Whilst politicians and others desperately try to convince everyone that schools are back to normal, the reality is very different. They are back to the new normal.
One headteacher I know had planned a day of activities designed to lead to the creation of a school vision in which all staff felt fully engaged, only to be hit with a Covid ‘local decision-making framework’, the ‘hierarchy of controls’ and ‘updated operational guidance’ – resulting in the fact that she could not have all the staff in one hall and needed to replan to do it virtually. There are many benefits to the increased use of online meetings as a result of Covid, but let’s not fall into the trap of ignoring the limitations. For full engagement in the forming of a new school vision, ideally the staff needed to be in the same room.
As that headteacher was working remotely with her team, I attended an online conference focussed on Curriculum for Wales. In terms of the realisation of a new curriculum, I frequently see a chasm between what some believe to be happening in Welsh schools and the reality in some of the schools I visit. The ‘why’ we need to change and the inspiration to do so has been done to death. Most are engaged and up for it. The ‘how’ has been less forthcoming. I did see glimmers of hope during the conference, with some speakers sharing processes that schools could follow to realise Curriculum for Wales for their learners.
There’s no doubt that it’s a huge task and will demand a great deal of time, professional soul searching and the need to overcome entrenched behaviours, along with high quality professional development. It is however exciting to be liberated from a one size fits all, prescribed curriculum handed down from those on high to fit an imaginary model pupil. Unfortunately, I am not convinced that the liberation will be complete for secondary schools for as long as the current exam/qualifications system lingers.
But beyond Covid and Curriculum for Wales there is a huge ‘to do list’ for schools and their leaders. Whilst its far from business as usual, school leaders have numerous balls to juggle and plates to spin as they walk the high wire of Covid operational guidance.
Safeguarding and the vital role schools play in child protection is ever present and in many cases the task has been made greater by the pandemic. Similarly, ‘closing the gap’ for those learners hit by the consequences of poverty has just got tougher, as home learning for many of these learners has been of a vastly poorer quality. Further, adverse childhood experiences were not wiped out in the pandemic. In many cases they became more acute and schools will need to address this.
Learners (and staff) will need reminding of routines and how behaviour is managed so as to ensure that pupils feel secure and engage fully in their learning.
Pupils with a range of additional needs will require support in overcoming their barriers to learning. Absence from school has made such barriers for some learners even greater, especially for those that need routine. Its difficult to use social stories and visual timetables within a pandemic when few know what is happening next.
Then there’s the self -evaluation and school improvement processes and the associated financial planning, along with all the demands of accountability and governance.
Risk management, health & safety policies/procedures and building management need to keep pupils and staff safe, not just from Covid but from numerous other threats.
All this has to be delivered by professionals that demonstrate the principles of public life and high standards of ethics and behaviour.
Rather than continue the ‘to do’ list, I will summarise in a diagram based on the DFE Headteachers’ Standards.
In my blog Wales v England ●(Expectations of Formal Leadership Practice) Wales v England (Headteachers’ Standards) (glavincatalyst.co.uk), I compared the English Headteachers Standards with the Welsh Expectations of Formal Leadership Practice. I was struggling with the latter but recognised that it may have been the language of educational reform. I promised to try and link the above structure from England with the Welsh expectation of formal leadership practice and Estyn’s expectations for inspection of schools from 2022.
Well months later, I am about to launch my Headteacher Self-Evaluation Tool for Wales. It aims to give a clear overview of what headteachers/school leaders are required to do and provides my prompts together with links to inspection guidance and leadership descriptors, to facilitate meaningful self-evaluation.
If you are wondering where to start after the last 18 months and need a prioritised to do list, it might just be worth a look…. Self-evaluation Tool (glavincatalyst.co.uk)