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Module 3

Partnerships and Networks

Due: 28th March

 

Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi engari he toa takitini.

My strength is not as an individual, but as a collective.

 

 

In Derek Wenmoth’s Networked Leadership paper, he establishes a view of leadership that requires effective operating within the ‘network’ paradigm that schools now operate within. 

Even prior to the events of COVID-19, we have been living in an increasingly networked world. Now, more than ever, leaders as individuals, and leading organisations are working to be connected with each other and responsive to the changes occurring around them. Within our Aspiring NLP forum, we are creating an educational network of schools across New Zealand, where trusting relationships and connections can grow.

 

Provocation:

What approaches can ‘networked leaders’ take when building stronger communities? What area(s) of development can you identify for yourself when working as part of a network or collaborative partnership?

Task: Reflect on the provocation and film a 1-2-minute video introduction of yourself, describing a challenge in relation to your role or context, and an invitation for feedback from other delegates.

This e-module should allow for a broad range of responses to allow delegates to interpret it in a way that is relevant to their context. 

Module Three requires you to record and share your video on the forum, in time for you to respond to each other in Module 4. Our heart is that every Aspiring NLP delegate builds an ever-increasing network of strong and diverse relationships, that can come together through coaching partnerships, shared commonalities and innovative problem-solving solutions to build better and brighter futures in education.

In the past, we have had feedback from delegates that this Module made them feel hesitant/nervous, but afterwards, they thoroughly enjoyed getting to know other delegates through the videos and being able recognise other delegates at the PLGs after completing this. If you feel uncomfortable, try to step into the discomfort. It’s not easy, but you can enter your ‘growth zone’ once you leave your comfort zone.

 

“The network paradigm is not a structural or organizational concept- it is ecological, highly relational and     collaborative. A networked leader must start by changing thinking about networks and schools and demonstrate a growth mindset.”

Derek Wenmoth,  August 2015 for the EDUCANZ Council

 

“I am gaining a deepening understanding of, and appreciation for, ‘the way’ of Coaching Leadership, as a powerful and effective tool for facilitating positive change and self-learning in others, and, simultaneously, in myself. How I wish I had known about and used a coaching approach in my years of principalship, What a difference it might have made!”

Nick Major,  Aspiring Principals’ Coach

 

Module 3 and 4 Resources:

– Working effectively with iwi and hapū, Melanie Taite-Pitama: https://vimeo.com/242861287

– Legacy – 15 Lessons in Leadership, by James Kerr (2013). Chapter 6 pp 74-83

– Open-to-Learning Conversations-Relationships and Trust, Viviane Robinson, 2014: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_l5-HKIR1s

Additional/Optional Readings:

– Connecting with Māori Communities; Whānau, Hapū and Iwi, Mere Berryman and Therese Ford, 2014:

https://kep.org.nz/assets/resources/site/module8-v20a-up-16Apr15-w-image_5Jan16.pdf

– Robertson, J. (2015). Think-piece on leadership education in New Zealand. https://teachingcouncil.nz/assets/Files/Leadership-Strategy/Leadership-for-Communities-of-Learning-Five-Think-Pieces.pdf

 

53 Responses

  3. Apologies for the delay, I took the time to actually have a break over the holidays, and got straight back into the classroom and cleared out the cupboards and behind the whiteboard that was overflowing from previous teachers, many years worth.
    Very nervous doing the video, as we all have that perception of ‘oh I hate the way I sound when listening back’.
    Hopefully the link words – https://drive.google.com/file/d/1a_gT3ST3EW0rU5QCzAsUowQZQlrXjwl0/view?usp=drive_link

    1. Kia ora Shaye,

      I totally understand where you are coming from in terms of teacher accountability. What I usually do is have a discussion about the concerns and challenges that we may identify. Make sure you take notes when discussions are had and when emailing them (keep a paper trial). This is to keep you (safe). I even sometimes cc in emails, Principal, DP or Learning Support Coordinator.

