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Steve Maharey outlines the government's commitment to developing New Zealand as a smart society, with a smart education system enabling its principals to be smart leaders. --------------------------------- Speech notes for an address to the Auckland Primary Principals' Meeting E nga mana, e nga reo, e nga hau e wha Good morning everyone. Thanks very much for this opportunity to talk to you today. My themes this morning are transformation- both economic and educational, and the part that school leadership plays in transformation. You have also asked me to speak about moving New Zealand from a Fordist to Post- Fordist society. Fordism, of course, refers to the production system designed and implemented in most western societies in the early part of the 20th century Designed for the industrial age, the system was based on the same principles as the Ford motor-car factories - with mass production of a low cost product for mass consumption, and with little variety or choice. 'You can have any coloured Model T you like, as long as it's black' - was the catch phrase. Our education system was also Fordist. It focussed on drilling students in the 3 Rs - reading, writing and arithmetic. Girls were encouraged to be good mothers, boys to be reliable workers. The operating principles were the same- mass production at low cost. The world is moving away from Fordism. In the global economy nowadays, knowledge production is the key process. Flexibility, specialisation and differentiation are key values of the post-Fordist world - the opposite of standardisation. This transformation is ongoing and we need to think about how we can change education and the economy to take advantage of these global shifts. Government's goal for the economy and education Our goal as government is to transform New Zealand from a mass producer of primary produce to a high value knowledge economy. This goal requires significant input from education. We need an education system that supports us as a nation in this post-Fordist world. Our goals for education are simple. We want: We want every New Zealander to share in this transformation. Educational change is the springboard for this to happen. Over the last six years we have made considerable progress towards these goals. In surveys of school achievement our students consistently score in the top half of the OECD, with many students in the top 25 per cent. But, despite this success we still have a wide gap in achievement between our best and more poorly performing students. And as a result of globalisation our student intakes are becoming more diverse. The immediate priority is to work at reducing this disparity, while still encouraging the highest possible standards overall. We need now to better understand our students and build on their diversity and what they bring to their learning. Personalised learning in South Auckland primary schools Three years ago seven primary schools in Mangere and Otara began a process of professional development focusing on literacy at the junior school level. In the first phase of the project the literacy leaders and the teachers in two of the seven schools systematically examined the achievement information of their students. This examination focussed on raising literacy levels for students at-risk of not achieving to expectations. Each half term they plotted all students' progress on a 'wedge-graph' alongside national benchmarks. They involved other staff in professional development and in in-depth discussion about what needed to be tried to help those students who are reading below the benchmark. At the same time the literacy leaders in the other five schools ran similar professional development courses, but didn't focus on individual student achievement. At the end of the first year, there were some clear outcomes. Achievement levels in the two schools focussing on individual students were much higher. When the literacy leaders in the other five schools became aware of these significant results they also examined this achievement information. As a result teachers in these schools adopted similar practices putting individual students and their specific learning needs at the centre. Over the following year student achievement in these five schools also improved. These results have been bought about through a more personalised approach to learning, professional collaboration and literacy leadership. Leadership and personalised learning Personalised learning begins with an accurate identification of individual learning needs at the earliest possible point. It then requires a flexible response where the needs of small groups of students with similar requirements are met, and the specific needs of individual children can also be met. Often teachers must begin by working from their professional hunches about 'what might work here'. This needs to be followed up by careful evaluation of results. Collaboration amongst teachers is needed to brainstorm ideas of what might be tried initially and to consider collectively what the evidence suggests might be needed next. School leaders also need to challenge, as well as support, staff to switch to a more personalised approach to learning so that these results can be repeated around the country. Diversity and its challenges Another challenge that we face as educators is preparing a diverse student body for the future, so that they have a strong sense of identity and self-confidence, yet can play their part on the global stage when this is necessary. As you know, in New Zealand the percentage of school students who are European has declined over the last five years, while the percentage of students who are Maori, Pasifika or Asian has increased. By 2021, the Maori student numbers will have increased by 21%, Pasifika population by 59 percent and Asian population by 145%. Murray's Bay Intermediate School Murrays Bay Intermediate has a student population where only 2% are Maori, but recent migrants make up about 20% of the student total. Most are Asian (Chinese and Korean) but many are also from other non-English speaking nationalities. There are also about 40 foreign fee-paying students. Murrays Bay has set out on a deliberate strategy of organisational change to respond to this diversity. Principal Colin Dale was appointed to the school in 2002. Colin says his vision for the school is for it to be 'invitational' - an inviting place - a great place for both students and staff - a place where learning is exciting and where everyone is a learner, including the principal. Colin has developed a culture of continuous improvement in the
