Wednesday, July 23, 2008

I am glad that I am not alone in thinking that the National Challenge is mechanistic, simplistic and superficial...

I have been working on school improvement for over twenty years and I know some people will ask why haven't we cracked it and already delivered brilliant learning and fantastic outcomes everywhere. I wish it were that easy...

What we haven't tackled or cracked is poverty, deprivation, worklessness and the common factors that conspire against us and prevent young people achieving good outcomes however hard we work. I have also learned from countless school visits over the years that talented colleagues here in Leeds and amazing colleagues up and down the country are releasing the magic and driving up standards and outcomes in some of the most challenging contexts.

Interestingly reading the Times Educational Supplement over the last couple of months it's encouraging to know that they have carried out similar research to us and learned what we all already know...that many of the schools where 'radical measures' are needed are achieving fantastic results when you look more intelligently at their outcomes. Several of our 'National Challenge' schools have received letters from ministers congratulating them on being among the most improved and most effective schools in the country. These schools are now being told that they may be closed. Where on earth is the intelligent accountability?

We are also told that the 'National Challenge' brings additional and very welcome additional resources to these schools. Think what we could do if each of these schools working in areas of poverty, deprivation, worklessness, crime and ill-health recieved their fair share of the additional money. However in our political world where the answer is academies and super-consultants we are likely to end up with more people telling us that they know all the answers. If so, why aren't they with us already on the front line working in challenging authorities and these schools making a real difference?

Those of us who have spent our lives at the front line know the real answers lie where they have always been...
  • strong, disciplined, focused and passionate leadership;
  • clear, shared vision, values and beliefs;
  • talented, energetic, enthusiastic and creative teaching teams;
  • empowered, trusted and disciplined colleagues;
  • brilliant teaching supported by strong assessment for learning;
  • stimulating, exciting and engaging curriculum pathways;
  • powerful, stimulating and interesting learning environments;
  • high self-esteem and high expectations of everyone;
  • strong, dynamic and meaningful coaching relationships;
  • high engagement and involvement of young people;
  • positive engagement and involvement of parents and carers.
My answers to the challenges we face? Radically reduce the number of people who work for the DCSF, Government Office, National Strategies, National College for School Leadership and all the other quangos and bits of the empire. Cut down on meetings. Trust and invest in local authorities and schools as the front line of an attack on poverty, deprivation, worklessness and under-achievement.

Of course in a world where appearing tough and delivering soundbites is seen as important, these things don't matter and sadly it will never happen.
Chris
Sometimes I think that we are 'painting by numbers' in a world monitored, policed and controlled by 'bean' counters, 'keep within the line' consultants and 'let's weigh the pig again' inspectors...

In this crazy world to meet their targets the 'bean' counters, the 'keep within the line' consultants and the 'let's weigh the pig again' inspectors rush around developing more and more initiatives that no one owns and that make little or no real long term difference to outcomes for our children and young people... and sadly in that sort of world, the evidence suggests that all you get is mediocre.

We all know that command and control doesn't work and we all need to wake up to the fact that what really, really matters is the quality of the people working with our children and young people, the quality of the leadership around them and the quality of the local services supporting our brilliant learning places. So let us nurture and support our learning teams to ensure that they deliver for our children and young people and let's take the best of what we do here in Leeds and learn from the best practice nationally and internationally; from Reggio Emilia, and from Sweden, Finland and Denmark and anywhere that will help us to build brilliant local provision.
Chris.

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Stress is of course something we all live with but I am told that diet can play a significant and important part in improving your physical and emotional well-being...

So to quote the article "if stess is turning you into a moody chocoholic insomniac here is what you need to do"...
  • Never skip meals. Eat three low-GL meals a day with snacks if necessary.
  • Increase your magnesium intake... magnesium helps the body make energy, balance blood-sugar levels and maintain healthy blood pressure.... magnesium is found in green vegetables, nuts, seeds, whole grains and pulses.
  • Increase your intake of vitamins B5 and C... stress reduces these vitamins. B5 is found in eggs, fish, meat, lentils and whole grains. C is found in berries, broccoli, cabbage, peppers, tomatoes and all fruit and vegetables.
  • Increase your serotonin levels... eat yoghurt, bananas, figs and dates and drink milk.
  • Eat oats for breakfast!
  • Reduce the amount of caffeine, sugar and alcohol!
  • Take exercise but don't overdo it!

So, this holiday, look after yourself; de-stress and unwind whenever you can.

Chris