Professor David Hopkins HSBC Chair of International Leadership

1. “Building Capacity forSchool Transformation in theNorthern Metropolitan Region”Presentation at thePrincipals Achievement Improvement Zones MeetingDarebin Arts and Entertainment Centre, PrestonWednesday, 12th December 2007 Professor David HopkinsHSBC Chair of International Leadership

2. Moral Purpose of Schooling I get to learn lots of interesting and different subjects I know what my learning objectives are and feel in control of my learning I can get a level 4 in English and Maths before I go to secondary school I know what good work looks like and can help myself to learn I know if I need extra help or to be challenged to do better I will get the right support My parents are involved with the school and I feel I belong here I can work well with and learn from many others as well as my teacher I know how I am being assessed and what I need to do to improve my work I can get the job that I want I enjoy using ICT and know how it can help my learning All these …. whatever my background, whatever my abilities, wherever I start from

3. The G100 Communique A group of 100 principals from fourteen countries (G100) met at the National Academy of Education Administration (NAEA) in Beijing, China 16-19 October 2006 to discuss the transformation of and innovation in the world’s education systems. They concluded their communique in this way - We need to ensure that moral purpose is at the fore of all educational debates with our parents, our students, our teachers, our partners, our policy makers and our wider community. We define moral purpose as a compelling drive to do right for and by students, serving them through professional behaviors that ‘raise the bar and narrow the gap’ and through so doing demonstrate an intent, to learn with and from each other as we live together in this world.

4. The need for a systemic response … We aspire to a society that is not merely civil but is good. A good society is one in which people treat one another as ends in themselves. And not merely as instruments; as whole persons rather than as fragments; as members of a community, bonded by ties of affection and commitment, rather than only as employees, traders, consumers or even as fellow citizens. The vision of a good society is a tableau on which we project our aspirations, not a full checklist of all that deserves our dedication. And the vision is often reformulated as the world around us changes, and as we change. The Third Way is a road that leads us toward the good society. However, it should be acknowledged at the outset that the Third Way is indeed fuzzy at the edges, not fully etched. Amitai Etzioni – The third way to a good society

5. The Logic of System Leadership Learning Potential of all Students Repertoire of Learning Skills Models of Learning - Tools for Teaching Embedded in Curriculum Context and Schemes of Work Whole School Emphasis on High Expectations and Pedagogic Consistency Sharing Schemes of Work and Curriculum Across and Between Schools, Clusters, Districts, Regions, States, Nationally and Globally

6. The Design of the Programme Improving Achievement Assessment for learning Literacy and numeracy Classroom management Pedagogy - effective teaching practice Regular training for all staff Intensive training for 75 teachers from each network School change agents School leadership Peer training

7. Devise your programme around core values Every school can improve Improvement is assessed in terms of enhanced pupil outcomes Every individual in the school has a contribution to make Start from where the school is, but set high goals Model good practice with precision Raise expectations of what is possible.

8. A Three Phase Strategy for School Improvement Phase One: Establishing the Process Phase Two: Going Whole School Phase Three: Sustaining Momentum

9. Phase One: Establishing the Process Commitment to the School Improvement Approach Selection of Learning Leaders and School Improvement Group Enquiring into the Strengths and Weaknesses of the School Designing the Whole School Programme Seeding the Whole School Approach

10. Preparing for School Improvement Pre-conditions School Level Preparations Unifying Focus Means • Commitment to School Improvement • General consensus on values • Understanding of key principles • Shared values • A mandate from staff • Leadership potential • Identification of change agents • Willingness to make structural changes • Capacity for improvement Improvement Theme - An enquiry into Teaching and Learning School Improvement Strategy

11. Phase Two: Going Whole School The Initial Whole School PD Day(s) Establishing the Curriculum and Teaching Focus Establishing the Learning Teams: Curriculum groupings Peer coaching or ‘buddy’ groups The Initial Cycle of Enquiry Sharing Initial Success on the Curriculum Tour

12. Curriculum Tour WHOLE SCHOOL DEVELOPMENT PRIORITY An Enquiry into Teaching and Learning Dept C (Inductive Teaching) Dept. A (Inductive Teaching) Dept. B (Inductive Teaching) Stage I Stage II ‘Curriculum Tour’ Stage III Group Work Memory Synectics WHOLE SCHOOL WORKING TOWARDS REPERTOIRE OF TEACHING AND LEARNING STRATEGIES

13. Phase Three: Sustaining Momentum Establishing Further Cycles of Enquiry Building Teacher Learning into the Process Sharpening the Focus on Student Learning Finding Ways of Sharing Success and Building Networks Reflecting on the Culture of the School and Department

14. Moving to Scale Cohorts of 6 - 8 Schools 6 - 8 Members of School Improvement Group Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 PLAN Cohort A | | ………………………. Cohort B | | …………......... Cohort C| | ………….....

