme where students collectively Whakarongo School has now grown from a tiny country school to a school of 500 students

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Lisa Cuff, Deputy Principal and Jaco Broodryk, Principal in the grounds of Whakarongo School

researched, planned, designed, painted and wove five unique panels. Whakarongo School whānau, staff and the wider community also had the opportunity to participate in the weaving process for each panel. The project very much reflected the school’s approach to learning, through inquiry, problem solving and above all, collaboration. The finished Kaokao is a stunning visual representation of the spirit, the values, the togetherness and ‘how we do things’ at Whakarongo School. After the flexible learning spaces and the growth came the coaching. Coaching principals and coaching teachers are not new ideas. There is ample research to show that coaching can be very effective for improving practice. What is different about the coaching at Whakarongo School, is that it incorporates not just group coaching but also one-to-one coaching. Lisa Cuff, the Deputy Principal, individualised the professional learning for each of the seven new middle leaders who became the pod leaders. Key to the success of this coaching approach was relational trust, reflection and teaching the leaders collaboration and cooperation practices. Lisa Cuff found her coaching approach was a comfortable fit with the new vision for the school, based on collaborative practice at all levels. ‘Coaching,’ she said, ‘is really problem solving for ourselves.’

Once the trust was well established, confidence grew and the pod leaders flourished. Teachers became unafraid to admit and talk about their weaknesses, reflect on them, be honest about what they didn’t know and find ways to answer their own questions through conversations with others. Further, they learned how to use their new-found skills within their pods and to start coaching their own teachers. Being granted permission and indeed being encouraged to take time out to think about teaching practice and discuss alternative

Once a small country school nestled into rural Manawatu

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The senior students mediate any issues that arise for the young ones in the sandpit

A pod of children is ready for their collaborative session of the day

ideas with a trusted and highly experienced Deputy Principal were also elements that led to success. Teachers and principals commonly say ‘having time to think’ is now a luxury and rarely attained. Lisa Cuff insists that reflection is a critical component if these middle leaders are to get maximum benefit from their coaching experience. In a school that has now reached a roll of 500 the job of coaching the seven pod leaders as well as their teachers has become unrealistic. Consequently, the leadership team members have gone through an introductory coaching course through GROWTH Coaching New Zealand. In this way they can coach their own teachers. Training all members of the senior leadership team under the same umbrella course means there is consistency across the whole school in the style of coaching. So successful was the coaching of teachers in the school, it was decided to extend the learning to the senior students. Through coaching they have developed clear goal setting strategies. Teachers actively encourage students to buddy up and help each other set goals and evaluate them. Alongside the already established learning pathways, coaching makes it easier to identify what they want and how to get there. They have more focus and direction now. As the coaching progressed so also did the new collaborative approach to learning. It was a delight to observe a group of young boys setting out their goals together, researching together and ultimately designing together, through Minecraft, a project to

enhance their city of Palmerston North. They asked what was the reality, what were the options and what tactics they would employ to achieve their goals? This involved conversations, thinking, working out next steps, planning then structuring their project. They were learning together yet all making their own individual contributions. Effective learning was starting to become second nature to these young people. A luge became a new feature for Palmerston North; eliminating pollution and cleaning up the river was another goal; and retaining Palmerston North’s green spaces a further consideration. The lack of mountains from which a luge could run was a problem to solve, but the boys applied Minecraft engineering to sort that issue! This new approach to learning produces a very open and caring outlook across both staff and students. Senior students have become ‘mentors’ for juniors and take on playground duties – like mediating problems that occur for the young ones in the popular sandpit area. They also round up the less confident children who want friends to play with and act as buddies to younger children. ‘Having the senior students so involved with the younger ones creates a family atmosphere in the school,’ says Lisa. It’s a work in progress, say both Jaco and Lisa. They won’t be satisfied until all children and support staff have undergone coaching. They won’t rest until they have completely eradicated isolation – that ‘enemy of improvement’ – from all areas of the school. But are they pleased with their progress so far? They most certainly are.

The boys collaborate on making Palmerston North a great city project

Through Minecraft, the boys design a luge for Palmerston North

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The benefits of a coaching approach for teachers Lisa Cuff

