From Rock-Bottom to Sky-High: Leading with Vision and Compassion

Headteacher Chris Dyson took on one of the toughest schools around—one that no one else would touch. And he found that, like with most children, the students were all capable of doing well, but they needed ways to connect with education that were fun, rewarding and which truly addressed their wellbeing. Once a centre of chaos that had 150 exclusions a year, Parklands Primary School now boasts some of the best maths scores in the country and is oversubscribed because of its great reputation.

When I applied for the role of headteacher at Parklands Primary School in South East Leeds, I was faced with the great challenge of turning around a school which had seen five headteachers come and go within the previous two years. Despite only being a deputy head, since no other teachers applied for the role, I was appointed to the position in 2015.

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      string(382) "... vision – to produce quality,locally made products that would give the employees asustainable, satisfying livelihood.Ariel clearly and graphically explained the notion of a‘double bottom line’ for the bakery. As well as operatingprofitably, the bakery reinvests its profits into its communityin the form of childcare schemes, high-quality low ..."
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      string(5650) "These children were inthe same boat as the Harriet Tubman Charter School and had the same ambition tobe as successful. However, I personally would hate to be at somewhere as strict andauthoritarian.“To see a line of people queuing outside of a building waiting to be given a foodparcel was rather upsetting. To see so many people were that desperate as well andjust not being able to find the help they need is depressing to think about. However,being just a few blocks down the nearest avenue and you were in thriving, prosperousManhattan again was difficult to comprehend at first; the contrast in such a shortdistance was immense. Also when somebody told us that most people in America areonly two pay cheques away from homelessness is such I weird thing to think aboutwhen you think that America is one of the richest countries in the world.“The visit has significantly changed my view on life. Back in the United KingdomI’m much more appreciative of our education and healthcare systems now I have seenwhat somewhere without one is like, and all of the underprivileged people it doesn’tsupport.”15www.teachingtimes.com n Vol 2.4Leading LearningCurriculum Innovationdistance to the Yorkville Common Pantry on109th Street, urban blight and desperation areobvious. Only 15 minutes previously the DACAstudents had been in central Manhattan amongsome of the most luxurious shops and expensiveapartment buildings in the world. The collision of these twodisparate worlds visibly affected a number of students. Thiswas an important lesson, challenging their perceptions ofthe US as a solely affluent country. Darwen isn’t an affluenttown and the students are by no means privileged – but theyrealised that they have many more opportunities in life thanthe residents of South Harlem. After a day volunteering inthe YCP, their discussion that evening clearly demonstratedthat several of the students intended to stop taking theseopportunities for granted.The DACA students also learned first hand about thebenefits of entrepreneurship and social enterprise, andthe huge difference it can make to an area. The studentsvisited the Greyston Bakery in Yonkers where they wereincredibly inspired by the business development managerAriel Hauptman. The bakery was founded in 1982 by BernardTetsugen Glassman, a former aerospace engineer with anentrepreneurial spirit and a bold vision – to produce quality,locally made products that would give the employees asustainable, satisfying livelihood.Ariel clearly and graphically explained the notion of a‘double bottom line’ for the bakery. As well as operatingprofitably, the bakery reinvests its profits into its communityin the form of childcare schemes, high-quality low-renthousing projects, adult education and work trainingschemes. The bakery’s slogan is ‘we don’t hire people tobake brownies, we bake brownies to hire people’.Seeing the brownies being made and getting totaste them, as well as listening to Ariel, made it allconnect. Suddenly there was a collective moment ofinspiration as every student grasped the concept of socialentrepreneurship. Looking after the workers and communityLauren Berresford, aged 16, studying A-levels in art, photography, biology andmedia studies“They say in the music videos we’re exposed to every day that anybody can make it in America but that just isn’t the case. You can seethe homeless people on the streets wrapped in newspaper to insulate them from the biting cold and I saw a man taking a can out ofa trash can and drinking it. The visit made me think a lot more about home and how people in the United Kingdom have a lot morechances and opportunities.“The homeless people at the Yorkville Common Pantry were so appreciative just to get bagels and cabbage. You get homelesspeople in Darwen but we just don’t see it as much as we did in New York. It was a brilliant homeless project that we visited and to beable to do it all again would be an honour. All in all I very much enjoyed the experience of New York City and have taken a lot away frombeing able to go.”16 Vol 2.4 n www.teachingtimes.comLeading Learning Curriculum Innovationis just as desirable and achievable as making a profit. Thebusiness is a means of social and economic regeneration. Itwas very inspiring and really help our students understanda very different business model in a way that couldn’t havebeen achieved in the classroom.Bringing it all back homeSo which aspects of the New York schools we visited couldbe replicated in the UK? I don’t think you can transfer ateaching style lock stock and barrel to another countrywithout adapting it to the nuances of that nation’s culture.There were aspects of discipline at the KIPP school whichI didn’t think would work here. Students are required towalk in single file down a line drawn in the middle of thecorridor and to not speak or even whisper. If they do theyare reprimanded by the teachers very sternly. I’m a father ofyoung children and I know that discipline and structure areimportant to children’s lives, but the methods used at theHarriet Tubman school seemed to me more appropriate andencouraging.However, it’s important to remember the environmentthat these children have come from and the results that theschool manages to achieve in these difficult circumstances.The notion at the KIPP school that whatever your abilityyou should try your very best at all times coupled with theobvious passion and dedication of all staff is proving to be avery powerful mix.Indeed, the high-profile celebration of pupils’ successand all"
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Leadership

