Achieving Wellbeing Through Connection: Refresh, Reconnect, Refocus

 

Refresh, Reconnect, Refocus

Apart from reading/listening to Brene Brown et al (who hasn't?) I haven't done much in the way of research or study about the topic of Wellbeing. My thoughts are based entirely on my 30 years of school leadership, with several of those years dealing with quite demanding situations ranging from angry people, to unmotivated people, to systemic confusion, to pandemics to climate crisis impacts.

What do I know?

Firstly, we must take personal responsibility for our own wellbeing. For me this has included 2 important elements: opportunity for personal reflection and 'me' time AND opportunity for connection with others. 

I run. I often run for hours and for many miles, largely by myself. This gives me head space to reflect, process complex work and personal issues, solidify my thinking and make decisions. In these situations I often find myself exploring my 'why' in relation to any issue, thinking about what I'd 'die in the ditch' for, thinking about 'moral purpose'.

I connect and network with others. I do this through entering sporting events, socialising, attending and/or leading workshops, being part of various 'çritical friends' groups. Testing out my thinking, from my personal reflection time (running) within these networks brings a range of perspectives that will both support and challenge me.

This approach to wellbeing has contributed to the development of my personal leadership model shown below:

I have been doing a lot of thinking about how this impacts on wellbeing as principals throughout Aotearoa have access to $6000pa to support their wellbeing and I have seen many 'programmes' being offered to principals to spend this on.

Several I have seen offer time in a luxury resort, in some cases on a Pacific Island, with a combination of workshops on wellbeing and activities that are intended to contribute to wellbeing eg massage/spa, golf etc. There is no doubt that one's wellbeing, at that time, will be in a good space. The question has to be asked, though, is does such a programme have a longstanding beneficial impact on wellbeing, or will the luxury feeling soon be forgotten when once back in the trenches of leading a school?

My experience tells me that when I am certain of my 'why', when I can clearly enunciate it, when it drives my decision-making and my actions I feel better about myself and my contribution to the work of leading a school. This is the Moral Purpose from the model above.

I then find that I now have the confidence and the courage to act on my moral purpose and to bring it to life in my work. Displaying this courage makes me feel good.

But it is when I connect with others and share my moral purpose and plans for action with them as 'çritical friends' that some real gold lies. It is this connection that brings the richness to the work. For this to be effective I have to have an Open to Learning mindset and be prepared to discover that I might be wrong about some of my plans.

When these three come together I feel on top of the world in my work - my wellbeing is high. It becomes a way of working which brings a sustainability to my wellbeing development rather than me relying on the odd luxury escape or a few tools to manage my wellbeing.

Secondly, as leaders we need to be cognizant of our impacts on the wellbeing of others who are part of our work community but that we need to support them to find ways to develop their own wellbeing.

One of the most important things we can do to have a positive impact on the wellbeing of our people is to create an environment where our school's moral purpose is clear, where guidelines for action resulting from this purpose drive actions and decision-making, where we, everyday, walk the talk and support others to do so and where we show we welcome the voice of others as we might be wrong in some of our assumptions. People feel good, about themselves, their colleagues, their learners, their contribution and their work, when they are part of such an environment.

The Refresh, Reconnect, Refocus programme Derek Wenmoth and myself have designed and which kicks off with a 2 day retreat at Hanmer Springs (nothing wrong with a bit of luxury!) on the evening of 20 March is driven by the principles described above. At the Retreat leaders will refresh their thinking about what is possible and what their 'moral purpose' is, reconnect with this purpose and with other like-minded leaders, and refocus their work on bringing it to life in their schools.

Because it must be sustainable to have an impact the retreat is followed by a 20 week programme of online connecting with the whole group, with a critical friend and with Derek and myself as we support participants in their work. We will then conclude with a 24 hour celebration time together where we share our progress and discuss our next steps.

We have a mix of primary and secondary leaders signed up but there are 2 spaces left. If you think this is the programme for you to support your wellbeing and leadership growth or think it would be great for a colleague there is a brief window to sign up. Information and registration processes are in this link.

Best wishes for 2024.

How might we overcome hurdles on the way

Happy New Year to you all.

If you've read some of my recent posts you may recall how I've used my big, hairy goal of running 100 miles at the Tarawera Ultra Marathon in February as a metaphor for school transformation. I have written about setting a truly aspirational goal, one that has some chance of not being able to be achieved and the importance of sharing it which gives some impetus to really trying to achieve it.

In settling on the aspirational goal it is vital to be very clear on your 'why' - a step that is often overlooked. This can be focused on by asking yourself, "Why might I [choose to run 100 miles]" - insert own big, hairy goal. In my case my 'why' is to test what I am truly capable of as I make the journey through my 60s.