Deputy Principal, Whakarongo School

Coaching is fast becoming a key instrument in the coaching reflective teaching’ (p. 269). By working one-to-one educational sector as a professional development tool to improve with staff, from a coaching stance, we hoped that we could teacher reflective practice. Literature has been generated in improve teachers’ reflective practices. New Zealand around the effectiveness of coaching leaders in One of the key factors we took into consideration was when educational contexts (Robertson, 2008). However, little has the coaching sessions would take place. Coaching needed to be been produced around the effectiveness of one-to-one coaching valued by staff and not seen as an extra add on. It was decided for improving teacher practice and how it can be embedded that the best time would be in the Classroom Release Time, effectively into a school primary setting that meets the needs where teachers were allocated a half hour session to work with of the teachers. me. Teachers were not forced to come to the sessions but the In 2015 Whakarongo School opportunity was offered and embarked on the journey of time allocated. Throughout coaching for leaders. This the year nearly all staff took initiative was the result of the opportunity to engage in the recruitment of seven new the sessions. A key factor when leaders throughout the school developing the coaching system after a school wide leadership was to ensure that it was clearly restructure. Coaching became communicated with staff that the role for myself as an the sessions were completely experienced Deputy Principal. confidential and that it did not Leaders met regularly affect teacher attestations. throughout the term for oneDuring this time I also to-one sessions along with worked on my Masters of group meetings. In line with Teaching – focused on effective Aguilar and Knight’s research coaching conversations for (Aguilar, 2013: Knight, 2009) teacher professional growth. The lead teacher of the pod opens up the inquiry topic whilst the the most beneficial approach These sessions were more other two teachers listen in to coaching can be achieved frequent and six staff members through one-to-one coaching conversations. Providing a coach, volunteered to be a part of the study. Data was collected from who had plenty of leadership experience ensured that leaders the six members of teaching staff to find the impact and if this were supported, and guided into their new roles succinctly and was worth pursuing. capably. This enabled us to provide professional learning for Data collected indicated that staff were coached to develop new leadership roles – which was unavailable to new leaders their thinking and to think deeply about their practice. A strong and an area of need within our education sector. We wanted to ethic of trust was built so that staff felt comfortable and confident ensure that for the implementation of our school wide Flexible to share their ideas. By implementing a coaching approach staff Learning Spaces the new leaders were successful in their roles were able to set clear and realistic goals, reflect on these goals and developed their leadership skills. After a very successful two with depth and deepen their quality of understanding of their years of coaching leaders and seeing the benefits of this work, own teaching pedagogy. Many of the goals linked directly to their we wondered what the impact would be on teachers, if they too teaching as inquiry and this provided a space for some more time were provided coaching. Would it have the same positive impact? to really analyse what was happening for teachers. Feedback from In 2017 all permanent teaching staff members plus seven teacher voice indicated a strong desire to continue on this journey leaders were again offered the opportunity for individual of coaching and all felt it made a difference to their teaching and coaching. Coaching sessions were based around the needs of to the impact that they were having on their students. the staff – this could be personal or professional. At this stage ‘It makes me think about the way I do some things and we wanted to evaluate if one-to-one half hour sessions would why.’ actually have a significant impact on teaching staff and their ‘It helps me to critically analyse my own practice as practice, and would then support improved student outcomes. well as helping me draw my own conclusions as to where Research demonstrates that allowing time for teachers to reflect to next.’ is an important aspect in improving teacher development ‘Coaching makes me think deeply about the outcomes (Brookfield, 1999; Joyce, 2015; Larrivee, 2000). Cochran-Smith of my teaching and set realistic goals for next steps . . . ’ & Lytle (1999) ‘found that good teaching can be coached and learned through reflective supervision or through a process of N Z Principal | N o v e m b e r 2 0 19

‘I feel listened to, my ideas are accepted and valued. It’s a really beneficial experience all around.’ ‘I really enjoy the sessions, having the half hour to just spend time reflecting and discussing my practice in a safe, secure and supportive environment. I really look forward to it . . . ’ ‘Coaching helps me clarify my thoughts when I am struggling and provides me with a way forward . . . ’ During this time we continued to upskill the senior leadership team in the use of coaching strategies. This was done through GROWTH Coaching New Zealand where staff undertook the Introduction to Coaching course. This then has enabled us to share out the coaching load so that others are now empowered in coaching staff. It has also ensured that all of the senior leadership team use the same language with staff. Staff are well aware of expectations and come to the sessions prepared and willing to reflect on their practice. As we have used the model more with teachers they are comfortable to have the conversations using the GROWTH model. Alongside this the GROWTH model was also introduced into some of the Senior classrooms and is still in the foundation stage. However, using a shortened version, GROW, we have slowly built up our student skills in order for them to have succinct and clear goal setting strategies. This has been heavily supported by teachers to begin with, encouraging students to buddy up and together help each other set goals and then evaluate them. Using learning pathways that were already in place with students, students can now easily identify what they want to achieve and

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how they will go about it with a lot more direction and focus. Student voice collected indicates that: ‘I find it useful to have my goals as it helps me focus on my learning areas and I can achieve things faster.’ ‘It is useful having the steps to work through and having it all in one place, it makes it easier to set the goals . . . ’ ‘It is helpful when I am thinking about my next goal – I can set it by myself following the steps.’ ‘I am getting better at writing my goals now.’ Peer feedback and assessment allows students to track their progress and then set more goals. This all takes time but the impact of this has been evident. Students are more empowered in their learning, able to set realistic goals and follow a plan and they are learning the skills of coaching as they work alongside each other. This is all then communicated with parents. This year we have introduced coaching sessions for our Teacher Aides as well. This runs alongside our Teacher Aide termly meetings, where Teacher Aides get an opportunity to meet and reflect on their role within the school. Coaching for teacher aides allows them to feel included as part of our staff and continues to create a culture of ongoing learning for all within our school: ‘It is somewhere for me to have a voice and if there is something that I need to speak around there is a confidential arena to have that discussion.’ ‘The coaching time is great for clarifying my ideas and having a “go to person” – someone who is there to listen to me and help support me in where I’m going . . . ’ It has enabled our Teacher Aides to be able to focus on their goals and to be able to evaluate these at the next sessions. The impact of effective coaching sessions continues to grow at our school. Teachers welcome the opportunity to work in a confidential, one-to-one space where they can take the time to really reflect on their practice. By using a coaching approach teachers are challenged to look in depth at their values and practice and are then supported to create change. It allows a chance for teachers to develop clarity and then provides strategies to break down bigger goals into sustainable and smaller steps. It has provided the school a clear pathway for all staff to develop their own personal focus, with clear steps and habits that are being embedded into their practice. References Aguilar, E. (2013). The art of coaching: Effective strategies for school transformation. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Wiley. Brookfield, S. D. (1999). Becoming a critically reflective teacher. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Joyce, P. (2015). Reflective practice: Methods and tools for supporting teaching, learning and professional development. Wellington, New Zealand: AKO Aotearoa.

