Developing the characteristic spirit of publicly managed schools in a more secular and pluralist Ireland

This discussion paper considers the identification and definition of the ‘characteristic spirit’ of publicly managed schools in the Republic of Ireland. Some international approaches to values in publicly funded schools are introduced along with relevant contextual aspects of Irish education including the cultural diversity and secularisation of modern Irish society. The Irish Education Act (1998) gives ultimate responsibility for school values and ‘characteristic spirit’ to the school ‘patron’, a role legally separate from that of school ownership and school management. The underlying values of privately managed faith-based schools are well established. However, the ‘characteristic spirit’ of publicly managed Education and Training Board schools remains largely undeveloped. Appropriate responses to this challenge are identified and discussed.     

Establishing and maintaining high-performing leadership teams: a primary perspective

This article reports on the findings from a study into high-performing leadership teams in English primary schools. The schools, in the sample, received ‘outstanding’ Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) grades overall, and for leadership and management, in their most recent school inspection. The evidence suggests that developing a successful primary school leadership team takes time, commitment and continuity. The development of leaders requires a deliberate approach to build individual capacity and team unity. Effective team working takes time to develop and that ‘quick fix’ solutions to inadequate team work are inappropriate.     

The role of school-based research champions in a school–university partnership

The value of teachers’ engagement in and with research is long recognised and it is acknowledged that school–university research partnerships are one way of enabling such engagement. But we know little about how research-based knowledge is negotiated into school practices. Here we draw on data from nine ‘research champions’, who are teachers in schools which are part of the Oxford Education Deanery, a research partnership with a university department. Taking a cultural/historical approach, the study examined the strategic intentions and actions in the activities of the champions as they negotiated research-based knowledge into their schools. Data comprised 59 completed templates that described what they did and why. Findings revealed differences between those with close links with senior leaders—who could take a whole-school approach—and those whose reach was restricted by their position in school practices. Nonetheless, all the champions carefully selected and targeted research in ways that reflected their knowledge of local contexts. The findings point to the need to incorporate the champion role into school systems and for universities to value the role as they develop their own research agenda.     

Nurturing learning or encouraging dependency? Teacher constructions of students in lower attainment groups in English secondary schools

‘Ability’ or attainment grouping can introduce an additional label that influences teachers’ expectations of students in specific attainment groups. This paper is based on a survey of 597 teachers across 82 schools and 34 teacher interviews in 10 schools undertaken as part of a large-scale mixed-methods study in England. The paper focuses on English and mathematics teachers’ expectations of secondary school students in lower attainment groups, and explores how low-attaining students are constructed as learners who benefit from specific approaches to learning justified through discourses of nurturing and protection. The authors argue that the adoption of different pedagogical approaches for groups of low-attaining learners to nurture them may in some cases be fostering dependency on teachers and cap opportunities for more independent learning. Furthermore, more inclusive whole-school learning-culture approaches may better allow for students across the attainment range to become independent learners.     

Development and exemplification of a model for Teacher Assessment in Primary Science

ABSTRACT

The Teacher Assessment in Primary Science project is funded by the Primary Science Teaching Trust and based at Bath Spa University. The study aims to develop a whole-school model of valid, reliable and manageable teacher assessment to inform practice and make a positive impact on primary-aged children’s learning in science. The model is based on a data-flow ‘pyramid’ (analogous to the flow of energy through an ecosystem), whereby the rich formative assessment evidence gathered in the classroom is summarised for monitoring, reporting and evaluation purposes [Nuffield Foundation. (2012). Developing policy, principles and practice in primary school science assessment. London: Nuffield Foundation]. Using a design-based research (DBR) methodology, the authors worked in collaboration with teachers from project schools and other expert groups to refine, elaborate, validate and operationalise the data-flow ‘pyramid’ model, resulting in the development of a whole-school self-evaluation tool. In this paper, we argue that a DBR approach to theory-building and school improvement drawing upon teacher expertise has led to the identification, adaptation and successful scaling up of a promising approach to school self-evaluation in relation to assessment in science.     

Environmental education in primary schools: a case study with plastic resources and recycling

This paper aims to examine teachers’ use of strategies and approaches in integrating Plastic Resources Education (PRE) into primary school life in order to overcome the challenges encountered during implementation to promote environmentally friendly practices. Case studies with eight Hong Kong teachers from PRE-participating primary schools were invited to take part in focus group interviews, to explicate their personal stories and experiences associated with the PRE implementation in primary schools. Based on the data collected from the teachers’ sharing, several challenges which are commonly reported in the previous literature, including lack of time, shortage of manpower, and insufficient pupil engagement were found. The teachers tackled the barriers by using different strategies to improve pupils’ involvement as well as getting support from the relevant stakeholders of school management and parents. The case studies provide crucial and relevant information which can be used as a reference for other schools to integrate PRE more efficiently to facilitate learning.     

