Recently, I was fortunate enough to be able to make two additions to the staff of my department. I was immediately struck by excitement at how having these new people will help to move the department forward and help us to engage with my longer term vision.
After the excitement, came the guilt. I’ve been in post since early August and, at times, feel like I’ve not made any tangible difference. Would an external observer see any positive difference in the way the department operates or, most importantly, in the learner’s experience? All those big ideas I had in the summer seem to have been lost under the day-to-day management and administration of the department.
I’ve spent some time thinking about this. 12-14 hours days have been frequent occurrences recently. I doubt that effort is the issue. Perhaps I could have made better use of some of the time. I’m a big fan of the 80/20 principle – the concept that 20% of your effort generates 80% of your desired outcomes. It will take me time to fully develop an appreciation of my core 20% - although I would hazard a guess that it is directly related to teacher capacity and curriculum.
So, what have I achieved? Over a couple of days, I added to the list below as I remembered some of the small steps I’ve taken. The length of the list has surprised me. This list is there to remind me that I have made small steps forward. Without many of these small steps, the bigger changes I have planned for the future wouldn't be able to proceed.
I am currently/am well under way with…
Most of all, I've spent a lot of time thinking and reflecting upon things and planning a path forward for both the coming six months until summer and the following academic year. I should also add in that I've made mistakes. I've got a lot to learn before I feel totally comfortable in the post. Despite the fact I don't really have a clue if i'm doing it well or not at the moment I have to say that these have been some of the best months of my teaching career to date. They have also been the hardest few months, by far, but doing this job has revitalised my career to such an extent that I can't remember ever feeling as enthusiastic!
After the excitement, came the guilt. I’ve been in post since early August and, at times, feel like I’ve not made any tangible difference. Would an external observer see any positive difference in the way the department operates or, most importantly, in the learner’s experience? All those big ideas I had in the summer seem to have been lost under the day-to-day management and administration of the department.
I’ve spent some time thinking about this. 12-14 hours days have been frequent occurrences recently. I doubt that effort is the issue. Perhaps I could have made better use of some of the time. I’m a big fan of the 80/20 principle – the concept that 20% of your effort generates 80% of your desired outcomes. It will take me time to fully develop an appreciation of my core 20% - although I would hazard a guess that it is directly related to teacher capacity and curriculum.
So, what have I achieved? Over a couple of days, I added to the list below as I remembered some of the small steps I’ve taken. The length of the list has surprised me. This list is there to remind me that I have made small steps forward. Without many of these small steps, the bigger changes I have planned for the future wouldn't be able to proceed.
I am currently/am well under way with…
- Building relationships with colleagues and pupils
- Learning how things work in the department and the school, from the photocopier to the curriculum pathways.
- Implementing coherent monitoring and tracking and data gathering systems in the department
- Making learning and teaching the central focus of our department meetings. Admin had a place early after my arrival, but now is reduced to a few minutes.
- Supporting colleagues with learning and teaching – professional dialogue of approaches and ideas.
- Carrying out an in-depth curriculum review
- Making tentative steps at trialing a “Mastery approach” in some of my lessons and designing a new Level 3 curriculum based upon this approach for launch next August
- Thinking and reading about strategies for raising attainment for all
- Encouraging staff to engage with basic number skills in S1 classes - strategies shared and discussed at DM
- Encouraging staff to let the pupils “think” in order to develop problem-solving skills - strategies discussed at DM
- Appointing new staff – involved in hefty process of reading many applications, and a 3 day visit and interview process.
- Ensuring SQA courses admin is correct
- Working on class lists and setting and answering the inevitable parental queries
- Running the maths segment of the P7 parent's open evening
- Discipline support within dept
- Verification procedures for SQA qualifications - updated policy and paperwork and ensured all dept have engaged with at least one level
- Learning and teaching of my own classes - this is a big one! I'm more passionate than ever to do the best for the kids. Too many horror stories from PTs telling m their teaching isn't up to par as they have too much to do. I genuinely think I've actually upped my game from last year.
- My own CPD on leadership, management, mathematics education etc
- Results Analysis - massive time investment here. SIMD v maths attainment, UPS v average in other depts etc
- Improvement Plan and implementation - I only put on 9 items. 49 would be closer to reality if it reflected what I was really aiming for over the coming few years.
- Liaising with learning support PTs and pastoral care PTs
- Overseeing L&T - observations, reflective conversations etc
- PRD process - review meetings with all colleagues
- Ordering of stock, jotters, stationery - trying to figure out how to spend the money effectively in an authority where ICT isn't high on the list of priorities. No wi-fi. Would have loved to have bought a class set of Netbooks. So much potential we can't tap into.
- Supporting student teacher (including sitting in on the crit, writing report etc), supporting probationer
- Taking over higher class from most popular and successful teacher in schools history, to see them achieve less than spectacular prelim results, six weeks into my care.
- Trying to push on with an S4 set 3 and get some of them towards higher, against conventional wisdom in the dept. Put together a proposal document for SMT on pathways within maths
- Wrote an S1 Level 2 skills diagnostic multi-choice, used this in conjunction with S1 common course test (which I'd changed) to decided upon s1 setting.
- Updating our approaches to assessments to reflect SALs Grouping Es&Os.
- Made a re-organistation of the shared file system
- Put in place accurate record keeping for Senior Phase UASPs
- Organised the S5 prelims – producing the higher paper and marking-scheme and collating the other levels
- Attended two days of CPD in England. Maths Conference in Sheffield and Mastery course in Kendal.
- Begin the spadework for the schools' first ever Higher Maths revision weekend.
- Working with local authoitry on National 5
Most of all, I've spent a lot of time thinking and reflecting upon things and planning a path forward for both the coming six months until summer and the following academic year. I should also add in that I've made mistakes. I've got a lot to learn before I feel totally comfortable in the post. Despite the fact I don't really have a clue if i'm doing it well or not at the moment I have to say that these have been some of the best months of my teaching career to date. They have also been the hardest few months, by far, but doing this job has revitalised my career to such an extent that I can't remember ever feeling as enthusiastic!