You can search by magazine issue, article name or author visit www.nzprincipal.co.nz 26

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Knight, J. (2007). Instructional Coaching: A partnership approach to improving instruction. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. Larrivee, B. (2000). Transforming teaching practice: Becoming the critically reflective teacher. Reflective Practice, 1(3), 293–307 Robertson, J. (2008). Coaching Educational Leadership. London: Sage Publishers.

What are the chances of gaining ACET? Cedric Croft

Eligible teachers may apply for the Advanced Classroom Expertise Teacher Recognition (ACET) award. ACET is awarded on the basis of a principal’s recommendation and a portfolio of evidence which is evaluated by the ACET panel. The first step towards gaining ACET is the principal’s recommendation.

The Ministry have noted that the assessment sheet for each portfolio provides the justification for rejecting a principal’s recommendation. However ACET policy is clear that the assessment sheet is for candidates who request feedback and it appears therefore, that the panel’s practices are contrary to Ministry policy.

1. Principals’ recommendations The Ministr y of Education describes a principal’s recommendations as follows: ‘All certified portfolios which carry a recommendation from the teacher’s principal will be evaluated by the Panel . . . The panel’s role is to confirm or otherwise the principal’s recommendation for ACET recognition. In doing that the panel plays a crucial role in ensuring national consistency.’

2. Portfolios of evidence All portfolios with a principal’s recommendation are evaluated by the ACET panel. The panel has six members and a chairperson. Ministry awarded on the documentation obtained under OIA provisions describes the operation of the a principal‘s panel as follows.

ACET is basis of recommendation and a portfolio of evidence which is evaluated by the ACET panel.

The principal’s recommendation is seen as a central aspect of the ACET recognition process as Ministry policy statements note also, ‘. . . principal’s recommendation therefore carries significant weight in the ACET recognition process’. (OIA 1088111) However, from 2014–2018 inclusive, 379 or 38 per cent of applications with principals’ recommendations were rejected by the panel, meaning that despite their principals’ best judgement these applicants were denied this award. The validity of panel decisions appears never to have been established. The 38 per cent of portfolios with principals’ recommendations but not confirmed is the average over five years of the ACET scheme. In one year 44/75 portfolios with recommendations (58 per cent) were rejected by the panel. This is more than surprising considering the in-depth knowledge each principal must have of each applicant’s achievement of all ACET criteria. It is clear that the panel will make a final decision but Ministry policy specifies that the panel, ‘ . . . will need to provide justification for a departure from the principal’s decision.’ An obvious question is; how has the panel met this requirement? The panel appears not to provide specific justification for a departure from the principal’s recommendation. There is no indication on the panel’s assessment sheet to show that a principal’s recommendation has been duly considered or to show just why the principal’s recommendation has not been accepted.

‘The panel is made up of seven independent education experts who have demonstrated experience in making evidence-based critical decisions . . . All panellists are trained on the first day the panel sits, and expectations and the approach taken are made clear by the Chair at this time.’ ‘Two members of the panel consider each portfolio along with the principal’s recommendation. The panellists look for sufficient evidence within the portfolio that a teacher meets all of the professional criteria . . . ’ ‘To ensure portfolio evaluation is consistent, fair, and robust, each portfolio is moderated by a second pair of panellists. The panel chairperson then reviews all decisions for consistency and to ensure appropriate feedback are provided . . . ’ (OIA 1088111)

For the period 2014–2018, 992 portfolios were submitted with 613 confirmed for a success rate of 62.33 per cent. In terms of simple probability the chances of gaining ACET have averaged 0.62. However, 2017 stands out as well below the 5-year average with just 31/75 portfolios confirmed for a success rate of 41.33 per cent. For this year the chances of gaining ACET dropped to 0.41 and the proportion of principals’ recommendations rejected was a 5-year high of 58.67 per cent. Why was there such a drop for 2017? The ACET Chairperson’s report to the Ministry for that year acknowledges the sharp decline in portfolios stating, ‘As a panel we reflected on this change but could not identify any particular reason for the change.’ With no explanation in this report for the sharp drop in successful applications, further data were requested from the Ministry under OIA provisions.