      I sit them with me – we create goals, timelines and reflect with them regularly to keep them constantly thinking about their goals, keep the goals alive and keep them accountable! It does work even when the horse has bolted.

      All the best!
      Ngā mihi nui
      Matua Shanan

    1. Hi Phillip,
      Sounds like you have been busy! A toxic work environment is not cool and I can understand why people decide to leave if nothing seems to be getting done. In our school we have people who are very different but we all seem to get along for the good of the kids. None of us are friends as such and hang out in the weekends. We always refer staff back to our complaints policy and if they have a problem then they they need to see the person the have a problem with and if that doesn’t work they go to the team leader and if it still doesn’t get fixed then SLT. I am happy to send you this if you like, but you probably have one. The current Principal shuts down in Toxic comments straight away. We have regular huis with our TA’s and have had to mention a few times to not gossip about people, if someone is gossiping to you then say to that person “you need to go and see such and such” and that has shut things down. I love the saying “what you walk past and do nothing about, you are accepting that behaviour” if it is not dealt with then staff think that this is ok. My Principal in the past has literally had a whole staff meeting with staff to shut down toxic comments. 1 person – face to face but more than 1 then it can be whole staff. Setting those expectations and calling it out is a start. If it is repeated I would be reffering to the school code of conduct etc. You probably know all of this but I hope something helps! https://www.nzstaresourcecentre.org.nz/helpforprincipals?aId=ka00o000000pO6zAAE

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    1. Hi Jenna! Thanks for sharing your challenge. It can be quite overwelming establishing relationships in a large school community. The couple of times I’ve met you, I’ve found you warm, approachable and passonate about the tamariki in your kura. It is awesome to have solid supports around you too.
      Having good boundaries and clarity around your role is crucial.
      Thinking on your challenge, I’m reminded of the following quote “there is only one way to eat an elephant: a bite at a time.”
      Thinking on the vision, the why and then breaking it down into ther smaller chunks of the how and the what.
      There may also be the need to think about if it is your “elephant”. At times, others need gentle supports and encouragement to take ownership and responsibility. I also find it helpful to ” slow it down” as this gives time to problem solve, seek guidance and put supports in place. All of the above – I’m still working on. If you are in Whangārei, I’d love to connect and have coffee. 🙂

      1. Thanks so much Grace. I had to smile when reading your quote…it is something my father has often told me and I frequently share with students. It’s a timely reminder, that I should pay attention 🙂 I appreciate your advice – all three ideas, ‘break it down, encouraging other’s responsibility, and slowing it down’ could really make a difference for me right now. I’ll definitely try and set up a Whangārei visit – I’d love to connect.

    2. Hi Jenna. Thanks for sharing that with us. I can totally relate to what you are saying – I am not the most social or outgoing person, and I often find building relationships with people tricky, especially when I don’t know them very well.
      I really like what Grace said about the elephant – I’ve learnt over the years that building relationships is not something that happens over night. Viviane Robinson’s video in the resources above really resonated with me in terms of putting “trust dollars in the bank” – teachers build trust (and therefore a relationships) in you by watching what you do each day, and noticeing the judgements that we make as leaders. This is true not only with respect to teachers in our kura, but to everybody – the akonga, whānau, and all the other organisations and groups that we come into contact with through our mahi.
      Having been a teacher at my kura for almost 20 years now, the majority of the staff know me very well, and when I stepped into the DP role, I already had established relationships and trust in place. I don’t know how long you have been at Kerikeri Primary, but I have no doubt that through your daily mahi and kōrero with others, your relationships with others will only strengthen and solidify over time.
      I think we need to organise a day/time in the new term when the Tai Tokerau whānau can get together for a catch up and perhaps visit our schools. I think that would be awesome for all of us!

    1. Hi Nikkole,

      thanks for sharing your challenges. You sound like you have been very busy. What a gift to be able to ‘play’ in the puddle of principalship. Although, my opportunities came at the misfortune of my colleagues health, I always appreciated the chance to honor the current kaupapa while using that time as a platform to discover who I really was as a leader. It doesn’t mean radical change, but a chance to be YOU as the Tumuaki. Very cool! I also found that it opened me up to having deeper conversations with my Tumuaki once they returned. I had a better understanding of why things were the way they were and in other cases, I had questions and was more free to ask them. I hope that you continue to enjoy this time. I look forward to catching up at some stage to hear all about it. Kia Kaha e hoa.