I then had to ask myself, "How might I [run 100  miles]?" I had to think about all of the aspects of training for such an event, seek out expert advice, consider how I've responded to similar challenges and adopt an open-to-learning, optimistic and responsive mindset. By combining those guidelines for action I developed a plan which became the answer to "What might I do [to successfully complete a 100 mile race]?

And, of course, as for all major enterprises things go wrong. Life commitments impact on the plan and injuries come along. In my case, I experienced a niggling and potentially major overuse injury to my foot. At first, I tried to press on through the discomfort, then I "did some research" and tried to manage it myself, and I finally sought expert help. To make sure I could heal I was forced, at the very time in my programme that I should have been at peak mileage, to radically adjust my plan (which involved 2 weeks of walking rather than running).

Now 6 weeks out from the even I am free of pain and I can feel myself building strength (physical and mental) to give me the best chance of being successful. However, as I get closer to the event, the realisation of what I have set out to achieve often overwhelms me and I am still feeling that completing the event in the required time is still only 50/50.

I do know, though, that whatever the outcome the journey, the exploring my 'why', determining my guidelines for action, developing a plan and then adapting it as the hurdles appear in front of me will all contribute to my learning for a future "How might I ....?" 

It is a bit similar to a school transformation journey. It involves a big, hairy goal which is shared in the public space. It also involves a deep exploration of the 'why', the 'how' and the 'what' and requires responsiveness, resilience and adaptability when you fall into the Learning Pit as the inevitable hurdles present themselves. There is also a sense of comfort in knowing that if things don't pan out how you expect then there will be still some cool experiences and learning on the way.

An unexpected cool experience for me is that my daughter has jumped at the chance to be my companion/pacer over the last 50k. This is including training together on the trails (lots of neat bonding and talk) and preparing, together, the equipment and resources we will need. This in itself will be valued by me irrespective of the outcome.

If you are wanting to set out on a school transformation journey or are on one but have become a bit stuck you should check out this exciting 20 week programme Derek Wenmouth and I will be facilitating. It starts in March with a 2 day retreat in Hanmer Springs then includes 20 weeks of remote mentoring and a final 1 day of celebration. We'll help you explore your 'why', settle on your 'how' and support you in your 'what'. And you'll do this while being part of a network of other like-minded leaders.

There are a small number of places left with final sign update being 4th February. Check it out.

And if you are a DP or HOF with school leadership aspirations get in contact with us as we plan something similar but appropriate for those of you at that stage in your leadership journey.

From Principal Possum to How Might We Lead 2023: A summary and look forward

 2023 was a year of uncertainty for me. But sitting here right now 2024 is one of excitement. The thing I'm most excited about is to work with Derek Wenmouth. Early next year we are running a a 20-week professional development programme for principals, focusing on wellbeing, innovation and change. I really love the model we have come up with as we support principals to Refresh Reconnect and Refocus through two retreats (kicking off at Hanmer Springs in late March) bookending 20 weeks of remote mentoring and connecting. We still have some places left but confirmations must be received by 4 February to secure a place in the programme. Please help us spread the word to let others know about this exciting opportunity. 

Find out more here.

I finished up as Foundation Principal of Hobsonville Point Secondary School in July this year. It took 2 years, initially keeping it to myself, to come to the conclusion that that was the right time to leave. Of the many decisions I've had to make in my career this was one of the hardest. I loved my work, I loved the people I was working with, I loved the students and I felt I was still making a difference. But I'm convinced it was time for someone else to lead and take the school further into the future.

In this post I wrote about the moving haka I experienced on my final day and also on what my plans were in the future, considering I believed that I could still make a contribution in the education field.

My plans centred around forming HMWLead (How Might We Lead) and offering opportunities to partner with schools and their leadership teams to explore ways of leading in such a dynamic environment.

In one of my first posts with HMWLead I wrote of the importance of having a clear understanding of and strong commitment to your personal 'why' as a leader. Having a clear understanding of your 'why' or moral purpose, in my view, gives a leader the courage to lead. My personal model of leadership captured in this visual shows not only the importance of Moral Purpose and Courage but also accepting the sometimes quite challenging position that you might be wrong (Open to Learning).

In a September post I launched the HMWLead website.

In my October post I used the analogy of my entry into the Tarawera Ultra 100 mile trail run to  encourage thinking around what might be possible when we set out to test what we are truly capable of achieving. I wrote about my experience at Opotiki College going from 40-50 suspensions a year to zero as an example of exploring different approaches to age-old problems.

My next post explored how we might go about the seemingly daunting task of transforming how we do 'schooling'. I am more and more convinced that how we do this work is to really focus on what it is that we know that creates the conditions for the best teaching and learning that is required today. We need to start with understanding and agreeing on how students learn best. From there we need to develop a set of core beliefs for which we are ready to "die in the ditch" and design our schools based on those core beliefs.

