Realising the potential of system leadership

An insight into the article by David Hopkins

Ryan Brown 2082535EDUC9707- Leading Change in the Digital Age

A brief outline of the content of the article

A group discussion on the key themes of the article

An opportunity to share our learning

A conclusion and summary of our learning

The structure of this presentation will include:

“In the future… leaders will face problems for which there is no

immediate solution, and will have to build the capacity to deal with them.

This requires a different kind of leadership.” (Hopkins, 2008, pp.22)

The Problem…

Some inspiration…

moralpurpose

professional development

strategic acumen(adaptability)

managing teaching and

learningdeveloping

organisations

developing people

work as a change agent

act as a community leader

improve school in challenging contextleading educational

partnerships

partner a low achieving school

individual professional organisational

system tranformational

…are those head teachers who are willing to shoulder system leadership roles, who care about and work for the success of other schools as well

as their own. (Hopkins, 2008, pp.22)

System Leaders…

It’s about leading all education, rather than focusing solely on one school or area

It’s about investing leadership in a system wide approach, without limitations

the motivation…

Moral Purpose that drives the leadership

The Adaptability of leadership

The Domains of leadership

Roles associated with leadership

A System Leader has to consider…

moralpurpose

professional development

strategic acumen(adaptability)

managing teaching and

learningdeveloping

organisations

developing people

work as a change agent

act as a community leader

improve school in challenging contextleading educational

partnerships

partner a low achieving school

individual professional organisational

system tranformational

moralpurpose

individual professional organisational

system tranformational

Defines “the passion to proceed, or encouragement for others to follow”(Hopkins, 2008, pp.23)

This is largely based on the commitment to improve student learning, while engaging the entire organisation of teaching, learning and curriculum.

Moral Purpose

Achieved through:

Measuring success in accordance with student learning

Ensuring learning is personalised

Committing to personal and professional development

Developing learning communities

Improving culture and context of learning

Recognising influence of classroom, school and system on each other

“a problem situation for which solutions lie outside current ways of operating”

“adaptive challenges demand learning, as they require new ways of thinking and operating.”

“Mobilising people to meet adaptive challenges is at the heart of leadership practice.”

(Hopkins, 2008, pp.25-26)

We need adaptability…

Equipping people to deal with new situations

Teaching people to be adaptable

Committing to ongoing to learning

In summary: Professional Development

It’s about…

moralpurpose

individual professional organisational

system tranformational

moralpurpose

professional development

strategic acumen(adaptability)

individual professional organisational

system tranformational

How does leadership apply to school improvement?

How does a leader improve a school’s performance?

The Domains of Leadership

Setting Direction

Managing Teaching and learning

Developing People

Developing The Organisation

The Domains of Leadership

moralpurpose

professional development

strategic acumen(adaptability)

individual professional organisational

system tranformational

moralpurpose

professional development

strategic acumen(adaptability)

managing teaching and

learningdeveloping

organisations

developing people

individual professional organisational

system tranformational

Describe the type of actions that a System leader might perform

These are categorised but not limited in their aim to create: A wider resource for school improvement An authentic response to failing schools A means of resolving emerging challenges A sustainable strategy for maintaining

development

The Roles of System Leaders…

Developing and leading a successful educational improvement partnership

Choosing to lead in extremely challenging circumstances

Partnering with a struggling school in order to improve it

Acting as a community leader to broker and shape partnerships and relationships around learning

Working as a change agent within the system

Could you imagine someone…

moralpurpose

professional development

strategic acumen(adaptability)

managing teaching and

learningdeveloping

organisations

developing people

individual professional organisational

system tranformational

moralpurpose

professional development

strategic acumen(adaptability)

managing teaching and

learningdeveloping

organisations

developing people

work as a change agent

act as a community leader

improve school in challenging contextleading educational

partnerships

partner a low achieving school

individual professional organisational

system tranformational

What are the moral purposes that motivate effective leaders?

Why is professional development and adaptability regarded so highly?

Who is best equipped to be a system leader?

Is the system leadership model realistic for South Australian Schools?

Discussion Questions

So where do we sit?

Sharing and communication is holding increased weight and value

Leadership and learning can no longer be confined

The benefit of the whole, is not done by separating its parts

Successful schools are in the prime position to be offering support and leadership on a system wide level.

Summary

Hopkins, D. 2008. Realising the potential of system leadership. In Hopkins, D. 2008. Improving School Leadership (vol2): Case studies on system leadership. OECD pp. 21-35

Reference