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    2. Thank you for sharing how you are finding being Acting Principal while your Principal is away – I am sure it takes on a higher level of self-expectation when they are out of the country. I think it is important that we are able to be ourselves as leaders, to be true to ourselves, and to find ways in which we would manage situations that may be different to how our current leader would do so, as we are all individual and cannot ever be exactly the same, whilst holding our leaders in the highest regard with respect and admiration.
      Does your school use Schooldocs as a platform for your policies and procedures? I find it useful to take time to read and review these as different topics arise., and to refer to relevant contracts and employment agreements.
      I am sure you have taken on so much learning through this responsibility, and agree with Phillip in that it will provide opportunities for deeper conversations through your deeper understanding of the role.
      Ngā mihi
      Rebecca

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    3. Hi Nikkole. Thank you for sharing your video. It was really interesting to hear about the challenges you are facing, especially in terms of the policies and procedures – it’s so easy to get bogged down and not see the wood for trees. If I was suddenly thrust into a similar situation, I know I would be really struggling, so I admire your courage and attitude towards building your knowledge and understanding.
      I also admire the way that you are leading the way that *you* want to lead. So many times (in many different situations and contexts), people try to follow the same model of leadership that their predecessors followed, and they are not so successful. Keeping those lines of communication open at all times with your kura and community will be important as you move forward.
      Good luck with the remainder of your time as acting principal – I’m sure you will do a great job, and I look forward to hearing some reflection in the future about how it went.

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    4. Kia ora Nikkole
      I hope your stint as principal went well for you. I had the opportunity to have the acting principal role at my school last year. It was by far the most challenging year I have had. Even though I had extensive experience and knowledge of my previous AP and DP roles, nothing really felt like it prepared me for the completely different challenges of being a principal. Staffing, finance, property and policy and procedure were all things I felt out of my depth with but I did learn a lot over the year, and now know what I don’t know and need to work on. I am fortunate that I’m now back in my DP role and my principal has been very open to work with me and let me continue some of the things I was doing last year. I would suggest if you can and have a good relationship with your principal, see how much they will teach you about the nuts and bolts of the job. Then once you do get the opportunity, you have more time to think about your leadership and are not bogged down with trying to figure out how to work your budget!
      Kirstin

    1. Hi Eden,
      Thank you for sharing your challenges – they sound very similar to those that we face here at ŌHAU School. We too have a fractured relationship with our local marae, and are in the very beginning stages of forging a new connection. From my experience so far, it is soft and slow. Not expecting anything ‘from’ but rather thinking about what we can offer first. We have a very tenuous connection with our kaumatua, and have had a staff day at the marae, learning about the places of local significance. We also have an iwi representative on our school Board. These have both started to open the door for further communication. Our goal is for our hapu to be more involved in the life of the school and our students.
      Ngā mihi
      Rebecca

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    2. Kia ora Eden,

      Nga mihi nui mo tō tono ki a matou, pai tenei whakaaro!

      Just acknowledging that there has been an effort made for you and your kura to uphold the cultural identity of your school and community. Connecting with kaumata is a good starting point. I am sure within your school whānau there is some or someone who is/are connected to the whenua. I know from other Principals who have struggled to connect with local marae and iwi, they attended their marae hui and made it known to the iwi who they were and their purpose of attending.

      Keep upholding the mana of your kura and continue to work alongside iwi and hapu within your area.

      Kia kaha!