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3. Variation between panellists Data for 2017 (which determined awards for 2018) showed considerable variation between panel members. Confirmation rates ranged from 12.5 per cent to 53.33 per cent. Each of the 16 portfolios associated with the evaluator with least confirmations had a probability of 0.125 or 1/8 chances of confirmation. Each of the 30 portfolios associated with the evaluator with most confirmations had a probability of 0.53 or about 1/2 chances of success. The two panellists with the least confirmation were associated with passing 10/44, or just 23 per cent of portfolios they evaluated. These same two panellists were associated with failing 34/44, or 77 per cent of portfolios evaluated. Candidates whose portfolios were evaluated by either panellist had diminished chances of success. As noted earlier panellists worked in pairs so additional data were obtained on the confirmation rates for each pair. There were twelve pairs of panellists with confirmation rates varying from 0.00, i.e. no confirmations (9 candidates) from two pairs of panellists; to 0.70 or 7/10 chances of being confirmed (10 candidates) for one pair. Variations in the chances of success which range from 0.00 to 0.70 suggest extreme unreliability which may be seen as unacceptable for high stakes assessment such as ACET. Similar variations were found for confirmation rates by the school decile of applicants. Candidates from decile 9 schools had the greatest confirmation rates with 7/11 or 63 per cent successful. Candidates from decile 10 schools had the least confirmations with 3/13 or 23 per cent successful. These data

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cannot identify particular bias towards portfolios from decile 10 schools but on the face of it inequitable outcomes have been revealed. Ministry criteria as quoted earlier note ‘ . . . the panel plays a crucial role in ensuring national consistency.’ No evidence was forthcoming on consistency over the five years, nor was there any indication of the procedures the panel would adopt to achieve this outcome. Given the unreliability as reported for 2017, it seems unlikely that consistency from year-to-year has ever been achieved. What are possible explanations for the wide variation in confirmations between panellists? According to information received, portfolios were distributed among panellists on a more or less random basis, so there are no reasons to suspect that some panellists’ received portfolios of lesser quality than others. What appears more likely is a lack of common understanding among panellists regarding interpretation of criteria for evaluation. This is not surprising given the broad and subjective nature of some criteria which form the basis for portfolio evaluation. Furthermore, there are no explicit assessment criteria or rubrics available to panellists and there appears to have been no validation of the technique of having pairs of panellists working together to arrive at an agreed outcome. This approach seems to have no precedent in the literature on portfolio evaluation. Monitoring procedures in the form of establishing inter-rater reliability were either ignored or unknown. 4. Moderation It is reasonable to assume that moderation of panellists’ evaluations as outlined in Ministry documents would identify inconsistencies in the original evaluation. But in 2017 this was not the case. Despite the marked variation between panellists and pairs of panellists, no decisions made in the original evaluations were changed by moderation. In 2017 the moderation process was ineffective. 5. No provision for review Despite the variation in performance of panellists and the fluctuations in confirmation rates from year-to-year, there is no provision within ACET policy for candidates to seek a review of the panel’s decision. This policy of ‘no review’ seems without precedence in the external examinations environment in New Zealand. This policy is to the detriment of candidates who may have had their portfolios incorrectly evaluated in the past, but it helps maintain the Ministry view that ACET evaluations are of ‘high quality’ despite data reported here! 6. Responsibilities for operation of ACET Where do responsibilities lie for the fair and equitable operation of the ACET? Ministry officials have noted that the panel chair has delegated authority to deliver outcomes as laid out in ACET policy documents. This seems not to have happened. The Ministry has a central role in the operation of the scheme but ACET policy is determined by the ACET Working Group which has representation from NZEI, STA and the Ministry. NZEI, the Ministry, and the Working Group have not accepted the data reported here and have stated repeatedly in correspondence that ACET procedures are ‘robust’, they ‘have confidence in the panel’, they ‘support the outcome of the assessment process’ and ‘the outcome would be the same’ no matter which panellist evaluated a portfolio. This latter comment

was attributed to the Working Group and suggests they are out of their depth when confronted with issues of reliability. Why there has been such uncritical support for the panel outcomes and ACET policies from NZEI, the Working Group, and the Ministry is a matter for speculation. What could have been done regarding the data reported to the Working Group? Given a 24 per cent decline in confirmations from 2016 to 2017 (for 2018 confirmations rose by 10 per cent) their first obligation was to acknowledge the Ministry data instead of trying to refute it. A strong case existed (and exists still) for all failed portfolios from 2017 to be reviewed independently, particularly those evaluated by the two panellists noted earlier, and all portfolios from decile 10 applicants. If the standards of previous years had applied in 2017, on average an additional 15 or so portfolios would have been confirmed. 7. Conclusions What then have been the chances of gaining ACET? From 2014–18 on average, the chances were 0.62. In 2017 the average chances dropped to 0.41. But the average value masks that the actual chances varied from 0.00 to 0.70 depending on who evaluated a portfolio. The choice of panellists appears to have had too much influence on the final outcomes for candidates. It is clear also, that the marked drop in confirmations for 2107 resulted from the numbers of portfolios failed by two panellists as noted earlier. This reasonably simple conclusion seems to have escaped the notice of the ACET Working Group, the panel chair, and the Ministry.