15. NMR Achievement Improvement Zone Timetable • September 2007 – June 2008: Phase One: Establishing the Process • July 2008 – December 2008: Phase Two: Going Whole School • January 2009 onwards: Phase Three: Sustaining Momentum

16. KNOWLEDGE UTILISATION PRIORITISATION AND PLANNING SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT GROUP AND LEADERSHIP CURRICULUM LITERACY TEACHING BEHAVIOUR NETWORKING POWERFUL STUDENT LEARNING PEDAGOGY NUMERACY ASSESSMENT STAFF DEVELOPMENT DATA

17. Building Capacity for School Improvement • School improvement group and leadership • Prioritisation, planning and phasing • Use of data and enquiry • Whole school staff development • Knowledge utilisation • Networking and innovation

18. School Improvement Group and Leadership • What is a School improvement Group? • The difference a SIG makes • Leadership and student achievement

19. The School Improvement Group The school improvement group is essentially a temporary membership system focused specifically upon enquiry and development. This temporary membership system brings together teachers (and support staff) from a variety of departments within the school, with a range of ages or experience and from a cross-section of roles to work together in a status-free collaborative learning context. One teacher has described it as the educational equivalent of a research and development group.

20. The Sharnbrook Experience The opening up of classrooms and classroom practice and the legitimisation of in-class coaching. The creation of a language to talk about teaching and school improvement. The integration of enquiry and professional development approaches. The value and authenticity of the student voice and the significance given to their perceptions as learners. The willingness of all staff to embrace the value of the development work emanating from the school improvement group. The ownership by the whole staff of the school improvement approach. The power of a sustained school improvement journey to win over those initially sceptical or even cynical. The expansion of leadership capacity.

21. System Leadership and Student Achievement To sustain improvement: • the leadership develops a narrative for improvement • the leadership is highly focussed on improving the quality of teaching and learning (and student welfare) • the leadership explicitly organises the school for improvement • the leadership creates: • clarity (of the systems established) • consistency (of the systems spread across school), and • continuity (of the systems over time) • the leadership creates internal accountability and reciprocity • the leadership works to change contextas a key component of their improvement strategy

22. Prioritisation, Planning and Phasing • Selecting and sequencing priorities • Success criteria • Action planning

23. Development Planning and Classroom Practice Successful schools use the development plan to achieve an explicit classroom focus. They choose priorities that:  • Focus on pupil progress and achievement; • Are manageable and few in number; • Relate to the school’s vision; • Are sequenced over time.

24. Success Criteria Success criteria are a form of school-generated performance indicator, which: • give clarity about the target: what exactly are you trying to achieve?; • point to the standard expected by the team; • provide advance warning of the evidence needed to judge successful implementation; • give an indication of the time-scale involved.

25. Action Plans for Student Achievement Specific targets related to pupils’ learning, progress and achievement that are clear and unambiguous; Teaching and learning strategies designed to meet the targets; Evidence to be gathered to judge the success in achieving the targets set; Modifications to management arrangements to enable targets to be met; Tasks to be done to achieve the targets set and who is responsible for doing them; Time it will take; How much it will cost in terms of the budget, staff time, staff development and other resources; Responsibility for monitoring the implementation of the plan; Evaluating its impact over time.

26. Use of Data and Enquiry • Monitoring and predicting student performance • Assessment for learning • Enquiry driven school improvement

27. Monitoring and Predicting Student Performance • The Fisher Trust analyses for example provides estimates, for individual pupils, schools, districts and regions which indicate likely performance based upon progress: • • equal to that across all schools • • equal to that in similar schools • • which includes a significant challenge factor. • Fisher Trust also provides a range of value-added analyses to support self-evaluation by comparing • performance in previous years with estimates based upon pupil prior-attainment.

28. Assessment for Learning (AfL) Central to assessment for learning is the focus on helping pupils become increasingly effective independent learners. Teachers need to develop a good understanding of subject progression so that they can help pupils: • understand precisely what they are trying to learn and why, and what their next steps are; • assess their own progress (and similarly help their peers); and, • recognise the standards they are aiming for and strive for personal excellence. Teachers also need to continue to develop their understanding of how pupils learn so that they can help them to: • reflect on how they learn; • develop learning strategies and apply them in different circumstances; • engage in high quality classroom dialogue with the teacher, other adults and their peers in order to develop as effective independent learners.

29. Enquiry-driven School Improvement Schools which recognise that enquiry and reflection are important processes in school improvement find it easier to sustain improvement effort around established priorities, and are better placed to monitor the extent to which policies actually deliver the intended outcomes for pupils.   Systematic collection, interpretation and use of school-generated data in decision-making. Effective strategies for reviewing the progress and impact of school policies and initiatives. Widespread involvement of staff in the processes of data collection and analysis. Clear ground rules for the collection, control and use of school-based data.