In a further post I focused on the view that the number one principle for effective schools seems to be that they have clearly articulated and shared beliefs about learning that are lived in every classroom.

I then proposed that the clearly articulated and shared beliefs about learning that are lived in every classroom need to be driven by a vision and mission which are deeply informed by new contexts for learning. In the previous post I stated that, in the end, it doesn't matter what the core beliefs about learning are but that it was vital that they were lived in every classroom. But, of course, it does matter.

If we start, as we should, with the question:

• "How do children and adults learn most powerfully and deeply in their lives?" (Modern Learners).

and we add:

• "When they leave us, what will our students need to be able to do, and what kind of people will they be?" (Modern Learners)

and we take into account the rapidly changing and threatened world in store for our current learners (climate crisis, pandemics, increasing inequity, war, biodiversity threat, AI, world of work), we must explore, embrace and fully incorporate in our design of schools and of learning new ways in which we can learn and become educated.

As 2023 ends I am able to reflect on being satisfied at the timing of my stepping down from principalship and the challenge and excitement I am feeling as a result of my work in schools, most of whom are embracing an ongoing partnership to support them on their journey. Their journeys are all very different, but they are all benefiting from exploring their 'why' - the things they are prepared to die in the ditch for.

I'm still excited by my upcoming challenge to complete the 100 miler in February despite the setbacks and challenges that have occurred.

I'm extremely excited by the collaboration with Derek Wenmouth. Our Refrresh, Reconnect, Refocus programme for school leaders is innovative and we are already planning similar for the different levels of leadership within schools.

In the meantime, if you're a school leader (primary or secondary) wanting to experience what this programme offers get amongst it here. If you're a DP or middle leader with aspirations to lead with Moral Purpose and Courage then watch this space.

Sing out if you have any questions.

Have a happy and safe summer.

How Might We Lead and FutureMakers: Sustainable support of principal wellbeing

 I love the How Might We Lead title of my little venture that is designed to support school leaders and their teams to look at how they might lead differently so they can bring their moral purpose to life in a way that allows teachers and students to thrive.

The 'How' puts the focus clearly on exploring possibilities and focusing on process. The 'Might' hints at the possibility of not finding the answer straight away but suggests giving some things a go. The 'We' centres on exploration and trying things out as a collective, networked activity.

I'm hugely excited by a recent and ongoing collaboration with Derek Wenmouth and his platform FutureMakers. His platform has a cool title, too, as it points to where our focus should be (Future), with the 'Makers' bit pointing to the agency that needs to be developed in leaders so that they can bring life to their vision for the future.

Our recent collaboration has resulted in the development of a powerful and sustainable approach to support principal wellbeing which focuses on leaders reconnecting with their personal 'why' and being equipped with tools to bring that to life in their schools, supported by a strong network of like-minded leaders who maintain a strong connection throughout the 20 week programme.

While there has been a recent and necessary focus on the wellbeing of students and of teachers, the wellbeing of school principals has often been overlooked. When thinking about how best to support/grow the wellbeing of school leaders it is important to concentrate on strategies that are long-lasting and sustainable. A luxury escape with some personal pampering, while attractive, does little more than ease the load/worry at that point in time and is, in itself, not enduring. We believe that leaders who have a clear sense of their ‘why’, are confident in articulating their ‘why’ in ways that rally others around them, who are excited by the future they see in front of them for themselves, their colleagues and their students and who have a set of tools they can use in concert with a community of similarly excited leaders have their wellbeing best supported.

Detailed information and the registration process can be found here. We're limiting this programme to 20 principals so we can ensure strong connections are sustained between all participants. Registrations are coming in quickly so you'll need to act quite quickly to take advantage of this innovative opportunity.

Our programme is structured as follows:

• 2 day retreat at the wonderful Hanmer Springs
• 20 weeks of remote coaching and mentoring (a mix of whole group and 1-on-1)
• 1 day face-to-face celebration and planning of next steps

The three elements of the programme are:

• Refresh - explore how to address your physical, mental and social wellbeing
• Refocus - explore your personal 'why' and be exposed to tools to plan from that point
• Reconnect - design a personal and collective view of a future-focused approach supported by a community of like-minded leaders

This programme well and truly aligns with FutureMakers' vision to:

• Inspire the next generation of leaders, thinkers and problem-solvers

and HMWLead's vision to:

• Empower educational leaders for transformative change

We'd love you to join us on this journey.

How Might We Lead? Designing our new narrative

In my previous post I focused on the view that the number one principle seems to be that effective schools have clearly articulated and shared beliefs about learning that are lived in every classroom.