The data suggest a lack of validity, reliability, and fairness in the operation of the ACET panel. One major failure of ACET in my view is the Ministry’s refusal to incorporate a review process as standard practice. A review process would provide a safeguard for candidates and bring a form of external accountability to the operation of the panel and the policies of the Working Group. A second major failure is the lack of information regarding just how the panel considers each principal’s recommendation and just why on average more than one-third of these recommendations have been overturned. It may be of particular concern that for one year almost 60 per cent of principals’ recommendations was overturned by the panel without the justification required by Ministry policy. The evaluation of many portfolios in 2017 seems to have been carried out in a manner well short of accepted standards for high stakes assessment. Some unsuccessful candidates might find it deeply concerning to know that two panellists had such a negative influence on the outcomes for their portfolios. Some successful candidates might be grateful their portfolios were evaluated by other panellists.

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Ako learn, Ako teach Enhance science learning in your school through the Science Teaching Leadership Programme. Jenn Corbitt

STLP coordinator, Royal Society

Since 2015, the Science Teaching Leadership Programme has been making a difference to students’ science engagement and achievement around New Zealand.1 It is an initiative supporting the government’s strategy for Science in Society that emphasises the development of scientifically literate communities actively participating in society decision-making.2 The programme focusses on making connections within and across communities. The programme is a well-resourced professional growth model that reflects best practice and sustains change. By focussing on leadership and whole school learning, the programme aims to enhance the quality of science programmes within school communities. It is run by Royal Society Te Apārangi on behalf of government. Who the programme is for: The programme is well suited to forward-thinking schools who are interested and ready to undertake comprehensive and in

depth learning in science. It requires a long-term commitment of 18 months to two years so the full support of staff, community and Board of Trustees are essential for success. Schools can be at any stage of their learning journey in science. They must, however, be open to new and challenging thinking and be ready to commit to building relevant and authentic science programmes that reflect their local community needs and issues. In return, the programme constructs with schools a high quality, responsive and student-centred learning opportunity that reflects the unique context of each school. What’s involved in the programme There are two phases. Phase one’s primary focus is the school’s science leader (the participant teacher). During phase two, the focus changes to the whole school and the local school community. Each phase is financially well-resourced to maximise programme success. Phase one (two school terms)

Phase two (12 – 18 months)

Participant teacher takes paid leave from school to: • work in science organisation to see the Nature of Science in action • develop their leadership confidence and capability • u n d e r t a ke i n t e n s i ve s c i e n ce curriculum development focussing on the Nature of Science strand through the lens of western science and Te Ao Māori.

Participant teacher returns to school and: • undertakes a rigorous internal science evaluation to identify strengths and needs • implements a science development action plan • reports regularly on the impact of science development on students’ understanding of what science is and how it works.

What the programme pays for: Phase one

Phase two

• The salary and some allowances of the participant teacher. • Participant teacher expenses including travel and accommodation. • Travel and teacher release (where appropriate) for other school representatives to attend two planning days at Royal Society Te Apārangi.

• Targeted funding, typically teacher release, for science leadership and development activities. • Ongoing mentoring and coaching of the participant teacher in leadership and curriculum. • O p p o r t u n i t i e s f o r r e g i o n a l connections.

Programme success: Extensive evaluation has found that the programme has led to: ■■

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Nick’s joyful workshop

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Positive outcomes for students – fully engaged, curious learners excited about science who see themselves as scientists. Improved achievement in other learning areas – literacy, particularly oracy, and numeracy levels have increased.

Karen on bike ■■

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Energised teachers with increased confidence to regularly teach science. Programmes fully reflective of curriculum and focussed on developing scientifically literate tauira. Meaningful relationships with science groups and individuals in the local community with students taking an active role as participants. Invigorated, skilled science leaders who add value to the school-wide leadership.

What principals say about the programme: ‘The STLP programme has given staff an empowerment that I have not seen in any other PD. It was well-resourced, supported, and looked at the long-term gains of such an investment.’ Wayne Jenkins, Ross Intermediate, Manawatū ‘The STLP has enabled my Deputy Principal to pursue a teaching and personal passion for six months, and further develop his leadership capabilities and skills. He has returned from this initiative enthusiastic, passionate, committed and with more confidence and drive to implement new ideas into our Science and STEAM curriculum. It’s a win, win for us all.’ Debbie Smith, Musselburgh School, Otago ‘The STLP has been the fuel for our rocket enabling lift off, enabling a sound flight plan as we move forward to strengthen science programming and delivery within our school. As a lever for change, the STLP has to be one of the most effective partnerships the school has engaged in.’ Louise Broad, Kowhai Intermediate, Auckland