30. Whole School Staff Development • Range of staff development activities • School improvement group activities • Workshop and workplace

31. The Range of Staff Development Activities Whole staff PD days on teaching and learning and school improvement planning as well as ‘curriculum tours’ to share the work done in departments or working groups; Inter-departmental meetings to discuss teaching strategies; Workshops run inside the school on teaching strategies by Cadre group members and external support; Partnership teaching and peer coaching; The design and execution of collaborative enquiry activities, which are, by their nature, knowledge-generating.

32. In addition, SIG members are involved in: Out of school training sessions on capacity building and teaching and learning; The pursuit of their own knowledge in support of their role – about leadership, the management and implementation of change, the design of professional development activities etc.; Planning meetings in school; Consultancy to school working groups; Observation and in-classroom support; Study visits to other schools within the network.

33. Structuring Staff Development Workshop Understanding of Key Ideas and Principles Modelling and Demonstration Practice in Non-threatening Situations Workplace Immediate and Sustained Practice Collaboration and Peer Coaching Reflection and Action Research

34. Knowledge Utilisation • The concept • Joined up learning and teaching … in Schools • Whole school committments

35. Knowledge Utilisation To raise standards, schools must: • Analyse current performance of pupils and groups – How well are we doing? • Compare with national standards and similar schools – How well should we be doing? • Set clear and measurable targets – What more can we achieve? • Identify and implement improvement plans What must we do to make it happen? • Take action – review success – start again What went well? What can we do better?

36. Joined up learning and teaching… in Schools • Make space and time for ‘deep learning’ and teacher enquiry • Use the research on learning and teaching to impact on student achievement • Studying classroom practice increases the focus on student learning • Invest in school-based processes for improving teacher’s pedagogical content knowledge • By working in small groups the whole school staff can become a nurturing unit

37. The school community need to make a number of tacit commitments: To support each partnership in whatever way possible – time, resources, visits to centres of good practice, the adoption of recommendations etc. To agree to remain informed about the progress of each area of enquiry in order to maintain collective ownership of the directions being travelled. To support the implementation of new practices, new structures, or new ways of working. To be open to the research process by contributing ideas, responding to research instruments, opening up our classrooms for observation, offering our professional support in whatever way required. To engage in workshop activity within full staff meetings, staff days or other school meetings in order to contribute to the on-going knowledge creation and learning process.

38. Networking and Innovation • Some definitions • Networks and innovation • Processes

39. Some Definitions • Collaboration is the process of separate individuals or organisations working together to achieve shared objectives. They are characterised by the horizontal integration of resources and co-ordination of activity • Networks are the organisational forms created through sustained horizontal collaboration and exchange • Federations are groups of schools with a formal agreement, reflected in management and/or governance arrangements, to work closely together to raise standards in teaching and learning, and promote innovation and inclusion

40. Networks and Innovation Networks support educational innovation by: • Providing a focal point for the dissemination of good practice and the agents of knowledge creation, transfer and utilisation. • Keeping the focus on the core purposes of schooling in particular creating and sustaining a discourse on teaching and learning. • Enhancing the skill of teachers. • Building capacity for continuous improvement at the local level. • Ensuring that systems of pressure and support are integrated, not segmented. • Acting as a link between the centralised and decentralised policy initiatives.

41. Processes Effective networks: • Focus on improved student learning and achievement • Make use of knowledge and data for development purposes • Exhibit clarity of structure within and between schools • Disperse leadership • Invest in people, offering rewards related to learning • Show commitment to knowledge transfer between networks

42. KNOWLEDGE UTILISATION PRIORITISATION AND PLANNING SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT GROUP AND LEADERSHIP CURRICULUM LITERACY TEACHING BEHAVIOUR NETWORKING POWERFUL STUDENT LEARNING PEDAGOGY NUMERACY ASSESSMENT STAFF DEVELOPMENT DATA

43. Building Capacity for School Improvement School improvement group and leadership Prioritisation, planning and phasing Use of data and enquiry Whole school staff development Knowledge utilisation Networking and innovation

44. School Improvement Group and Leadership What is a School improvement Group? The difference a SIG makes Leadership and student achievement

45. Prioritisation, Planning and Phasing Clarity and sequencing priorities Success criteria Action planning

46. Use of Data and Enquiry Monitoring and predicting student performance Assessment for learning Enquiry driven school improvement

47. Whole School Staff Development Range of staff development activities School improvement group activities Workshop and workplace

48. Knowledge Utilisation The concept Joined up learning and teaching … in Schools Whole school committments

49. Networking and Innovation Some definitions Networks and innovation Processes

50. The Systemic Agenda Schools exist in increasingly complex and turbulent environments, but the best schools ‘turn towards the danger’ and adapt external change for internal purpose. Schools should use external standards to clarify, integrate and raise their own expectations. School benefit from highly specified, but not prescribed, models of best practice. Schools, by themselves and in networks, engage in policy implementation through a process of selecting and integrating innovations through their focus on teaching and learning. Schools use the principles of segmentation to transform the system The future reform agenda is about schools supporting each other in a new educational landscape: