Day 11 - It all begins with the first step....

For those of you who have been following my entries on this blog, you'd be fully aware by now that the school I'm doing my placement at has more than it's fair share of challenges.

Well, I've just arrived home from today's Monday Staff Meeting, where the Principal delivered the results of school survey recently conducted and indicated that the results were, frankly, 'not acceptable'. He indicated that the results of the survey (taken from feedback by parents, teachers and students), were indicative of a school that just not conducive for teachers to work in, nor was it an ideal place for learning. He indicated that he didn't want the meeting to be depressing in nature (although, with all the long faces in the staff room, clearly it was), but his point was that clearly, the school cannot continue to function as it is, unless some drastic changes are made.

After the few awkward moments of silence concluding the Principal's presentation had passed, the principal asked us all to go home and think about the following questions, with responses ready for tomorrow's meeting:

• Can we address some of the issues (identified in the survey) or are they too great and beyond our control? If yes, how? If no, what next?
• Can we transform this school into a place where students are motivated and well behaved and where staff enjoy coming to school?
• Can we develop pride in our school? If so, how?
• What do you see as your role/responsibility in helping to bring about change?
• What is the school's short and long term future?

My two cents on all of this?

There is not one simple, single strategy that can change a school like this. For starters, I think there needs to be a lot of work done together as a team to establish the 'vision', 'values' or 'ethos' of the school. (I don't actually think it has one? If it has, I haven't seen it! ) I think setting values / vision for the school is a good start as it will give it direction. Any decisions that need to be made can be measured up against the values/vision, and if it's not aligned to the values/vision statement, then it's contrary to it, therefore should not be pursued. (Simplistic thinking, but that's basically the gist of it!) Further, I think that a truly effective school will begin to eventuate only if those values are embraced and are lived out and are seen as foundational to everything.

Anyone who's ever worked for the 'big blue' will hear, see or be confronted by the "IBM Values" at least once a day. If it's not in the poster in the tea room, it's plastered on the Intranet sites, or in weekly email updates from the company leaders. In other words, in a company like IBM, values are not just abstract - they are articulated and put into concrete form - to help it 'sink into' the minds of its employees. It not only cements the values in the minds of employees, but also adds a level of accountability. Thus, as IBM'ers go about their daily decisions, the expectation is that they measure their choices against these values. :-)

At the end of the day, I think that values are more than just words. It really is about a culture; and it's all about people.

Don't you wonder how or why a school like this, which has been around for at least 20 years, has gotten to the stage where it's at today? I know I do. I've asked some teachers. Some blame it on the student's parents (for the lack of discipline in the home). Some blame it on the Kennett Government (for abolishing 'Technical Colleges' and converting all high schools to 'Secondary Schools'). Some teachers just blame it on the students (which is naturally tempting as you can imagine :-)

Anyway, playing the blame-game is futile. I think teachers at this school need to start collaborating. I've noticed about the teaching profession is that it is largely autonomous. And it's quite easy for teachers to get bogged in their own mire of classroom problems. They try to put out fires in each lesson, hoping to fix behavioural problems on their own strength. (Maybe some teachers want to feel that they can deal with the 'rough' classes by themselves - to admit struggle or defeat is seen as a sign of weakness in the profession???) But that's just like putting a band-aid solution on something that needs surgery.

It'll be interesting to see what the outcomes of tomorrow's meeting will be. Despite the gloomy expressions of the majority of teachers in today's meeting, I actually think it's an exciting time for the school, as it goes about trying to set up a framework for improving the school as a whole.

In the mean time, I've googled for some articles for me to read up on, which I'm including it here for my own personal reference.

I'm sure you'll only click on these links if you want to catch a few zzzzzz's or need a serious diversion from your work! ;-)

Turning Around Low-Performing Schools (American Publication)

Values Learnt in Schools (The Age News Article)

Troubled Students Crying Out For A Serving of Leadership (The Age News Article)

School Improvement Framework (ACT Gov't publication)