Leadership Video

This year the Across School Leaders were asked to collaborate and create a video on Leadership as an artefact for the Auckland Central Community of Schools Kāhui Ako. 

Flip.com was used to create the video responses. Madeline Gunn created and shared her views on leadership. Watch the video. You can read her script on our ACCoS blog. 

Together we created questions and you can check out the link to see them. 

The Questions on Leadership were used to plan ideas. Once they were ready, a short video about ideas around the leadership framework was created. The ASLs were given up to ten minutes of recording time. 

When all clips were added, these were downloaded, edited and uploaded to Canva where the artefact was created. 

 Below is the completed product.

Te Takanga o Te Wā’, (Aotearoa New Zealand’s Histories) Hui.

 Friday 3rd June 2022

Introduction

The implementation of the ‘Te Takanga o Te Wā’, (Aotearoa New Zealand’s Histories) aspect of the Social Sciences curriculum in 2023, was the kaupapa for an across Schools hui. This was an opportunity to implement the ACCoS whakataukī  Waiho i te toipoto, kaua i te toiroa, Let us keep close together,  through learning about the curriculum and what is means for Schools in our Kāhui Ako.        

Epsom Girls Grammar took the lead in organising and hosting this hui.   It was the first event for the ACCoS Kāhui Ako, that was open to all teachers and Schools with about 400 teachers attending.

But, due to the ongoing impact of Covid-19  in our kura (schools), the decision was made to move the event online. Schools stayed in bubbles on their school sites and staff joined from various locations.   Credit to the organising Staff and their support at EGG’s who were able to implement this change so quickly and effectively.

The day commenced with a pōwhiri. The Epsom Staff with the Support of Whaea Jacqs Carter and Matua Richard Maihi welcomed the guest speaker, Graeme Ball who was ably supported by  Whaea Corlene Greenwood who was the kaiwhakautu (supporting caller for a pōwhiri), and a group from Epsom Girls Grammar.

 After a short break for Kai (nourishment), the hui recommenced with a welcome from ACCoS Kāhui Ako lead Principal Jill Farquharson.

This was followed by mihi and a setting the scene for the day by the Principal of Epsom Girls Grammar,  Lorraine Pound.  She introduced Graeme Ball,  the presenter for the hui.  Graeme is the Chair and Kaiārahi of NZ History Teachers’ Association,  part of the Curriculum Writing Group and Head of Faculty (Social Sciences), Northcote College, Auckland

                

The pairing of Zoom and the Slide Show worked effectively for participants across the rohe (district), with participants being able to view the documentation and slides on personal devices as they listened and viewed Graeme presenting.

 

Graeme Ball’s plenary

Graeme, set the scene with a journey through NZ history.

“The Māori are our largest purveyors of foodstuffs; so large indeed as nearly to monopolise the market and to exclude Europeans from competition.”

“Māori were described as the ‘life blood’ of the Auckland settlement, with a newspaper noting that ‘it is likely that but for the Māori trade Auckland business would have collapsed during these years.’”

Graeme's  presentation outlined events and key factors that contributed to the changes: the waves of migration, changes in political influences and control, wars and land confiscation. The data presented demonstrated the impact of colonisation and marginalisation of Māori on social, economic and health outcomes in the 21st century.

After this historical journey Graeme presented a Challenge: 

Te Wero

Before we get into the Histories’ curriculum overview presentation, there are a few important points to keep in mind:

●        Properly done, the goal of History is to explain/interpret the evidence, not to blame or shame. It’s not about identifying ‘heroes’ or ‘villains’ and it is not about a recitation of names and dates!

●        We may well make ethical judgments about what people did in the past, but we must do so based on a wide range of evidence and with an awareness of the context of times. 

●        History can be challenging as we learn new and uncomfortable things; as kaiako we need to be aware of the potential impacts on our ākonga.

 

 

In presenting the  overview of  the new curriculum development process, Graeme explained how the ANZH  is the first of the new curriculums and templates the organisational structure for the rest of the Social Science and other curriculum areas, presently being reviewed.

 Over the next 20 minutes Graeme outlined the organisation and structures of the document. He demonstrated how it wove the connections between Understand, Know and Do with examples from past and present and Global, National, Rohe and local events and knowledge.

 

The examples provided, demonstrated how the contexts are underpinned by Mātauranga Māori, critical literacy and thinking skills.  This  reiterated how the relevance of this learning is enhanced from being integrated across the  Curriculum and being grounded from  the stories and knowledge of the local rohe, whenua and Community.

Collaborating across Schools and Learning Disciplines

Teachers from Epsom Girls Grammar split in groups based on their learning areas and dug deeper into how the curriculum may apply in their subject area and for the students they teach.  Their focus was ‘Think about learner experience and Mātauranga Māori in your subject area’.

Kaiako (teachers) from year 1-8 moved into Curriculum level and specialist teacher groups on zoom. These groups were hosted by an Across School Leader and provided opportunities to share the aspects of the History Curriculum presently happening in schools in our Kāhui Ako and to discuss what next.

Teachers in these groups split into breakout rooms. The groups of people, from a number of schools, discussed the questions and added their contributions to Jam boards.

 

The visibility and sharing of ideas, questions and actions across schools was another  highlight of the day, and evidence of the Kāhui Ako whakataukī, Waiho i te toipoto, kaua i te toiroa,  Let us keep close together not far apart,  in action.

Kura korero (Schools discussion groups)

Teachers then moved into school discussion groups,  some on site others on zoom. The discussion in school ropu were facilitated by principals and school leaders.

Poroporoaki (Farewell, conclusion of a hui)

The poroporoaki brought the focus back to the hall at Epsom Girls Grammar. The Principals shared their key take outs from their school discussions through zoom and Graeme Ball addressed the group with observations and some suggestions for next steps.

 

Kupu Whakamutunga (Final words)

Kaumatua Richard Maihi rounded off the day, drawing together observations on the curriculum, the acknowledgement of mana whenua  and the process of the day, before concluding with karakia.

Where to now

This was a successful and highly engaging morning of learning and collaboration both on site and on zoom.   Although the move to an on-line and in school settings was a disappointment to the anticipation of being kanohi ki te kanohi as a Kāhui Ako, the day achieved the kaupapa.  The negative of not being  together, was off set by the efficiencies of being line and in smaller groups on sites across the motu. The organisational format was easy to follow and successfully allowed people to log into the different zoom sessions, talk with others from across the Kāhui Ako and share knowledge and ideas.  The organising group have collated the contributions and discussion boards and will use this information to feedback to  Principals and Across School Leaders. 

With the uncertainty of Covid-19 still in the Community, this model for learning was an effective way to run professional development and collaborate across a large group of schools and kaiako.  Thank you to  Graeme Ball, the kaumatua  Richard Mahi, the organising committee and support from staff at Epsom Girls Grammar for your foresight and work to bring this day to fruition

 Resources from the Day

ACCoS, (2022) Launching the Aotearoa New Zealand Histories Curriculum. Auckland June 2022

Why local curriculum is so important for fostering complex systems thinking.

On Wednesday 29th of June, our ACCoS Local Curriculum Initiative were privileged to host Rose Hipkins in a virtual session speaking to the school leaders in our Kāhui Ako about ‘Why Local Curriculum is so important for fostering Complex Systems Thinking.’

Complex systems are found everywhere and impact daily lives whether we realise this or not. Highly visible examples include the coordinated flocking (murmuration) of starlings and the shoaling of fish. Less visible are the complex dynamics of what we know as climate change, or the complex interactions between our genes and the cellular environment in which they work. Pandemics are also highly complex, involving both physical and social factors in their dynamics.

Rose covered a number of reasons why complex systems thinking (CTS) is important.For example, complex systems don’t behave predictably and every citizen needs at least a basic understanding of their dynamics.

Local Curriculum is also important because it is the way that you bring the curricula to life at your early learning service, kōhanga reo, school, or kura. It’s a way of strengthening our people & celebrating our places. In Rose’s view, the K strand of the UDK framework embeds an emphasis on local curriculum:

●     U - Deeper understanding

●     K - Know contextual aspects

●     D- Do (thinking critically from different perspectives)

Complex systems thinking works in well with the UKD framework - the current framework being used by our Kāhui Ako. Bringing both together supports:

●     tapping into community resources and expertise, through fostering a sense of place and belonging

●     making learning more memorable/relatable

●     ensuring learning is not left to chance

●     showing us that learning about our ways of being in the world should not be overlooked by focusing only on our knowing about our world 

Today’s session served as a reminder to learn about Indigenous knowledge respectfully as this encodes ways of being in complexity such as an ethical concern for the natural world, sustainability, social justice etc.