Cypriot primary school principals’ understanding of education for sustainable development key terms and their opinions about factors affecting its implementation

‘Transformative leaders for sustainable schools’, was a nationwide research project conducted in 150 primary schools in Cyprus during 2005–2007. The project explored the role of the principals in the organisation of sustainable schools. A mixed methods approach to data collection was employed combining quantitative and qualitative methods. This paper presents primary school principals’ perceptions of sustainable development, their views on the characteristics and operation of the sustainable schools as well as factors supporting or impeding the development of such schools in Cyprus. Our analysis reveals that the term ‘sustainable school’ is a concept only vaguely understood by the principals. Education for sustainable development is interpreted loosely as environmental education and sustainable schools’ operation is limited to sustainable development’s environmental aspects. Principals place their emphasis on environmental conservation, for satisfying humans’ needs whereas the notion of environment, economy and society are marginalised. The development of sustainable schools in Cyprus is restricted by limitations in time, lack of ESD teacher education, the centralised educational system and the overloaded curriculum. Suggested reinforcing factors are parents’ associations’ support and the school–community dialogue. Further exploration of the principals’ role as potential carriers of change and effective leaders is needed.     

A critical consideration of ‘mental health and wellbeing’ in education: Thinking about school aims in terms of wellbeing

This paper examines ideas about mental health, wellbeing and school education to illustrate important issues in the relationship between mental health and education. The Covid crisis has amplified the pre-existing mental health problems of children and young people in England and recognition of the opportunities in schools to address these. The paper gives an overview of child and adolescent mental health services and how they position the role of schools. It examines prominent concepts of mental health and their relationship to wellbeing, setting this in a discussion of ‘mentally healthy’ schools, mental health in special educational needs and whole-school approaches. This analysis shows how the relationship between mental health and wellbeing has not been adequately worked out, using this as the basis for arguing for the dual-factor mental health model which separates mental illness/disorder from wellbeing as two related dimensions. The paper then translates the dual-factor model into a two-dimensional framework that represents the distinctive but related aims of school education (wellbeing promotion) and mental health services (preventing, coping, helping mental health difficulties). This framework involves a complex conception of wellbeing, with schools playing an important role in promoting wellbeing (beyond emotional wellbeing), tiered models and establishing school-wide social emotional learning. It is about a whole-school curriculum approach that involves considering what is to be learned and how it is taught. It contributes to a more nuanced concept of wellbeing that has a place for meaningful learning and challenge.     

Surveillance,Governmentality and moving the goalposts: The influence of Ofsted on the work of schools in a post-panoptic era

This paper asks the question: to what extent do inspection regimes, particularly the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted), influence the work of a school, and how might that influence be conceptualised? It draws on an ESRC-funded study of ‘policy enactments in secondary schools’, which was based on case-study work in four ‘ordinary’ schools. Here the data set is re-examined to understand the extent to which Ofsted had an ongoing influence on the work of the leadership, management and teachers in these schools. We undertook a process of secondary analysis of the data from the project and found that the influence of the inspection agenda was strong in the schools, policy decisions were often being made to conform to Ofsted’s expectations and the influence on leadership and management was clearly apparent. In resisting this agenda we also found that schools to some extent performed ‘the good school’ for inspections. Finally, we relate this empirical evidence to conceptions of governmentality and post-panopticism to shed new light on their theoretical relevance to contemporary inspection regimes.     

Gypsy,Roma and Traveller pupils in schools in the UK: inclusion and ‘good practice’

This paper examines inclusionary processes and examples of ‘good practice’ in primary and secondary schools for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller pupils in one inner London Borough in the UK. It will explore the role of the Traveller Education Service (TES) and argue that the support provided by the TES to schools is essential for the development of ‘good practice’, but at the same time it stresses that the TES is not a substitute for the school’s educational and welfare responsibilities. The paper will also argue that the commitment of the head teacher and senior management team to the inclusive ethos of the school is crucial in setting the tone of the school towards positive treatment of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller pupils. Where an inclusive ethos works successfully it is often the result of a wider social engagement between the school and community. The paper will draw on qualitative interview data with parents, head teachers, deputies, heads of year, teachers, and classroom assistants at the schools.     