This post proposes that the clearly articulated and shared beliefs about learning that are lived in every classroom need to be driven by a vision and mission which are deeply informed by new contexts for learning. In the previous post I stated that, in the end, it doesn't matter what the core beliefs about learning are but that it was vital that they were lived in every classroom. But, of course, it does matter.

If we start, as we should, with the question:

• "How do children and adults learn most powerfully and deeply in their lives?" (Modern Learners).

and we add:

• "When they leave us, what will our students need to be able to do, and what kind of people will they be?" (Modern Learners)

and we take into account the rapidly changing and threatened world in store for our current learners (climate crisis, pandemics, increasing inequity, war, biodiversity threat, AI, world of work), we must explore, embrace and fully incorporate in our design of schools and of learning new ways in which we can learn and become educated.

These new ways of learning which will better prepare our ākonga for the realities of their fast-changing world need to be central and visible in a compelling narrative of what the school stands for and the principles that guide it.

Charles Leadbetter in Learning on Purpose (Centre for Strategic Action) says, " A compelling narrative has to convey both purpose and possibility, it speaks to identity (who you are, where you've come from and what you stand for) and intent (where you are going, what you want to achieve)." He also talks of the importance of being able to tell a coherent story about yourself. "with an arc into the future."

He describes a process to follow to establish the compelling narrative:

• clearly identify the dominant narrative which you wish to challenge and "how it disables you from making change and what its weaknesses are, how it does not add up."
• settle on a metaphor to build the narrative around. But make sure this reflects the new narrative (eg rather than competing, getting best scores etc more relevant metaphors might be around a growth in important dispositions that better prepare young people to flourish in the realities of the modern world.)
• contextualise the narrative and metaphor to your current setting and propose new structures to support the narrative.
• show what the way ahead looks like and the likely ways of navigating through
• focus on the narrative being invitational so that it becomes compelling to be part of

In thinking about the new contexts for learning that should be driving our vision and mission and be central to our new compelling narrative I'd like to highlight Michael Fullan (quoting Hargreaves and O'Connor) in The Right Drivers For Whole System Success (Centre for Strategic Education) who identifies "collaboration embedded in the culture and life of the school," as a key factor in effective schools.

Another useful framework to assist with a new narrative for schools and learning is that described by the Centre for Educational Research and Innovation (OECD) with their 7 Principles of Learning.

• Learners at the centre
• Social nature of learning
• Emotions are integral to learning
• Recognising individual differences
• Stretching all students
• Assessment for learning
• Building horizontal connections

As well, in one of their Horizon Reports NMC looking at future trends to develop deeper learning identifies project-based learning and inquiry learning as effective pedagogical approaches for deeper learning.

The Innovation Unit in the UK encourages schools wanting to be more effective to personalise learning, connect learning to the outside world, adopt a version of project-based learning, develop approaches that have students doing the teaching and inviting students into the learning design process.

Developing a compelling new narrative for your school, especially one that is fully informed by new contexts for learning (collaboration, connected, co-constructed), could be demanding work, but it is also rewarding and exciting work.

We know what makes for deep learning. The next step is to capture that in a compelling narrative for our school.

I'm happy to help.

How Might We Lead With a Set of Common Beliefs (about learning!)

 

While exploring the Education Leadership group on Linkedin I came across this:

•  "A competent curriculum leader is able to clearly articulate their philosophy on 'how students learn best.' They and their team need to lead with a common belief."

This jumped out at me as I've been spending some time delving into what seems to be the most important factors/principles that determine whether a school is effective or efficient (see previous post). What I have discovered to be one of the most important principles is no surprise as it has driven my work as an educational leader and has been the area where I have been focusing most of my work with schools and organisations with my consultancy HMWLead.

The number one principle seems to be that effective schools have clearly articulated and shared beliefs about learning that are lived in every classroom (Modern Learners). The simple bit might be determining what the shared beliefs about learning should be. Often, the harder bit is ensuring that they are lived in every classroom. The Education Leadership quote above, in my view, is pointing the way towards this happens - it is, in fact, by everyone leading with these common beliefs. If this happens then the practices to ensure it is happening in every classroom will emerge.

The quote also points to the fact that it is important that the core beliefs that drive a school should be about learning and about how people learn. It is all very well to have a set of core beliefs and values that are largely behavioural (eg respect, honesty, integrity etc) but learning beliefs and values should be front and centre in a school.

Determining what these shared beliefs about learning are should start with answering the question:

• "How do children and adults learn most powerfully and deeply in their lives?" (Modern Learners).