How to bring them together

Children are born as natural systems thinkers but they typically unlearn this way of thinking at school through the use of closed questions and limited learning experiences.To combat this schools are encouraged to provide more open-ended learning experiences and build knowledge of concepts that open up opportunities for  complex systems thinking. Even young children relish opportunities to explore the dynamics and hidden connections between things in their world. Rose showed an example of writing from a 7 year old, who was learning about the complex causes of water shortages in the place where he lived. 

Place-based learning fosters CST. Students need to see themselves as being inside the systems they are learning about. More usually they learn about systems from the perspective of being outside looking in.

There are lots of adaptations to favourite teaching strategies that teachers can make in order to foster Complex Thinking Systems when designing local curriculum. There are also lots of simple visual tools. Rose talked about a recent example where she had used the thinking routine ‘I See, I Think, I Wonder’ from Project Zero (developed at Harvard). Another example can be found on TKI among the resources to support the science capability of Gathering and Interpreting Data.

Teachers are very good at breaking learning down to make things simple for students. But it’s also really important to bring those parts back together. Luckily there are lots of visual tools to support part/whole thinking. A number of philanthropic organisations have created free on-line resources for this purpose.

We all need to develop habits of ‘both/and’ thinking. This is hard because binary – either/or - thinking is deeply entrenched in knowledge systems of Western origin.

Complex Thinking is an opportunity to ask whose voices can we hear and whose can we not hear?

Check out Rose’s book for activities and resources for fostering Complex Systems Thinking,

Hipkins, R. (2021). Teaching for complex systems thinking. NZCER Press.

As a Kāhui Ako we purchased the Rich Task Planning Cards for each of our schools and we used the cards to help develop our understanding of Local Curriculum design. Here is the link if you wish to check these out.

Hipkins, R. (2019). Classroom resource: Rich tasks planning cards.  

NZCER Press.

At the end of our session with Rose there was positive feedback from our school leaders about the session.

She kindly allowed access to her slides and here they are.

He Timatanga Hou

 

Nau mai haere mai ki Te Ao Māori initiative!

🏔️ Ko Hikororoa te maunga 🏔️ 

🏞️ Ko Waikouaiti te awa 🏞️

🛶 Ko Takitimu te waka 🛶

🏠 Ko Puketeraki te marae 🏠

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Ko Ngai Tahu te Iwi 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦

🙋‍♂️ Ko Steven Van Nes Toku Ingoa 🙋‍♂️

To say that I am proud to lead a new initiative for ACCoS in Te Ao Māori would be an understatement. On Rātu te Takau o Haratua* we officially launched this new initiative for our kura* with In School Leaders, Principals and Dane Tumahai from Ngāti Whātua.

Ngā mihinui to Dane for representing Ngāti Whātua as manawhenua* for our Kāhui Ako. Dane opened the proceedings with karakia, mihi, kōrero on local history and acknowledgements of the relationship between our schools and manawhenua. Although this relationship is in its early stages, both Ngāti Whātua and ACCoS acknowledge the importance of the bond between local rohe and kura and made a commitment to ongoing communication and growth in this area.

I had the honour of giving a mihi on behalf of Suzanne Parkinson, ASL for Te Ao Māori and Jane Bush, Champion of the initiative. I gave acknowledgements to the tūpuna* and rangatira* of Ngāti Whātua and expressed gratitude for them helping guide our journey.

7am at Ōkahu Bay is a much earlier start than most of us were used to, but the time and location were deliberate. Just as the sun was dawning before us, we recognised a new dawn for Te Ao Māori in our kura.

Ōkahu Bay is a nod to the Mahuhu–Ki-Te-Rangi waka and significant to Ngāti Whātua Orakei. The marae looks over the bay, just as they will be looking over and guiding us through our te ao journey.

Another reason we wanted to launch the initiative in a way that is true to Te Ao Māori is to build whānaungatanga - relationships. “Who are we, before the mahi”. The morning didn’t follow any strict agenda, it was more of an opportunity to share kai, and get to know each other. I experienced my pepeha really come to life when I learnt that ISL’s Anna Hartley and Nicole Sherburd are also Ngāi Tahu!

Part of the kaupapa of a Kāhui Ako is to learn and grow from each other. In that spirit, I shared with the rōpu* what I had already learnt from my co-lead Suzanne about whenua. Not only does it mean land, it means placenta, the giver of life and new beginnings, the connection between the old and the new.. So on the Ōkahu Bay whenua, of significance to Ngāti Whatua, the tangata whenua, together, as a Te Ao Māori whānau, we are creating a new whenua, giving life to Te Ao Māori in our kura.