Religious education in Greece: a new curriculum,an old issue

Religious Education (RE) in Greece is a compulsory school subject according the 2011 new framework for compulsory education, entitled ‘New School’. This article focuses on two statutory documents for RE, ‘The Curriculum for RE’ and the ‘The Teacher’s Guide for RE’, and the pilot scheme of the new curriculum running in school years, 2011–2014, in 188 schools (primary and secondary education). Findings of the research demonstrate that, though the revision seems inevitable, the pedagogical and theological dimension of the RE curriculum is radical as it is based on contemporary theories and methodologies of the construction of the curriculum and RE approaches. However, the article indicates constructivist and critical approaches to RE that influenced the change to an actual non-confessional compulsory subject and also highlighted the tension between an overall constructivist approach to learning and the traditional orthodox content of much of the curriculum. The author opens a discussion on problematic aspects that need to be taken in to consideration when revising the curriculum.     

High quality in primary humanities: insights from the UK’s school inspectorates

ABSTRACT

The school inspectorates of the four jurisdictions of the UK are sources of evidence about the quality of humanities teaching, learning and curriculum in primary schools. The term ‘humanities’ usually refers to the subjects of geography, history and Religious Education, but here they are considered holistically, not separately. Discrete subject and inter-subject humanities inspection reports are used to identify what inspectors report to be high-quality practices in this curriculum area. Six themes are presented, which reveal that: the best humanities curricula are based on subject and cross-subject ideas and connections, with subject learning clearly visible; flexible but rigorous approaches to planning enable progression in children’s learning; strong teacher–child and teacher–humanities relationships reflect teachers’ evident enthusiasm, commitment and expectations; teachers use a diverse range of approaches and resources; active and enquiry-based learning approaches engage children in developing their studies; and strong humanities leadership and explicit emphasis in school development priorities underpin high-quality primary humanities. These features reflect the skills and qualities of expert primary teachers.     

Wellbeing in schools: what do students tell us?

Until recently, children and young people’s perspectives have been largely overlooked in considering optimal approaches to supporting their wellbeing at school. This article reports student views on the meaning of ‘wellbeing’ and how this is best facilitated, gathered as part of a large, national research project aimed at understanding and improving approaches to wellbeing in schools. The data reported here were gathered through 67 focus groups, involving 606 primary and secondary school students, across three Catholic school regions in different Australian states. Students provided rich accounts of how they view their wellbeing, conceptualised across three interconnected themes of ‘being’, ‘having’ and ‘doing’. They identified relationships with self, teachers, friends, peers and significant others, as central to their wellbeing. The findings point to immense potential in accessing and utilising children and young people’s views for change and reform in schools in the area of student wellbeing.     

Making sense of the glass ceiling in schools: an exploration of women teachers’ discourses

There is extensive evidence of a ‘glass ceiling’ for women across the labour market. Though schools have widely been described as ‘feminized’ work environments, the under‐representation of women at school management level is well established. Based on a study of women teachers’ careers and promotion in the English school sector (in early years, primary and secondary schools), this paper draws on a critical discourse analysis of 44 individual interviews conducted with women teachers to explore their views of the ‘glass ceiling’. Despite significant evidence of the barriers to management positions faced by women teachers, interpretative frameworks drawing on discourses of individualization and personal choice are most prominent among these to make sense of the low proportion of women in school management. However, the paper also identifies the existence of alternative discourses recognizing the existence of gender inequalities.     

A teacher competence development programme for supporting students’ reflection skills

The Teachers of Promise study has followed the work histories of 57 primary and secondary teachers who had been identified at the beginning of their third year of teaching as having the potential to make a significant contribution to the profession. Using data from surveys and interviews, this paper reports on what sustained or inhibited their initial commitment to and enthusiasm for ‘making a difference’, six years later, both in the classroom and in broader school leadership roles. Satisfaction with their day-to-day experiences in their schools was a particularly strong driver of teachers’ career decisions over time. Thirty-four teachers responded to survey items that were used to identify three different groups of teachers: a group of 10 primary school teachers with the highest levels of job satisfaction who were ‘fulfilling their promise’; a group of 21 primary and secondary teachers who were ‘persevering and coping’; and three teachers who were ‘detached and disengaged’. The group with the highest levels of job satisfaction taught in primary schools where they felt respected and valued, and supported to develop their teaching and leadership expertise. School leadership practices and school cultures in the other two groups diminished teachers’ overall job satisfaction and contribution to collective knowledge building in their schools. Almost all of the teachers had retained their commitment to students, to their current schools and to teaching as a career, including those with lower levels of satisfaction. Although these teachers reported ‘collegial’ relationships with their peers, individualistic school cultures, most often in secondary schools, impacted on their opportunities to learn with and from their colleagues. Few secondary school teachers felt appreciated, and included in school decision-making or had found it possible to combine high standards of classroom teaching with management responsibilities. The study indicates that while most promising teachers were still satisfied with teaching after nine years, relatively few were in schools where they were able to make the impact that had been predicted for them early in their careers.     

