Leadership

An overwhelming majority of teachers don’t get enough time to prepare for effective classroom practice or high-quality lesson planning, according to new Australian research. The Grattan Institute report says teaching quality is suffering and students are losing out.

'As we approach the third year of the pandemic, it’s crucial that teachers and students have the opportunity to reset for the school year ahead.' In our latest reader submission, Dr Tom Brunzell shares tools and strategies from trauma-informed and strengths-based practice that can be used to support teacher wellbeing and ensure students are ready to learn.

The Connection is a network of high-performing school leaders working in some of Australia’s most challenged communities. They’ve been reflecting on successful practices in their own schools since the start of the pandemic. Today’s article shares their top five recommendations for learning through COVID.

As a school leader, what’s your response to negative events or difficult situations? In the upcoming school year, what areas might you choose to work collectively with staff on improving? We’ve unpacked these questions recently at Teacher, so in this episode we’re looking at leadership.

The leadership team at Suncoast Christian College in Queensland has been working hard to open up classrooms, encourage greater sharing of practice, and make the shift to a more collaborative model of planning, teaching and assessment. We find out more from Principal Greg Mattiske and Director of Teaching and Learning Haley Whitfield.

A report released by the Australian Government Department of Education, Skills and Employment, addresses the unique challenges faced by school leaders in regional, rural and remote schools and outlines four key qualities of school leaders achieving high impact in these settings.

‘How do you respond when leaders opt for optimism, in order to skim over dealing with the real issues that your school and community are cultivating, because it is easier to deny they exist?’ What happens when positivity gets out of hand, and how can we best respond to those who refuse to acknowledge the bad times?

Which factors determine the effectiveness of school boards? A new study by academics from Monash University’s Business School has found that board diversity, board practices, and principal influence over board decisions, all impact board effectiveness. They also have a sizeable bearing on the school’s financial and academic wellbeing.

‘Every assembly I read a book to the whole school and I expect all of our teachers to be reading aloud to our kids every day.’ Christies Beach Primary School Principal Catherine O’Dea shares why encouraging students to develop a love of reading is the key aim of the South Australian school’s improvement plan.

Attracting and retaining effective teachers to build and maintain a strong team can be difficult for principals and systems. Here, we find out how the Catholic Education Diocese of Cairns has been working to tackle teacher supply and demand issues in Far North Queensland.