The investigation I am carrying out certainly supports the assertion made by Will Richardson and Bruce Dixon from Modern Learners that without a collaboratively created/developed belief system about what makes learning powerful that is lived each day through classroom norms for learning and a common language, schools cannot develop each child to their potential as a learner.

If we accept that being a self-directed and self-determined learner is the most important skill to develop within our learners then it is vital that we take the time to discuss how we can create the conditions in our schools for these skills to develop. And when we have settled on the principles/beliefs that we believe create these conditions we have to make sure that they are visible everywhere in our school, in the language we use and the classroom practices we adopt.

Based on what we see in the research about what makes for powerful learning for today's students what are examples of some elements that could be the core of our beliefs about learning? Here are a few:

• Know your students (Education Leadership, Bishop)
• Learners at the centre (OECD, Innovation Unit)
• Student agency (Education Leadership, Wenmouth)
• Connect learning horizontally and to the real world (Innovation Unit, OECD)
• Inquiry based approaches (OECD, Innovation Unit)
• Experiential learning (Centre for Strategic Education, Innovation Unit)
• Promote collaboration and interaction (Fullan, Education Leadership, OECD)
• Measure what matters/A4L (Innovation Unit, OECD)
• Stretch and support all learners (OECD, Education Leadership)

This is by no means an exhaustive list and cleverer people than I will be able to add to it. It is a good starting point for discussion as groups of teachers interrogate their beliefs and the beliefs of others about what makes for deep learning.

The key, of course, is then to discuss and agree what impacts these beliefs would have on our teaching practice. For example:

• truly knowing my students and how they best learn will mean I'd have to adopt a relationship based approach to my pedagogy and implement culturally sustaining practices
• knowing my students would mean I'd be aware of their needs, interests and passions and would incorporate them into my learning design, and my belief in student agency would have me co-constructing learning and assessment programmes with individual learners
• belief in connected learning (across subjects and with the real world), inquiry-based approaches and experiential learning would have me exploring a relevant project-based learning model
• promoting collaboration and interaction would mean incorporating appropriately organised and structured co-operative group work throughout my learning design
• a belief that we should measure what matters will require me to search for ways to track how well my learners are collaborating, showing self-determination, being resilient in their learning etc. I will also need to ensure that all learners know what is expected of them and why that is expected
• if I'm wishing to stretch and support all learners I will need to be designing learning according to the principles of Universal Design for Learning

In the end, it doesn't matter too much what the core beliefs about learning are (though I'll cover that in another post). What matters is that the core beliefs about learning are known, understood, shared and drive the learning in all classrooms.

I wonder if all schools can say they have a set of clearly articulated and shared beliefs about learning. If they do, I wonder if they know that they are truly lived in every classroom. I also wonder if all leaders lead with those common beliefs. I know that I couldn't have answered 'yes' to those questions throughout much of my leadership.

Once again, this looks like demanding work, but it also looks like rewarding and exciting work.

How Might We Lead for Effectiveness Rather Than Efficiency?

I have been delving more deeply into the work of  Modern Learners, Centre for Educational Research and Innovation (OECD), Michael Fullan and Chris Leadbetter and their work with the Centre for Strategic Education, Valerie Hannon and her work with the Innovation Unit and Russell Bishop's Teaching/Leading to the North-east which I mentioned in my previous post. I am doing this to attempt to distill the key principles relevant for schooling and learning design that are reflected in their work.

A couple of things have happened.

The first is Agency By Design (Derek Wenmouth et al) has been released and I've taken advantage of the free download. I've skimmed through it once and will soon digest it more thoroughly , but it looks to me as if they have done a great job in distilling those key principles, explaining them clearly and providing a framework for schools and their leaders to use to bring those principles to life. I'm still going to complete my own analysis as described above and take that lens to a deeper dive into their work.

The second is the discovery of a few quotes in the work of those mentioned above which really resonate with me and which capture the lens through which I believe I have operated as a school leader in the past and through which I approach the work I am doing now. Here they are:

• "Modern learners' newfound ability to take full control of their learning is THE educational shift of our times." (Modern Learners)
• "Cannot separate wellbeing and learning." (Fullan)
• "The power of the relationships will always dwarf all other pedagogical strategies." (From an OECD source I can't find, so any help greatly appreciated!)

I also was drawn to the point of difference described in Modern Learners' 10 Principles For Schools of Modern Learning between Efficient Schools and Effective Schools.

Efficient schools are those that prize knowing over the ability to learn while effective schools focus on developing students as learners. Their document references Peter Drucker who reminds us that, "There is a difference between doing things right and doing the right thing." Drucker's colleague, Russell Ackoff goes on to add, "Doing things right is efficiency. Doing the right thing is effectiveness." 