Free schools in action – USA style

10 Sep 2010

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      string(5643) "This month’s New ProductsBenQ Short-throwprojector MS612STBenQ has prepared a selectionof  short-throw projectorsdesigned for better classroommanagement.Designed with a specialaspherical lens precisely calculatedand positioned to give you large-screen projection in tight spaces,the BenQ short-throw projectormodels only need half  the projectiondistance of  traditional projectorsto project a 55” full-sized diagonalimage – without jeopardizing thepicture quality.With the projector placed in frontof  the class and well out of  students’way, teachers can teach worry-freeof  shadow disruptions. What’s more,short-throw technology means no eye-blinding projector glare in teachers’eyes.The BenQMS612ST features2500 ANSI lumenhigh brightness,5000:1 high contrastratio, HDMI and 10Wbuilt-in speaker. 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The launch ofthese new projectors means BenQ is nowoffering a full range of short-throw rangesto fit any classroom size and need.Ultra–short distance of  1 meterwith a 55” full-sized projectionImproved class participation andteacher-student interactionZero eye blinding lights, shadowdistortions and space constraintsIdeal for small and medium–sizedclassroom settings■■■■http://www.teachingtimes.comThis month’s New ProductsAAXA L1 Laser Pico ProjectorIn case you have any safety concerns,note that the L1 is a Class 1 laser device,which basically translates to beingconsidered safe, although you obviouslyshouldn’t stare directly into the beam!The L1 is about the size andshape of  a candy-bar cell phone. It’sa compact 0.8 by 2.1 by 4.2 inches(HWD) and even looks a little like acell phone. 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The laser lightsource makes it focus free, andyou can point the projector atany surface at any distance– even a curved surface – and theimage will be in focus.The AAXA L1 Laser PicoProjector offers pico projectortechnology, combining red,green, and blue lasers withan LCOS chip, which givesthe L1 a native SVGA (800 by http://www.teachingtimes.comThis month’s New ProductsMotorola Xoom tabletThe Motorola Xoom Androidtablet has a 10.1-inch screen,and it’s as bright and sharp asany other high-end tablet. The1280×800 screen is pretty closeto a standard widescreen aspectratio, so videos can fill the wholescreen with minimal clipping.The Xoom is a little bit shorterthan the iPad in landscape mode, butthat means that when you flip theXoom to portrait mode, the screenis skinnier and taller. This is actuallyperfect for reading books or scrollingdown web pages. It’s comfortable tohold the Xoom with one hand whileyou swipe with the other, and becausethe vertical page is so tall, there’s lessswiping than on smaller screens.The Xoom has two cameras: Afront-facing, 2-megapixel camera ismeant for video conferencing andwebcam chats, while a rear-facing,5-megapixel camera is meant forshooting still photos and video.Pros:Big, widescreen display offers plentyof  room for video and for reading.Fast 1GHz processor promises greatperformance for future games andapps. Honeycomb simplifies andoptimizes the Android interface fortablets. Dual cameras and an optionalexternal keyboard make this a crediblenotebook replacement.Cons:Rear-facing speakers don’t do justice toany kind of  audio. Honeycomb seemsto have some bugs to work out. 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Digital Learning

Product Update: September

6 Oct 2011

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      string(361) "... vision is a world built on cooperation rather thancompetition, one of mutual understanding and dialogue that leads to consensus andpeace. The virtues they hold in high esteem are compassion, patience and tolerance.’7Figure 3 seeks to integrate these two perspectives.Figure 3: The love/power matrixIn order to understand the ..."
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      string(5659) "ofaffection’ rather than love?One of the key issues facing schools is what model of organisational, social andcommunity relationships is most appropriate to respond to the challenges of educationin the 21st century. It might just be that a model centred on the most universaland compelling dimension of human relationships, love, is an important startingpoint. It might well be a very necessary antidote to the increase in the exercise ofmanagerialism and performativity found in increasingly power-focused, centralised andtop-down structures and processes.In his study, Power and Love, Kahane uses definitions as developed by theologianPaul Tillich. According to Tillich, power is ‘the drive of everything living to realise itselfwith increasing intensity and extensity’, while love is ‘the drive towards the unity of theseparated’.6An alternative perspective and vocabulary is provided by Neffinger and Kohutwho talk in terms of strength and warmth. They explain: ‘Strength can make people65Vol 6.5School Leadership Todaywww.teachingtimes.comLeadershipSkillsLeadershipmodelsJohn West-Burnhampowerful, influential and important. After all, strength is about getting things done. Butthere are things it cannot do. Strength alone can coerce but it cannot lead.’ For thosewho focus on warmth, however, ‘their vision is a world built on cooperation rather thancompetition, one of mutual understanding and dialogue that leads to consensus andpeace. The virtues they hold in high esteem are compassion, patience and tolerance.’7Figure 3 seeks to integrate these two perspectives.Figure 3: The love/power matrixIn order to understand the practical implications of the interactions of these variables, itis first necessary to clarify the expression of these variables by context:Permutation CharacteristicsHigh strength and power, low warmth and love – the‘hero’ or ‘performance-based’ leaderHigh task completion and output orientation, butdisengagement and negative relationshipsHigh strength and power, high warmth and love – the‘relational’ leaderThe optimum situation – things get done by peoplewho enjoy doing them and working together – a goodplace to beLow strength and power, high warmth and love – the‘affiliative’ leaderHighly positive relationships but limited actionLow strength and power, low warmth and love – theabsence of leadershipLow task and low process orientation – nothing getsdone and relationships are poor – a bad place to beIt is the relational leader who is most likely to secure improvement and highperformance, and also enhance relationships and wellbeing.66Vol 6.5School Leadership Todaywww.teachingtimes.comLeadershipSkillsLeadershipmodelsJohn West-Burnham7. Effective leadership requires personal authenticityPersonal authenticity is the extent to which what a person believes is consistentlyreflected in what they say and in what they do. One of the factors that is centralto any notion of effectiveness is consistency, both over time and across differentsituations.For Taylor, authenticity is about developing a personal integrity8. For Guignon,it involves realising one’s full capacity as self, ‘centring in on your own inner self,getting in touch with your feelings, desires and beliefs, and expressing thosefeelings, desires and beliefs in all you do… defining and realising your own identityas a person.’9Authenticity is the result of the integration and interaction of three variables –values, language and actions. Values are the translation of ethical principles into acoherent and meaningful set of personal constructs, which then inform language andaction and are embedded in day-to-day practice. The authentic leader is, in a positivesense, predictable – ‘we know where we stand with her’ – with views and values that areclear, public and applied consistently.Effective leaders are fluent and confident in articulating what they believe andin engaging with others to help them understand. They are equally comfortable inengaging with the emotional and intellectual, and have the skills to communicate andto influence.Central to this is the notion of dialogue – the ability to hold meaningfulconversations with self and others. However, leadership is also about action and theability to translate principle into practice. The pivotal criterion then for the authentic67Vol 6.5School Leadership Todaywww.teachingtimes.comLeadershipSkillsLeadershipmodelsJohn West-BurnhamKnowledge trails1. How much do you affect learner outcomes? – The impact school leaders have on studentwellbeing and outcomes is often indirect, so how to know if we’re making a difference? VivianeRobinson investigates.library.teachingtimes.com/articles/affectinglearningoutcomes2. School improvement is everybody’s business – Only when those in the school communityactively participate and collaborate in leadership and school-based enquiry will efforts for broaderimprovement be successful, says Judy Durrant.library.teachingtimes.com/articles/schoolimprovementiseverybodybusinessReferences1. Hargreaves, A. and Fullan, M. (2012). Professional Capital. London: Routledge. p50.2. Hargreaves, D. (2011). Leading a self-improving school system. Nottingham: NCSL. p10.3. Hargreaves, A. and Fink, D. (2006).Sustainable Leadership. San Francisco: Jossey Bass. p158.4. Leithwood, K., Harris, A. and Strauss, T. (2010). Leading school turnaround. San Francisco: Jossey Bass. p238.5. Leithwood, K. (2006) Teaching for deep understanding. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin. p12.6. Kahane, A. (2010). Power and love. San Francisco:"
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Leadership