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    1. Kia ora Kirstin, it was lovely to hear about your school and your tight connections within the local iwi. Thanks for sharing your current challenges; I found that I could really relate. It’s a true challenge for everyone to reset when so many have simultaneously experienced some very tough times. We do find that as a collective, staff seem more easily overwhelmed in recent times and we have to be very considerate about the steps we take. To support this, we are continually referring to our strategic plan and ensuring that as an SLT, we are clear about our ‘why’. We allow time to share and discuss this with the extended leadership team so we can balance our priorities with the challenges faced in the classrooms and collectively we negotiate an appropriate timeline to introduce new initiatives. When we adopted the Structured Literacy approach, we gave staff a year to work through the theory and elect to adopt/trial the program before making it a schoolwide requirement. This allowed us time to identify ‘early adopters’ and then work with them to develop knowledge and expertise to be passed on throughout the school and then when we had staff who were feeling challenged, we had plenty of others to offer support or model the approach.

    1. Kia Ora Shanan,

      Listening to your concerns are they same as mine in terms of our students not listening in class and lots of wandering around. I come from the other side where I am not born/raised in Dargaville, so I don’t have the long history whanau connections and have often wondered if I did have more of a connection, would it help create a better relationships. I agree with you that more responsibility needs to happen at home and as of last week, I’ve been asking caregivers to have a meeting to form connections and work together for the benefit of the student. Like you said, meeting regularly and keeping whanau informed will hopefully lead to consistency.
      Nga mini
      Ash

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      1. Kia ora Shanan and Ash

        Thank you for sharing the challenges you are facing this term with some of your students. A class in my syndicate has had the same issues with approximately 8 students with learning and / or behaviour issues. These are some of the things we have put in place that are having a positive affect:
        – running the NZ Police Kia Kaha programme (https://www.police.govt.nz/advice-services/personal-community-safety/school-portal/resources/successful-relationships/kia-kaha).
        – using our PB4L matrix with consistency
        – meeting with whanau and getting them involved through check in / check out and can also find out the back story
        – setting up a buddy class that a student can go to to have a breather or, give the teacher a breather
        – referring to RTLB for support and guidance
        – good support from senior management and teaching staff
        – providing opportunities for movement and hands-on learning throughout the day
        – building authentic, positive relationships with the students and whanau (which obviously takes time)

        It’s been a tough term but our hard mahi is beginning to pay off.
        Ngā mihi
        Jane

    1. It seems like you’re making good progress. Building relationships, connections, and networking are crucial. We’re excited about our collaborations with other schools for sports events and such. Despite being a small school, we would like to expand our network. We have a fantastic small school network, and we gather once a term with Maungakaremea, Waiotira, and ourselves – led by Tania Coutts Core Education

    2. Hi Mark,
      A PLG group to network with others in your area is a great idea. We are working to build one with local DP and AP in our area too.
      I’m keen to connect with others on our course in our area as well. Let’s see if we can make that happen. 🙂

    3. Kia ora Mark,
      I have recently been appointed as our Kahui Ako Across School teacher (7 schools) We have a pretty good KA in terms of every one turning up for meetings and being accepting maybe compliance to a certain extent but it is definitely growing and getting more collaborative. I have recently just set up a DP networking group for the DP’s in our Kahui Ako which runs on an agenda. We have had 1 meeting so far and it went so well, we networked, set expectations for our group, discussed challenges in being a rural DP, talked about PD, current readings etc. It actually went so well that it went from scheduling 1 meeting to having 2 meetings. Happy to share my agenda with you or email me if you have any q’s 🙂 I think it feels hard to establish something and get it off the ground but people are like minded and really want the same things. iIt sounds like you have the great idea. Just need to some dates! highly reccomed + add to your CV as creating a SLT Networking group!
      nikkolef@rep.school.nz

    4. Kia ora Mark, it sounds like your school has taken some very positive steps to strengthen relationships with local iwi, hapu and surrounding schools. We too would like to explore opportunities to build professional relationships with our local schools. At the moment, our principal is a member of a cluster of principals who meet regularly as a PLG group. The AP and myself also meet as part of a DP/AP PLG group. Like you, we get together with other schools for sporting or cultural events. We’ve also formed a smaller cluster, including our high school, who meet 2-3 times a term with our local iwi to develop our Histories curriculum. This has been very successful and also reduced the burden for our local iwi of having all our schools approaching separately. However, like you, I’d love to see all staff having the opportunity to connect across schools for PLG opportunities especially in situations where we are offering similar programs.

    1. Kia ora Ash, It is challenging space. It is awesome that you are thinking deeply about these issues,unfortunately this is a trend across NZ with no magic bullet. You are right that relationships are key, as are authentic contexts and student agency to boost engagement.
      You are also right that stepping in to ” fix it” does disempower staff. Some of our students face very complex issues and trauma.
      There is no traction without teams on board. Providing support in a mana enhacning way empowers staff to meet their accountability versus taking the stance of helping others meet their accountabilities.
      Collaboratively together we are shape the cutlure of what we do – growing the“ we culture”.
      Linking to your schools strategic and annual plan, I’d start small – what do you want to change the most? What can process are already in place? Who is already doing this well? then collaboratively and slowly ( one bite at a time) build a shared understanding around the culture, values and processes/ systems, resources to support both staff and students.
      ” Clear is kind” Brene Brown “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them”. Albert Einstein.
      Thanks for sharing Ash, it is important work – enjoy your Easter break. I hope you have something cool planned and treat yourself with some well earned chocolate!
      Grace

    2. Thank you for sharing Ash. I am sure that there are many of us that share this same scenario. I agree with your thought around being mindful not to damage the mana of the kaiako. Each child brings with them a unique personality code and cultural capital. What may work for one child may not work for another. As a restorative based kura, we always spend time looking at patterns and asking the question ‘WHY?’ We tend to look a lot at what times of day they wander, whats happening in class at the time, those types of things. Doesn’t always work but is really helpful a lot of the time.

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    4. Kia ora Ash,
      It sounds as if you have had a challenging start to the year. I read/heard recently that our current Year 9&10 students present with some of the biggest behavioural challenges ever – reflective of your situation!
      As team leader, I would be encouraging your team members to come up with some solutions themselves, thus maintaining their own mana. You can always be there to support them should they need it, and are then also able to be the ‘next step up’.
      I recently attended PLD around supporting ākonga with learning with a foundation of relationships. A starting question for your team could be, “What are you/we doing to develop and enhance strong learner-focused relationships with our ākonga and their whānau?”
      Ngā mihi
      Rebecca

    5. Kia-ora Ash Ngā mihi ki a koe mō to kōnae whakaata. We too are experiencing similar issues on this side of the Coast ki Bream Bay Ruakākā. Particularly our 9&10 reo rua pathway transitioning into an English medium setting. We had our SCT conduct a series of observations across the different curriculum areas to identify trends. The results were very interesting and it is safe to say the issues did not lie solely with the ākonga. Moving forward we will share some of the data and provide support to kaiako with pedagogical shifts to their practice.

    6. Good afternoon Ash.
      I completely resonate with you. I am a Teacher of Years 5-7, Senior Team Leader and Associate Principal. Behaviour is something that is definitely an issue with the senior kids of the school; weather it being walking out of class, blatant rudeness and disrespect to the teacher, not doing their learning, along with some swearing. I have found that this is becoming the ‘norm’ within schools across the motu.
      I have taken on being a mentor/support person for a new teacher who started this term. Her classroom is Yr7&8’s are really testing her and I also feel like I am (plus the principal), one of those people that come in to discipline the students. But it is only day 3, so things will take time.

      However, I also do believe Relations is Key. Relationships is everything with students no matter their age or if they change classes for subjects etc. But it is also figuring out why the students are playing up, what happened before they did this type of behaviour. Plus also consequences should be reinforced and followed through. Its all about the staff being on the same page, setting those expectations high, doing in class behaviour management, before it goes to someone in a higher position. Do you have a behaviour management system in place schoolwide?

      I have been telling my students, “It is your choice, however your choice will either have a positive consequence or a negative consequence. Your choice”. I find putting it back on them about their choices for inside the classroom has been working for me.