If we accept the quote above, "Modern learners' newfound ability to take full control of their learning is THE educational shift of our times." (Modern Learners) and think about the difference between efficiency and effectiveness then we must ask ourselves if doing things right in the traditional school environment, while may be being efficient, is the right thing to do. I would argue that many of the practices that keep our schools efficient (streaming, learning in subject silos, paradigm of one - one class, one hour, one subject, one teacher, one set of learning activities, one pace of learning, one assessment) do not recognise this important educational shift.

The likely outcome of sticking to these practices of efficiency is that schools will become less effective. This will result in decreased student engagement (attendance, behaviour, motivation to learn) and decreased teacher engagement as it feels more and more like they're pushing it uphill. 

Another danger is that baby boomer politicians who do not understand this new educational shift and the relentlessness of it will impose policies on schools that may have some populist appeal but are simply focusing on efficiency and not effectiveness.

Both of these outcomes/dangers worry me.

It is vital that we interrogate some of these thoughts, be guided by research and evidence, and decide whether the goal for our school is effectiveness or efficiency and whether we embrace the opportunities afforded us by our students' "newfound ability to take full control of their learning." 

This looks like demanding work, but it also looks like rewarding and exciting work.

How Might We Lead: Trying To Form New Habits

 

You might not connect with the following metaphor but it works for me.

I've been running 'competitively' for 50+ years. I don't think a lot about the 'how' of running; I reckon I know how to do it and I just get out and run. If someone asked me to describe how to run I'd have to stop and think because, for me, I just put one foot in front of the other and lean forward. The way I run is habitual and just happens.

I've recently discovered, though, that how I run has become not fit-for-purpose. As I've aged, my non-running muscles have weakened and I've discovered I've developed, unconsciously, a bent over shuffle type gait. Up until now it hasn't been too much of a problem as I shuffle along the roads and trails and accept the increasing and more-early-arriving pain is just part of the game.

However, I now want to run a 100 miler which brings a whole different purpose to why I'm running. This means I need to adopt a different 'how' as I won't make the 100 miles doing what I'm currently doing. The pain will be too much.

So, I've done some research and have adopted a different gait - one that has me running taller and making use of my glutes rather than focusing on my quads and hamstrings. Because this style has not yet become habitual I have to concentrate on my gait almost every single step to prevent myself falling back to old habits.

The new gait brings different issues. Pain and discomfort is emerging in new areas as I transition to a new way of running. I fully expect that things will get better with this. Also, to maintain the gait and the efficiency I expect, I need to do strength and flexibility exercises, especially to my core and in my hip area. I don't have a high level of motivation for this so it is something I need to really commit to and hold myself accountable.

While I'm confident that if I stick to my plans I will gain huge benefit I fully expect there to be problems on the way. I'll develop new niggles and new pains and I'll fall back into bad or previous habits. I have developed strategies to support me to stick to the new path.

I've realised the body was getting a bit creaky. This, along with my new 'why' (100  miler) has meant I need to develop a new 'how' with a new set of principles/guidelines (include strength and flexibility work in my training, be open to changing life-long habits etc), which will result in a different set of practices (the 'what') which I need to work on to become habitual (yoga at home, attend a gym, adopt a particular running technique).

I think sometimes schools are a bit like that. The institution has become a bit creaky while we persist with our habitual practices. This can lead to pain and niggles in the system. In my view, the 'why' of schooling has also changed as our world is changing dramatically with a range of global existential crises such as climate, pandemics, biodiversity reduction, increasing inequity, mis- and dis-information and conflict and issues in relation to AI etc.

We need to engage with these issues and understand our new 'why' and think about how we are going to respond and reposition schools and from there adopt new ways of doing 'schooling'.

The work to reposition schools can seem so daunting that we are tempted to stay with our habitual practices. While it is tough and demanding work it is certainly doable.

I am more and more convinced that how we do this work is to really focus on what it is that we know that creates the conditions for the best teaching and learning that is required today. We need to start with understanding and agreeing on how students learn best. From there we need to develop a set of core beliefs for which we are ready to "die in the ditch" and design our schools based on those core beliefs.

As part of my own professional learning I'm drilling into the work carried out by organisations such as Modern Learners, Centre for Educational Research and Innovation (OECD), Michael Fullan and Chris Leadbetter and their work with the Centre for Strategic Education, Valerie Hannon and her work with the Innovation Unit and Russell Bishop's Teaching/Leading to the North-east.

For the sake of my own country-boy mind I want to hone in on what they are all saying and see if I can make sense of the essence of it all. The aim is to settle on a set of core beliefs that could determine some guiding principles that could drive some different and more appropriate practices which we could try to make habitual.

I hope the outcome could support us when we ponder the questions about how might we lead in our schools. I'll most probably post what I come across.