Rethinking the future of school leadership

30 Apr 2015

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      string(5643) "ofmiles thick and made up of sulphuric acid. These clouds move in botheast and west directions, but move extremely fast – about three timesfaster than hurricane winds.● There has been quite a lot of research into thunder and lightning onVenus. Many researchers believe the activity they see is similar to whatwe experience on Earth. They think the storms possibly occur in theafternoon, like here, and are probably related to clouds on the surface.● Venus has only very weak winds near the surface (just a couple of milesper hour). However, at higher altitudes, near the tops of the clouds, thewinds are belived to reach speeds of around 220 mph.● Temperatures on Venus are quite extreme – at the surface they are hotenough to melt lead: 484 degrees Celsius.May/June 2005 Teaching & LearningUranus● The third largest planet in our solar system is Uranus, which is theseventh in line from the Sun.● A day on Uranus lasts 17 hours and 14 minutes, whilst its year takes amassive 84 years.● Uranus’ rings go vertically ratherthan horizontally, and the polesare on the sides rather than atthe top and bottom.● A high layer of haze has beendetected around the pole whichfaces the Sun, and that wholehemisphere has what is knownas ‘day glow’ which is where theplanet radiates ultraviolet light.● Little is known about the cloudsaround Uranus, although it isbelieved they are made up ofmethane crystals that condense as warm bubbles of methane surgeupwards from further within the atmosphere.● Temperatures on Uranus are very cold with an average of – 213 degreesCelsius. Teac hing & Lear ning May/June 2005Saturn● Saturn is the sixth planet in the solar system from the Sun and it is the secondlargest after its neighbour, Jupiter.● Saturn is very distinctive with its yellow hazy colour and the prominent rings circlingthe planet. The planet itself is thought to be made up of a liquid.● It is believed that Saturn’s atmosphere is made up of three different layers. The toplayer is cloud. This layer of cloud is very cold with temperatures of around –190degrees Celsius.● It is believed the second layer is ammonium hydrosulphide clouds and thenunderneath there is thought to be a layer of water vapour clouds.● Saturn’s day is a lotshorter than that on Earth.It takes 10 hours, 39minutes and 20 seconds torotate on its own axis.● Saturn experiences high-speed winds, which at theequator can reach about1,100 mph.● There is also evidence ofvery strong storms onSaturn. These are muchmore severe than the oneswe experience on Earth.● The thousands of ringswhich surround Saturn aremade up mainly of large particles. They are most likely pieces of very small rockwhich are coated in frozen water and other ices – this would explain why the ringsare quite bright.May/June 2005 Teaching & LearningPluto● Pluto is the ninth planet in our Solar System.● Pluto is a very small planet – it is even smaller than our moon and isaround six times smaller than Earth. This has led to a lot of debate as towhether Pluto is a planet at all. Some scientists believe it was once amoon of Neptune which has somehow ‘escaped’.● Pluto is thought to be made up of mainly rock and ice, rather than beinga gas planet like those nearest to it.● Pluto’s surface has a red tint to it and it is believed to be made up of asort of ‘snow’, which is a combination of methane, nitrogen and carbonmonoxide.● Pluto’s atmosphere is not very dense and therefore itsatmospheric pressure is very low.● Temperatures on Pluto are verycold. Surface temperatures arethought to be around –223degrees Celsius (–369 degreesFahrenheit). However it doesvary, depending on where itis in its orbit. As Pluto movescloser to the Sun,temperatures rise and itsatmosphere thickens as the iceturns into a gas. However, during thecolder period, it is thought that Pluto’satmosphere collapses, causing a snowstorm that covers the entire planet.Weather Science Lesson 2:Sensational seasonsKey Stage 2+ Teaching & Learning May/June 2005Information sheet: The seasonsWe now know more about our home planet than any other past civilisation. Through scientificdiscoveries, technologically advanced research and space exploration we can explain verydifficult events such as day and night, tides, eclipses and the seasons – things that wouldhave baffled our ancestors.However, these events are impossible to explain scientifically without first understanding thatthe Earth is in constant orbit around the Sun. It is often thought that it is warmer in summerbecause the Earth is closer to the Sun, but in fact the distance between us and the Sun haslittle (or no) affect on the seasons. Instead, the seasons are caused by the Earth’s axis ofrotation, which is tilted at an angle of 23.5 degrees. It is this tilt that causes the differentweather experienced during different seasons.Summer in the Northern HemisphereBecause of this tilt, the Northern Hemisphere of our planet experiences the warm temperaturesof summer while the Sun is north of the celestial equator. This is because the NorthernHemisphere is tilted towards the Sun at this time, and as a result is exposed to the Sun’s lightfor a longer period of time over one day during the summer. This leads to earlier sunrises andlater sunsets and, because the Sun is in the sky for a longer period of time, we receive moreheat over the course of a day in the summer.Winter in the Northern HemisphereWinter in the Northern Hemisphere occurs for the exact opposite reason outlined above: theSun is south of"
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Creative Teaching & Learning

Weather Science Project Plans

7 Aug 2013