The chaos of leadership: what happens when the storm comes
As school leaders we like to think we are in control; a safe hand at the tiller steering the ship, a wise farmer tending to our crops. All the metaphors for school leadership persuade us that there is order; patterns to follow and interpret.
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The transformative power of coaching in secondary schools: A personal journey
Coaching has become a powerful tool in educational settings, transforming the way teachers develop their practice and fostering a culture of continuous improvement. The opportunity to support colleagues in their professional growth and see the tangible impact on learning and teaching has been rewarding.
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Professional development of ECTs through instructional coaching
I decided to undertake the SSAT Lead Practitioner (LP) accreditation as a means of furthering my leadership skills within my own school and expanding my professional network beyond my school context.
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How I used Lead Practitioner Accreditation to embed a new English writing structure and RE curriculum
As a dedicated educator with eight years of teaching experience, currently serving as a senior teacher at their third primary school, I am always looking to develop and improve my practice.
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Headteacher Case Conferences: A ‘signature pedagogy’ for school leadership?
At the end of the 2023-24 academic year, we published the findings of our survey of 236 headteachers in our ‘Labouring to Love Headship’ report. The picture presented was gloomy around preparation, induction, training and support for those taking up headship.
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Going, Going, Gone: Correlating improvement needs and overall grades in 2023-24
Overall grades from inspections are on their way out in 2024-25 and, by 2025-26 we will see more changes as the much-heralded ‘report card’ system takes effect (possibly seeing the end of the four-tier grading system, but who knows with any certainty). As we step forward into this new and slightly uncertain future around inspection outcomes, I thought it would be of interest to school leaders to have another delve into the weeds of SSAT’s inspection tracker.
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Empowering future leaders: How Dormers Wells High School transformed student leadership
When Sarah Dowdle, Assistant Headteacher at Dormers Wells High School, took on the role of overseeing Student Leadership, she knew change was needed.
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Sometimes the path to school is complicated
In the village where we live, the primary school sits at the top of a hill. Alongside the main footpath runs an unofficial walkway, worn by small feet over many years. It marks out a more adventurous route along the top of a muddy bank, passing through bushes and behind a large oak tree.
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Minding the Gaps: How inspections in 2023-24 differed by region
In the past week, I have been looking at the regional variations in the 2023-24 inspection data with some interest and so I wanted to share them with you. Hopefully you will find them fascinating too.
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So… the honeymoon period is over? Now what?
Thirty eager faces, hands shooting up in the sky as soon as you ask a question, soon makes way for smirking furtive glances around the classroom, rocking back on two legs of the chair, and volunteering a reluctant answer only when asked directly! So how do we maintain the eagerness, the love of learning, and the hunger to answer questions and still look cool?
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