How Might We Lead: What Might Be Possible

 

2 posts ago I wrote about the importance of making sure your big hairy goals are put out there for others to see. I think this gives some accountability and impetus when things start to drag or halt. I used the example of my goal to run 100 miles (160k) at the Tarawera Ultramarathon in February. I noted that I had been given advice to really establish my 'why' for doing such a crazy thing.

I've run more than 30 marathons, entered countless multi-sport races and full-day adventure races, run a 50k ultra, a 70k ultra and two 100k ultras. Every one was tough and after every one I swore, usually briefly, that that would be my last!

So why 100 miles? I have thought a lot about this and I think it's because I want to really test my limits, to test what I might be truly capable of. The risk of failure is very high (more than 50/50 I'd say): I might get injured by the intensity of the training, I might arrive at the start line carrying some niggles and not be able to finish, I might arrive at the start line feeling 100% and might not be able to finish OR I might arrive at the start line and complete it. All of those are possibilities. 

One thing is certain, between now and then and during the event, I'll be called upon to solve problems that emerge, many expected, some unexpected. And, of course, when you set out to really test what might be possible, it takes time. This will end up being a year-long project. It began with research and planning, some implementation, then some revisiting of the plan as problems emerged, and this will continue. All the time, there will be no guarantee of success. Even failure, though, will have me in a better place than I am today. I would have learned so much about myself which will be useful as I live out my life.

This is always the case when we think about what might be possible and we set out to find out.

I think this is how I have approached school leadership.

At Opotiki College after 10 years of being DP in charge of discipline in which I oversaw 50 suspensions a year (that's 500 over those ten years) and up to 10 exclusions per year (that's 100) I began to wonder what else might be possible. On appointment as principal I stopped all suspensions as we set out on a journey to explore if the principles of restorative practice might offer us a different way.

Like with the 100 miler, it involved research, planning, implementation and revisiting, overcoming hurdles and solving problems. As it was we were hugely successful with only 1 suspension in the next 10 years. The best outcomes were a creation of a culture of mutual respect, a change in pedagogy to one based on relationships and a massive lift in student achievement (Decile 1 school with achievement levels at NCEA Levels 1 -3 equal to the average of Decile 8-10 schools).

Instead of being curious about what might be possible we could have not taken the risks and stayed with the status quo. Instead in the following 10 years 500 kids weren't suspended and 100 kids weren't excluded, teaching improved and student engagement and achievement went through the roof. It was worth it.

At Hobsonville Point Secondary School we wondered what might be possible if we set out to design a schooling experience based on what evidence stated was more appropriate for what young people needed to thrive in an ever-changing world. Like with the 100 miler and the work at Opotiki, it involved research, planning, implementation and revisiting, overcoming hurdles and solving problems. All of these also required courage.

All of this work has led me to this model of leadership based on having a moral purpose that requires you to wonder about what might be possible, to have the courage to set out to explore and implement what might be possible, while always being open to the idea that you might be wrong and will need to amend.

This has formed the basis of all of the work I am now doing with HMWLead. Whether it has been working with governance facilitators, boards to support principal development, SLTs to investigate curriculum and pedagogy review or to think about new ways of schooling, or with individual principals to consider what might be possible in relation to how they lead it has always focused on clarifying core beliefs and values that drive us, which in turn gives us the courage to take action and lead.

When schools start thinking about what might be possible, rather than focusing on what they are doing now, that's when we see the beginnings of transformation.

In the wake of the election result all school leaders are going to have to be very clear about their moral purpose and what they are going to die in the ditch for so that they lead in the ways best for their school community.

What might be possible? Sing out if you think I can help in this space.

Working with How Might We Lead (HMWLead)

The HMWLead Website is now live. I invite you to go and check it out and give me any feedback.

The 'What We Offer' Page on the website gives a good description in general terms on how HMWLead can work with schools on their journey of transformation. This brief post gives a summary of the work we are currently doing with schools to give you an idea of the variety of ways we can work together.

School 1 (Secondary School in South Island)
Working with Senior Leadership Team to establish the principles to shape a curriculum review for Year 11 in 2024 before moving to a wider curriculum review for Years 9 and 10. We explored what makes for effective 21st Learning and thought about how these could be brought to life in their context.

School 2 (Secondary School in South Island)
About to begin working with the Senior Leadership Team as they embark on an exciting journey of transforming quite traditional learning and structures into an innovative model from Years 7 to 13.

School 3 (Secondary School in Upper North Island)
Providing mentoring of a new Principal as they begin their leadership in an innovative school.

School 4 (Secondary School in Lower North Island)
Supporting a new Principal with a new SLT to redesign their curriculum and institutional structures to better reflect the needs of their students and community and which is based on a clearly defined set of core beliefs and values (see previous post).