‘The Science Teaching Leadership Programme has been a game changer in the way we have been able to prime, design, connect, and amplify learning experiences that respond to our ākonga, kaiāko, whānau, and communities strengths, interests and cultural capital. The programme has built the leadership capacity of our science leaders to make the Nature of Science and Capabilities front and centre, living and breathing and ultimately made science assessable to not only the staff, but our ākonga and our community. Development in curriculum integration and localised curriculum has enabled science provocations, urges, social actions, forest school development and deliberate partnerships with local community, iwi and council to flourish by provided real life hands on experiential learning opportunities for the science capabilities to be part of our everyday language of learning.’ Shane Cunliffe, Te Puke Primary, Bay of Plenty What participant teachers say about the programme: ‘The STLP turned our school perspective about science on its head. Staff empowered, students demanding to discover more – what more could a Principal want?’ Helen Duff, Kaponga School, Taranaki ‘The Science Teaching Leadership Programme was the best professional development I have ever had the good fortune to be part of. While it pushed me out of my comfort zone, the comprehensive nature of the programme provided the time to properly develop my confidence, content knowledge and leadership skills. By connecting with scientists in the community, colleagues in other schools, and even members

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Katreena studying our waterways

Karina’s citizen science, beaut view on grass

of the media, I have created a rich network of experts that have helped provide meaningful learning opportunities for staff and students.’ Karina Sharpe, Wanaka School, Otago

Applying for the programme: There’s an annual application round for schools interested in participating the following year. Schools can choose to start the programme in term one or term three. Comprehensive application information is available on the Royal Society Te Apārangi website: royalsociety.org.nz/stlp.

‘My experience as a participant teacher on the Science Teaching Leadership Programme was the transformative professional learning of a lifetime. I gained a deep understanding of the science curriculum, had real world work experience in the field and, most importantly, developed the leadership skills and vision required to make a difference back at school. My growth as a leader has empowered me to make a real difference at school, supporting colleagues to develop their practise and taking on an active role in guiding the direction of curriculum development’ Gillian Donnelly Otatara School, Southland ‘The Science Teaching and Leadership Programme provided me the single most valuable professional learning to develop my leadership capabilities and influence and enhance educational outcomes for our tamariki not only in science but across the curriculum. The programme invested quality time and tools to really explore our underlying values, beliefs and perceptions – pushing us to consider multiple lenses in all situations. We were able to formulate customised action plans that utilised our existing leadership strengths, developed any areas that needed support and ultimately lifted the engagement and achievement of the ākonga in our care. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend the programme to anyone as I believe myself, my colleagues and our kura have all benefited.’ Katreena Daniels, Welcome Bay School, Bay of Plenty ‘The Science Teaching Leadership Programme has provided me with a toolkit to not only become a more capable teacher of science, but helped me to become confident as a leader of science within my school. The programme links the key concepts of the science curriculum with personally rewarding leadership development. Within this, there is also time to truly absorb and appreciate the content. I have come out of the programme feeling more aware of what I believe in as an educator and I have a greater set of skills and knowledge to plan for and implement positive change to science education at my school.’ Nick Wilson, Ross Intermediate, Manawatū

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In essence: ■■

■■

Schools identify a teacher who is an excellent practitioner and has the potential to be an effective science leader. The school AND the teacher complete a comprehensive application outlining their reasons for applying for the programme and their thinking about science. Written references attesting to the teacher’s practice and leadership potential are required. The principal AND the teacher are interviewed to further unpack why the programme is the best fit for the school. A selection committee decides which schools to invest in.

The Science Teaching Leadership Programme is a high trust, high accountability initiative that sustains change in schools. If you are interested in finding out more: ■■

■■

Go to the Science Teaching Leadership Programme webpage on the Royal Society Te Apārangi’s website: royalsociety.org. nz/stlp. Visit the programme Facebook page to read about participant schools. Contact Jenn Corbitt, STLP coordinator jenn.corbitt@royalsociety.org.nz DDI 04 470 5751

References 1 Since 2015, the programme has worked with 119 primary, intermediate and secondary schools and 146 participant teachers. 2 Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment and Ministry of Education 2014 A Nation of Curious Minds He whenua hihiri I te mahara A national strategic plan for science in society. 3 Timperley,H,. Wilson, A,. Barrar, H., Fung,I.(2007) Teacher Professional Learning and Development. Best Evidence Synthesis Iteration [BES]. Wellington: Ministry of Education.