school around four key concepts: As Colin puts it: 'the greatest change I have seen at the school is that instead of having a one-size-fits-all mentality, we now have a smorgasbord of different approaches to learning. Murray's Bay has a culture that is changing from a school that was about knowing, to a school that is about real understanding'. So what do these two stories tell us about school leadership for educational transformation? Principal development for the transformation To respond to the changes that are facing our society, the education system will need to become more attuned to the shifts in skills and learning needed both here and globally. At the same time the quality and relevance of education must satisfy an increasingly mixed local community and business sector. Increasingly we understand more about the importance of leadership for educational transformation, like that Colin is bringing about at Murray's Bay. Recent evidence tells us that professional leadership is second only to effective teaching in influencing the system to improve educational outcomes for young people. It is vital if school practice is to change. In particular this evidence clearly demonstrates just how vital the principal's role is as a leader of learning. Effective principals, like Colin, improve student outcomes by:
These principals use the evidence to guide their decision-making and lead change effectively. They also encourage leadership in others, like the literacy leaders in my first example. Investment in Leadership Good leaders like these need to be nurtured; they do not simply emerge. Since 2001, we have invested $27.4 million in sound induction programmes for new principals, on-going professional learning and sabbaticals. I want to highlight some of these key initiatives and talk about some of the things we have learned along the way. 1.First Time Principals Induction programme Starting in 2002 this programme offers a series of residential courses plus on-the-job mentoring for beginning principals. Around 700 principals have graduated from this programme. 2.Development Centres for Experienced Principals This refresher course for experienced principals supports their on-going professional learning. Each principal is matched with an experienced facilitator who gives them feedback on their skills and works with them on a development plan. In the past couple of years over 150 principals have participated. 3.LeadSpace The aim of this project has been to reduce the professional isolation of rural principals, increase on-line collaboration and learning and assist all principals make the most of new ICT tools. What have we learned from these experiences? There are a number of lessons we've learned from over five years of investing in principal development. Firstly, there is a huge diversity in experience amongst beginning principals in New Zealand, and it is difficult for a single national programme to manage this effectively. Secondly, experienced principals are often not receiving effective feedback from their annual appraisal. Many development centre participants report that this is the first time in their career they have been given effective feedback and the opportunity to plan personal professional development. Thirdly, while principals are comfortable using ICT tools for management purposes, for professional dialogue they prefer to meet the group they are working with face-to-face before they start as an on-line group.
These initiatives are helping us to make great gains, but as any leader of learning knows we should always refine and modify our methods so the learner remains as the focus. Considering what we have learned and where we are heading I have asked the Ministry of Education to focus on three key new areas of leadership development for next year. Firstly, I am seeking further work around what is unique about leadership in New Zealand. . A lot of the research about leadership comes from overseas. But we know that some of the challenges I have talked about are unique to New Zealand, and stem from our particular history and geography. The aim here is to create principal development designed specifically to help you and our other principals up and down New Zealand. Once these are in place we can be confident we are developing schools to meet our particular Kiwi challenges. Secondly, we need to respond better to the evidence that is emerging around recruitment and retention issues for principals and other school leaders. In New Zealand principal turnover is around 7 percent per year and in the next 5 years we know that 45% of current school leaders (principals, DPs and APs) are due to retire. Yet only about 10 percent of all teachers are seeking promotion to a leadership position. We need a whole-of-system focus to shape policy that encourages potential and aspiring school leaders to take the step-up and fill these looming gaps. Thirdly, we need to think more carefully than we have in the past about smart ways to handle the administrative aspects of the principals' role. Recent research suggests that New Zealand school principals spend more time on administration than the principals of all other OECD countries - with the exception of Chinese Taipei. We need to work together to reduce mindless compliance, and to develop smarter ways of doing the day-to-day administration that is part of the job. Conclusion Our objective for the next three years is to continue the transformation of New Zealand. Government has a genuine commitment to developing New Zealand as a smart society, with a smart education system enabling its principals to be smart leaders. We need to work through the challenges that modern teaching presents, using tools such as personalised learning and new leadership models. We must lift the aspirations and develop the abilities of all New Zealanders through a distinctively New Zealand way of working that is inclusive and forward looking. To achieve our goals requires shrewd investment of scarce resources. We must pool our energies and ideas. I therefore welcome your questions and suggestions on the ideas that I have introduced today. Thank you.
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