Catalytic Questioning for Teacher Recruitment and Retention In the face of ongoing recruitment and retention challenges in UK schools, innovative approaches are essential for school leaders. One such approach is catalytic questioning—a technique designed to generate new insights and solutions by asking thought-provoking questions. This article explores how school leaders can use catalytic questioning to … Read more
Using Lencioni’s 5 Dysfunctions of a Team to Build a Dynamic and Effective SLT In the ever-evolving landscape of education, school leadership has become increasingly complex and critical to the success of students, teachers, and the entire school community. While having the right mix of skills and expertise on an administrative team is essential, underlying … Read more
Guest Post: 10 Tips to Embed The Listening to Learn Leadership Trait As an educational leadership coach, one of the most important skills I encourage leaders to develop is active listening. I read the previous Inclusiveteach post on how “Listening to Learn” was a desired trait for school leaders and wanted to share my top … Read more
A Leader’s Guide to Self-Promotion: How to Raise Your Profile Without Raising Eyebrows As school leaders, headteachers and principals, we work tirelessly behind the scenes to advance learning and support students. Modest leadership can lead to missed opportunities to progress your career or even open doors to other opportunities being offered. In this post, I … Read more
Why School Leaders Need to “Listen to Learn” in 2024 School leadership is increasingly complex with a myriad of conflicting priorities, initiatives and daily challenges pulling headteachers in multiple directions. Now more than ever, developing the skill of being able to “listen to learn” can help navigate these complexities more effectively than just implementing your … Read more
How to Lead Like a Marine: Run Towards Challenge, Assemble Your Fireteam, and Win Your Next Battle in Education This continues our series on how school leaders can apply lessons from popular leadership books. Here is a guide to how school leaders can apply lessons from Lead Like a Marine: Run Towards a Challenge, Assemble Your Fireteam, and … Read more
Applying The Infinite Game To School Leadership There are many books on leadership, and some of them hold valuable lessons for school leaders. I find the work of Simon Sinek to be really accessible and usable. I used his book Start With Why when I developed the School of Joy Approach. In his fifth book, … Read more
Table of Contents What is Horizon Scanning & How can it help Identify Future Education Trends? What if something disruptive happens and you don’t notice? A fundamental shift that affects the education system and as a school leader you are not ready to respond to it. This is where a process known as Horizon Scanning … Read more
Leadership Quotes For School Leaders. Continuing our series on examining how we can apply famous leadership quotes to school leadership our next quote is “The supreme quality of leadership is integrity.” by Dwight D. Eisenhower. Imagine you are a teacher in a school where the headteacher is dishonest, inconsistent, and unethical. How would you feel? … Read more
Using AI (Appreciative Inquiry not the other AI!) in Coaching Middle Leaders in Schools Appreciative Inquiry is a coaching methodology that focuses on nurturing strengths rather than fixing weaknesses. First pioneered by David Cooperrider in the 1980s, AI involves guiding individuals through a reflective process to unlock their hidden talents, re-energise their passion, and build … Read more
The Role of Middle Leaders/Managers in Schools This post was inspired by this article on how organisations overlook the potential of their middle managers from the Big Think. Since my NPQML I felt that there was a severe undervaluing of middle managers in schools, You can read my naive reflection from the start of my … Read more
Effective Communication Approaches for Education Leaders Educational leaders face the complex tasks of managing staff, improving student outcomes, and driving school success. How leaders communicate with teachers, parents, and other stakeholders can greatly impact the school culture and environment. Two relevant communication approaches are crucial conversations and compassionate leadership. Comparing Crucial Conversations & Compassionate Leadership … Read more
Applying Carol Dweck’s Growth Mindset Model to School Leadership Teams I finally got around to reading Carol Dweck’s Mindset: Changing The Way You Think To Fulfil Your Potential this summer. I didn’t realise it had a section on leadership. The growth mindset philosophy teaches that intelligence and abilities can be developed through effort, good strategies, … Read more
Introduction Resilience is an essential trait for school leaders, especially in the fast-paced and ever-changing landscape of education in the United Kingdom. Resilient leaders are better equipped to handle the challenges that come their way, learn from their experiences, and maintain an optimistic outlook, even in difficult circumstances. According to a guardian article are “Exhausted, … Read more
Group Interview Tasks In the competitive landscape of senior leadership positions in the UK education sector, it is crucial for aspiring Headteachers and Deputy Headteachers to stand out from the crowd. One of the most challenging aspects of the interview process for these roles often involves collaborative group interview tasks. In this article, we will … Read more
Creating a School Vision This is part of a series of posts based on my NPQH learning. A strong, aspirational vision is crucial for any school to thrive and achieve its full potential. It provides clarity and purpose, guiding strategic decisions around curriculum, priorities, resource allocation, and progress monitoring. An effective vision rallies and motivates … Read more
How To Get Buy-In From Your Team Having just completed my NPQH the topic of Vision, values and getting buy-in from my teaching staff is high on my agenda. As a school leader facing the current challenges, you all understand the importance of having a vision for your school. But even the best vision is … Read more
Reluctant and Incomplete School Leaders As I complete my NPQH (National Professional Qualification for Headship) I have been reflecting on myself as a leader and the things I am trying to develop. Through the process of reflection, I came across a few theories that I think are linked, and possibly affect a lot of leaders … Read more
Writing a School Leadership Application that will get you an Interview Completing a school leadership personal statement and application form can be a daunting task. With time invested in preparation and attention to detail, you can increase your chances of being selected for the role. I recommend signing up to the Key for School Leaders … Read more
Leading a Team: Seeing Yourself as a Leader This post is based on “Leading a Team” training I delivered to colleagues in Kent special schools. It is aimed at ECTs, Teachers, and HLTAs. Anyone stepping up to lead a class in a special school becomes a leader of a team. This is usually of a … Read more
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