School Lines Take Courage Localise! It’s your curriculum! Lester Flockton

lester.flockton@gmail.com

Many years ago, when teaching in Kent (England), I often passed a billboard urging viewers to ‘Take Courage’. (For more than 2 centuries, Courage was among the best-known names in British brewing.) I’ve often thought that this, metaphorically speaking, is exactly something NZPF should be promoting at every opportunity. Moreover, I’m sure that many would enjoy regular samples of the non-metaphoric stuff. David Lange’s Tomorrow’s Schools reforms were essentially about localising decision making, or devolution. Consistent with this, the design and direction of The New Zealand Curriculum (2007) was always intended to be substantially about localisation. Its driving underpinnings included rationalisation of learning outcomes – how many, how much, and which ones. The expectation was that schools would interpret the national curriculum in ways that addressed the needs, interests and learning priorities of their students while ensuring that local curricular goals were suitably aligned and consistent with the intent of broadly stated national goals. Interestingly, many education systems are coming to believe that this is a direction that should be followed as opposed to a system of centralised dictates and a one-size-fits-all mentality. Soon after the launch of the 2007 national curriculum a few of us set about helping schools to design, develop and localise their curriculum, with strong emphases on ownership and a sensible, workable framework that did not include the ill-conceived and ill-defined achievement objectives. These AOs, derived from the previous curriculum designed according to Education Minister Lockwood Smith’s ‘Achievement Initiative,’ could never be defended as a sound or sensible part of that localisation, despite yearnings from some ill-equipped assessment people. National standards, which were commanded at a time when The New Zealand Curriculum was just getting off the ground, completely overshadowed the realisation of the richness, forward thinking and direction of the NZC. Equally, national standards overrode progress towards developing the precepts of curricular localisation. The Ministry of Education, the Education Review Office and their various affiliates took giant backward steps and buried their heads in an all-consuming preoccupation with the 3Rs and associated data manufacture – all of which proved to be an abysmal failure and led to needless heartache for far too many schools. While all is not forgiven now that National Standards have been assigned to the annuls of dark history, the Ministry of Education has now lifted its head and taken to seeing the light within the NZC. Lo and behold, over a decade after its official implementation it is starting to discover and advocate for what it is all about, including localisation! Unlike the prescriptive national standards curriculum, it is now officially declared that

the NZC should be interpreted so that it becomes yours. It is your school and it’s your curriculum. Your local curriculum should be unique and responsive to the priorities, preferences, and issues of your community and your people. What is important is that all elements of The New Zealand Curriculum are used as the framework in designing your local curriculum. This ensures you’re supporting the strengths of all your learners. Ministry of Education, Curriculum Online. October 2019 Great stuff! The Ministry now quite correctly recognises and acknowledges that the NZC is a framework rather than a detailed plan and that schools have flexibility in deciding how, how much, and what they formally assess. This means that every school curriculum must be aligned with the intent of the New Zealand curriculum, schools have considerable flexibility when determining the detail of teaching, learning and assessment in their context. In doing this, they can draw on a wide range of ideas, resources and models. Ministry of Education, Assessment Online. October 2019 But its understanding and acknowledgement of the limitations and highly problematic nature of the achievement objectives across all learning areas reveals an unfortunate deficiency in the Ministry’s thinking and advice. For teachers in years 1 to 8, measuring progress across the curriculum is more problematic than in literacy and numeracy. Some learning areas are well supported by learning progressions, others less so. For some learning areas school will have to make decisions based on achievement objectives and available resources, and develop assessments accordingly. Ministry of Education, Assessment Online. October 2019 Schools would do well to ignore this, especially if they are to adopt a sound and workable model of curricular localisation. And the Ministry would do well to seek some objective expert advice to help it better understand such issues. While any curriculum should be able to be reviewed and refined in light of new insights and circumstances, changes come from all sorts of motives. They also come at a considerable cost to everyone. Of late, the NZC has been given the DTs (Digital Technologies). Pandora’s box is to be opened with the addition of Government mandated instruction on New Zealand’s history (warts and all?). The Minister’s and Ministry’s curriculum, progress and achievement advisory committee is convinced that

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AOs be replaced with POs (Progress Outcomes) according to LPFs (Learning Progression Frameworks). That same committee is also behind what has been called a ‘curriculum shake-up’ A curriculum shake up is on the cards for New Zealand’s classrooms, paving a new way for how pupils are taught in schools. Education Minister Chris Hipkins announced the refresh of New Zealand’s national curriculum and Te Marautanga o Aotearoa on Friday morning which he said would keep studies agile and have a stronger focus on wellbeing, identity, language and culture. STUFF Jessica Long, Sep 20 2019 So at a national level the bureaucrats with their advisory consultants are well and truly in business again, now that they no longer have national standards to occupy their offices. But at a local level countless schools are still coming to grips with the opportunity for localising their curriculum. That rightful focus shouldn’t be distracted or threatened by all of the hubbub going on in offices that are not theirs. Let’s never forget that the ‘co-constructed’ NZC was the outcome of unprecedented professional and wider community input and engagement in its development – apart from the ‘back end.’ Let’s also understand and accept that a school cannot expect, or be expected, to cover everything it includes and do it well if their students are to have meaningful, authentic, deep learning. We need to be wary, therefore, of curricular expansionism – puffing it out with botoxification and jellied implants that could end up giving it the wobbles. Localising the curriculum in the face of new edicts will require schools to take courage. Be ambitious but stay grounded. Think children. Think local. And think for yourselves.