School 5 (Secondary School in Central North Island)
About to begin a refresh of the Years 9 - 10 curriculum so that it better meets the needs and interests of their students and community.

Governance Support Organisation
About to present a series of workshops on the why, what and how of leading schools in a way that is focused on a clear set of core beliefs and values.

Other Areas Being Explored​

• supporting a primary school with the principal appointment process
• supporting an Intermediate school to revisit its core beliefs and values to establish more clarity and coherence

These partnerships have a strong focus on curriculum, but all of them involve leaders and teams exploring their core values and beliefs so that there is real coherence and clarity for their practices. Each partnership also provides opportunities to look at different ways of leading so that we grow how we lead and how we can grow others to lead.

​Sing out if you think there'd be value in us working together. Use the website or email me directly on maurie@hmwlead.co.nz.

How Might We Lead - Why, Why, Why

 "Why, why, why?!" is a common response from my friend and inspirational guru on all things to do with positive relationships and restorative practice, Marg Thorsborne, when she comments on any of my many posts on the crazy training and/or racing adventures I get up to. Her response does make me pause and think "why?" and this is a good thing.

I've decided to enter in the Tarawera Ultra Trail Run 100 miler to be held next February. It's what I'd call one of those big, hairy audacious goals which has a reasonably high chance of failure. As is often the case, these sorts of goals need to be made public in some way to increase the level of accountability. If I kept it to myself it could be easier to quietly give up on it when the going gets tough, as it inevitably will.

That's the nature of big, hairy audacious goals - the going will get tough, and to prepare for that inevitability you need some counters - one of which is putting it out there publicly. My apologies, therefore, to those who follow me on Facebook or Instagram as I will hold myself to account through posting on those platforms!

When I was thinking of entering I contacted Eugene from Dirt Church Radio (Trail running podcast). I'd got to know him through the podcast as well as him being a parent of an ex-student - he also paced me to a sub 4 hour Rotorua Marathon! I asked him because I know he had completed the 100 miler at Tarawera and I reckon he has a good understanding of my ability. His reply really made me sit up and think, "But the question is ... do you want to? It's a race where you really need to have your why nailed down."

Of course, I should have known all this. Like all education leaders I was familiar with Simon Sinek's work on the importance of starting with the 'why', and in the very early years of the development of Hobsonville Point Secondary School we were supported by Julia Aitken to explore our core values and beliefs before developing a set of principles to guide the 'what' (our practices) using the following model (which she explores in From Values and Beliefs about Learning to Principles and Practice.)

Now it's time to practise what I preach, break out a template of the circles and start in the centre and drill down into my 'why' so that that can sustain me when it gets tough. I'll most probably post on that!

One thing I do know after 20 years of principalship in 2 very different schools is that having a deeply thought-out and clearly identified set of core values and beliefs as an individual teacher leader (moral purpose) and as a school (vision/mission/values) is the only way you have a chance of making sense of the education world and solving the many complex problems that come your way.

But of course you have to be conscientious about making sure that the core values and beliefs determine your principles for action and the resulting practices you will put in place. That's the challenging work! As is looking at your current practices (the way we do things around here) and putting them back through the filter, starting at the central circle. What do you do when something you have always done doesn't align with your core values and beliefs?

I've been doing a lot of thinking about my personal leadership model that I have developed over the last 2 decades:

I have found it relatively easy to work in the 'Moral Purpose' circle, developing my own set of values and my own 'why', working with others to do the same for a school and also working with individuals to develop their own.

The other 2 circles are a bit more challenging as they are a bit more to do with mindset/dispositions. While you can support people to access professional learning around Open to Learning Conversations how do you support leaders to be truly comfortable with the fact that they might be wrong! (More to come on that).

I have similarly struggled with the 'Courage' circle. Some people seem more naturally courageous than others, at first look. What does it take to be courageous as a leader? More and more, I'm of the belief that the foundation of courage comes from the centre of the three circles from Julia's model. It is when we are more certain about our/our organisation's core values and beliefs and the principles that emerge from them that we develop the confidence to be courageous, to stand for what we truly believe with a clear sense of our 'why'.

Maybe, the sweet spot where Moral Purpose and Courage overlaps comes from the centre circle of core values and beliefs.

My last post talked about the launching of HMWLead (How Might We Lead).  Thank you to those who have made contact and started working with me. So far, most of that work, while having a range of contexts and foci, requires looking at core values and beliefs as we look to solve problems and support leaders to lead with moral purpose and courage (while being open to learning!).

I'm really looking forward to developing and sharing my thinking about the need to think about different ways of leading. Sing out if you think I can help.

maurie@hmwlead.co.nz