    7. Kia ora Ash
      I have to say the issues you are describing are very similar to some we are facing, and I would agree it is important for teachers to trying and put out their own fires first, as you said to keep their mana intact. But some can be reluctant, or maybe don’t have the skills or confidence to deal with challenging students. We meet as pastoral team every week and look at the pastoral data for our students school wide. Just like our teaching programmes we use the data to inform our decisions about behavior. We try to establish what the students are trying to gain from their behavior and how we can support them. We have applied to various funds and have put together a alternative programme for our high flyers which removes them from the classroom for this term. This is an attempt to disrupt the disruption. We work hard to build relationship with whanau to support what we are trying to do. Also a team approach has helped up, it is exhausting if you are just dealing with difficult behaviours all day everyday. So far our new programme is working but we will see how it goes. I hope Term 2 has been more settled for you!
      Kirstin

    8. Hi Ash, better late than never. I to can join you in the same situations here at our College, we are in a position of having 17 feeder schools, which brings together a whole lot of new relationships as well as the change of school. Through the Kahui Ako we have done a lot with the transition of students into the school, and as a Year 8 group they are doing more things together across the region, this has definitely help with the student to student relationships over the last couple of years. We are a restorative school and at the beginning of the year, did a big “refresh” having all teachers on the same page around the expectations in particular of behavior management and their / our role as a classroom teacher / dean etc. Improving the consistency across the school from all teachers has also help engagement. The need for teachers to “connect before content” allowing staff the time to build the relationships. When I was Year 9 Dean, I would offer to supervise the teachers class, to give the teacher the 10 / 15 minutes to have the conversation with the student when ever possible. Often it was just allowing the teacher the time to have that conversation with the student, (and not me!) and allowing the teachers full focus on that student not the whole class or chasing the student down at another time that was often forgotten. Building the teacher/student relationship is the ultimate success.

    1. We’re in a similar situation as you, though we haven’t had any interaction with our local marae yet. I’m eager to hear from others who have gone through similar experiences and have implemented changes. Currently, we’re collaborating with a kaiako for kapahaka who will be visiting our school to work with our students. They’ve also expressed willingness to assist with establishing this connection/relationship. Watch this space!

    2. Kia Ora Rebecca, Thank you for sharing. Its only been within the last 4 years that I have been on a marae with my previous school and students. It was hard to make connections as I was new to the area and teaching profession back then. Then we no longer went to visit the local Marae, due to it becoming expensive and the interruption of Covid-19. I have feel that in most schools (I know in the town I was previously teaching in), that it is the Principal that connects and communicates with the Kaumātua. At my previous school we went through the same thing with our Kaumātua becoming very sick and unwell, and later passed. Since then the school no longer has a Kaumātua.
      There has been a large turnover of staff at my current school (Mamaku School), myself being one of them. We are all new teaching staff members, minus one and this term we have had our new Principal start and a new teacher (Yr 7&8), so I can resonate with you with the staff changes you have had this year too.

    2. Hi Michelle, thank you for sharing and apologies for the delayed response. I liked the video that was suggested for us to watch above ‘Working effectively with iwi and hapū, Melanie Taite-Pitama’, she had some great advice and tips on connection with Iwi and hapu. I liked the phrase she quotes ‘Don’t talk about us, without us’. The more I have pondered this point the more I see the impact of what it means. Our local iwi and hapu are very passionate about seeing Maori succeed as Maori, but also that all of our tamariki are given adequate opportunity to experience Te Reo me ona Tikanga and seeing the world through a Te ao Maori lens. They love to be invited and included in our school events, powhiri, blessings. This has enabled us to expand upon our school whakapapa. James Kerrs – Legacy text talks about Whakapapa on page 168. Toku toa, he toa rangatira – My bravery is inherited from the chiefs who came before me. I stand tall on the shoulders of Giants. I believe that this encapsulates the essence of value in the connections with iwi and hapu. It is building a stable foundation upon the ‘Legacy’ of our local kaumatua and Kuia as well as standing on the shoulders of their knowledge and experience as we build new layers of connections into the future. (I hope that makes sense.) Kia kaha e hoa!

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