Evaluation of a core team centred professional development programme for building a whole-school cooperative problem solving approach to conflict

This study evaluated a professional learning approach using a core team (CT) model to assist primary (elementary) schools to develop whole-school collaborative conflict resolution processes. Thirteen schools were matched and randomly assigned to the enhancing relationships in school communities programme (n?=?10) or a non-programme control group (n?=?3). Programme schools provided a core (professional learning) team, who attended professional learning days, and disseminated programme content throughout their schools. Programme schools also received one full school staff workshop. After one year, CT participants were more likely to apply a collaborative conflict resolution model to problem scenarios and report greater knowledge and skills compared to non-programme-school control participants. Compared to the non-programme control group, non-core team programme school staff described using more cooperative approaches to handling conflict, especially when they had received more professional development from their CT. Programme school teachers taught more hours conflict resolution curriculum, and increases in hours taught by programme (but not control) teachers were associated with teacher reported increases in student understanding and use of cooperative methods. Patterns also supported a role of self-efficacy in implementation. The potential usefulness of a CT professional learning model for assisting schools to develop cooperative conflict resolution approaches was supported.     

Assessing the suitability of individual whiteboards for left-handed writers within the Early Years Foundation Stage

In 1998, when Teachers—meeting the challenge of change was published by the English Department for Education and Skills (DfES), one of the most fundamental reforms of the teaching profession was initiated—performance management. In 2005, all schools became subject to ‘Light Touch Validation’ of their performance management policy and procedures. At this significant time, this investigation seeks to explore the views and experiences of teachers in the first-named author's own school, which is a small special school. The author critically investigates the premise of performance management as promoted by the DfES and notes that the emerging literature on the topic focuses strongly on ‘mainstream’ schools where many of the research investigations have proved to be sceptical about the initiative. In contrast, through a survey and documentary analysis the author investigates the views and experiences of teachers in her own school and discovers a largely positive view and experience of performance management.     

Religious Education,Big Ideas and the study of religion(s) and worldview(s)

This article outlines the ‘Big Ideas’ approach to curriculum reform, as applied in the ‘Principles and Big Ideas of Science Education’ project. A critical analysis follows of the outcomes of the University of Exeter’s ‘Identifying Principles and Big Ideas for Religious Education’ project, which sought to apply the same approach to Religious Education (RE) in English schools. This project made great headway in generating ‘Big Ideas’ to inform and improve the selection and sequencing of RE curriculum content. However, its primary focus on subject content knowledge means that ‘Big Ideas’ about epistemology and methodology are lacking. The article recommends an additional focus on multi-disciplinary, multi-methodological, inquiry-based, reflexive learning, which would ask why, how, where and by whom our ‘knowledge’ of religion(s) and worldview(s) is generated. In this regard, the article posits four ‘Big Ideas about the study of religion(s) and worldview(s)’ to highlight the symbiotic relationship between knowledge and knower, and to reject the false dichotomy between the object of study and method of study. In so doing, it draws upon the theoretical framework underpinning the ‘RE-searchers approach’ to primary school RE, which correspondingly exemplifies how such ideas can be taught in practice.     

How local market pressures shape leadership practices: evidence from Chile

Chile is well known worldwide for its extensive use of market-driven mechanisms in education. Using a case study strategy in three schools, this paper shows that ‘universal’ voucher system and mixed provision (co-existence of subsidised private and state-funded schools) policies are reshaping school management practices. The paper draws evidence from ethnographic data in disadvantaged Chilean public schools and uses Bourdieu’s notion of field as an analytical tool in order to conceptualise the schools’ practices within their local markets as a symbolic and strategic ‘game’ of competition. One of the main findings is that, in response to market pressures and their specific positions within local markets, school leaders built a market-competitive agenda, preparing detailed strategies and undertaking decision-making practices accordingly. These practices were distinctive in relation to different school market positions, impacting the schools’ priorities, value disputes, and management goals.