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Recruiting the right teachers for your school . . . Helen Kinsey-Wightman So I am back in the Acting Principal chair, this term is 8 weeks long and my to do list feels like it would take 10 weeks even if I only left school to sleep . . . Top of the list is ensuring I have the right teachers in 2020. Fortunately, I do have some experience in teacher recruitment. As Principal of an International School I travelled to the UK twice a year to recruit teachers with the help of a recruitment consultant. I once asked her what the secret to her success was and she said: thorough background checking and great instincts. When you are recruiting teachers and taking them away from their support networks, half way around the world to work in a country where they don’t speak the language and won’t be able to buy their favourite comfort food in the supermarket, choosing wisely is important. So what did I learn? 1. Knowing what you need . . . Before you start it is really important to know the attributes that you need in your employees. ‘Hire character, train skill’ is a quote attributed to Peter Schutz the CEO of Porsche. This notion fits well with Carol Dweck’s research around growth mindset. She would argue that choosing staff with a growth mindset leads to greater organisational success. What values and beliefs are at the core of your school? What initiatives have you invested in that you need new staff to buy into? What are your non-negotiables? Create a profile and design your recruitment process around finding the person who fits. 2. Your recruitment process – what skills can’t be assessed in an interview? If our core business is teaching – why do our recruitment processes so rarely involve watching a teacher teaching? Create a situation where you see a teacher at work, either by visiting their own classroom, or through creating a situation where they teach in your own school. It is a reasonable expectation that given a learning outcome ie that students will understand the difference between a physical and a chemical change, a good science teacher can create a lesson whereby learning occurs. You can then ask students for feedback too. When assessing communication skills, you could also ask teachers to send in a video clip of them introducing themselves – in New Zealand you might expect that this would reflect our bicultural heritage and include a pepeha. When selecting a senior leader, we needed a team member who would be able to fit into a high performing team, someone who was creative, collaborative and thoughtful in the way they solved problems. We set up a scenario (a real issue within our school environment) with some background reading and asked

the prospective team member to take the role of leader and work through the problem with our existing team. The scenario could be around creating a policy on cellphone use in a high school, or a programme to stimulate verbal language in the early years at primary school. This allowed our senior team to assess the skills of the candidates and gain a view on their values, collaboration and thinking skills. 3. The interview If you are a new Principal, before setting up your interview panel, check your BoT delegations. Do you need to have BoT members on the panel? In some schools this is at HoD/Syndicate leader level, in others it might be for senior leadership positions only. Who do you need on the panel? Steve Jobs was famous for advocating for a collaborative hiring strategy. It was common at Apple that interviewees would speak to at least a dozen people across disciplines. If a staffmember is giving a prospective teacher a tour of the school brief them about a few questions they can drop in and get their feedback afterwards. My favourite interview questions for teachers are: Tell me about your best lesson . . . Now tell me about your worst and what you did as a result . . . Knowing how people reflect on, and recover from the worst moments tells you a lot about their resilience. As an interviewer, it is sometimes really challenging when a candidate who seemed amazing on paper is really nervous or very shy. How do you draw them out? It might be tempting, but never answer the questions for them. Instead, rephrase the question and have some supplementary questions to get a deeper response. For candidates with gaps or frequent job changes in their CV ask them about this. ‘I notice you had 3 different jobs in 18 months – tell me about that . . . ’ It might be that there was a relationship breakdown over this period or a move to a new town. 4. References However desperate you are never employ a teacher without a reference check. Always ask, ‘Would you re-employ this person?’ Always check the applicant’s registration number on the Teaching Council website. 5. Creative solutions to staffing challenges Primary school teachers have strong pedagogy and can be valuable additions to a high school staff – particularly for junior classes needing acceleration. In a primary school a skilled ECE teacher could work with a Y1 class who need additional support N Z Principal | N o v e m b e r 2 0 19

to be school ready. Having relationships with your local tertiary institution allows you to negotiate employment of almost qualified teacher trainees on an LAT prior to gaining provisional certification. Bringing teachers from overseas can be challenging although finding a skilled teacher who is invested in making the transition can be very beneficial. As a country school principal needing maternity leave cover, I recruited a teacher from Canada. He and his wife came to NZ for 6 months and I believe this time had a profound effect on them and was beneficial to learners in the school.

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6. Trust your gut instinct . . . Returning to the wisdom of a recruitment consultant, if something doesn’t feel right it probably isn’t. Offer feedback to unsuccessful candidates – this gives the opportunity for reflection and personal growth. We recently employed a teacher who had not been successful previously and had gone away and done some work on their cultural responsiveness because we identified this as a non-negotiable for employment at our school. 7. Finally – when you appoint staff: Think about what you learned about them in the recruitment process. How will you develop that person to fit the team? How will you provide induction and mentoring to upskill new staff regarding the initiatives in your school? All the best for your 2020 recruitment process.

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Digital Technologies and Hangarau Matihiko curriculum content.

Why teach it?

Fast-paced digital technologies change is having a significant impact on our society, our daily life, and on the future of work. This National Curriculum change is for all learners, and the future of Aotearoa.

Evolving learning: the revised Technology Learning Area and Hangarau WÄ hanga Ako aims to support young people to build digital capabilities so they can participate, create, and thrive. It is timely to consider how your school is incorporating the new content into your local curriculum, and the Leading Local Curriculum Guide series will help you do this.

Technology.tki.org.nz

HangarauMatihiko.tki.org.nz

digi.tech@education.govt.nz

#futurethinking_today

nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/Reviewing-your-curriculum