After the formalities of the whakatau* we shared kai and coffee. Jill Farquharson said that whenever Suzanne is involved you know that the food is going to be good! Indeed it was. The manaaki* from Suzanne was exceptional as she prepared fruit kebabs, ham and cheese croissants and hot drinks from a family heirloom.

Just as the sun was rising and ngā whetu* were fading away from the night sky, the same stars that guided the Mahuhu-Ki-Te-Rangi waka as it navigated the pacific, we hope that the morning stars and rising sun will help to navigate our Kahui Ako and school’s journey.

*Rātu te Takau o Haratua Tuesday 10th May

*kura School

*manawhenua people with authority over the land

*tūpuna ancestors

*rangatira chiefs

*rōpu group

*whakatau informal welcome

*manaaki hospitality and care

*whetu stars

Chairing my first meeting - A reflection by Alix Osbaldiston

 Reflecting on Chairing my first ASL Meeting:

I have been an Across School Leader (ASL) for the Auckland Central Community of schools Kāhui Ako for a little while now. Although almost half of my time as ASL has been spent during lock down. Personally, it took a while for me to feel comfortable within my new ASL role. To be surrounded by such experienced teachers, who had also been an ASL for a while, was intimidating. But I knew in order to grow my own confidence and leadership I had to step further outside of my comfort zone like I did when running PLG meetings as an ISL, coaching new ISL’s as an ASL and sharing more of my voice during group discussions. 

Recently all of the ASL’s completed Clifton's Strength Test. The test narrowed down our Top 5 strengths under the categories of: Strategic Thinking, Influencing, Executing and Relationship Building. It was no surprise to me that 4 out of my 5 strengths were under the ‘Executing’ category. I am known as a doer. I take responsibility, I am dependable, I act with accuracy & precision, I can create structure, I make everything I do purposeful. 

Thursday 12th May was meant to be our first face to face ASL meeting being held at Auckland Normal Intermediate. However, late Wednesday night Jill Farquharson, our lead principal, made the decision to move the meeting to a Zoom, due to two ASL’s being absent and other staff needing to step into other leadership roles within their school. One of the other ASL’s had prepped the agenda and was going to chair the meeting before becoming sick. I offered to take over as chair and run the meeting. 

With moving to Zoom we all had to be quick thinking, adaptive and flexible in how the meeting was conducted. As Chairperson, I ensured I was clear in what we would be doing for each section of the agenda, clearly calling upon each person to speak, ensuring everyone got enough time to share their ideas and opinions and thanking them at the end to ensure they had finished their thoughts. The other ASL I was working alongside for my agenda item and I needed time to rethink our approach, by bringing another agenda item forward. The group was quick on their toes taking a suggestion to use an online platform (PadLet) to post the discussion questions, allowing individuals to document and post their own thoughts. Moving to an online platform for sharing ideas worked absolutely brilliantly for all of us. We made use of the two groups (half working remotely from and staff at ANI) to break off into groups for these discussions. Where it was not applicable to complete agenda items, due to their nature, I offered a suggestion to move them until the next in person meeting. I thought that it was important as Chairperson to offer up suggestions for the team to agree on and progress with the meeting. 

Overall I believe that in chairing my first ASL meeting I demonstrated leadership skills by leaning on my strengths and being a doer. I was able to lead a structured, well communicated, organised and efficient meeting and was clear in ensuring that all members were heard and contributed their ideas.

Next time I wonder how chairing a face to face ASL meeting might be different and if some of the organisation and outcomes might be the same. I felt proud of my first meeting and look forward to chairing another across school meeting either remotely or face to face.

Leadership with Madeline Gunn

 

Téna tatou katoa Ko Madeline Gunn toku ingoa Ko tumuaki o mua te Epsom Girls Grammar Kura. Ko matanga ACCoS Kāhui Ako ahau.

 

Introduction

I’ve been asked to share my ideas on leadership and link them with the opportunities and challenges for leadership for the ASLs in ACCoS.

 

Recently I was having dinner in a restaurant and a past father of Epsom Girls Grammar School came up to me and asked, “Are you still keeping that ship on a tight course?” 

I explained that I was no longer there but his question enabled me to reflect on the similarities between leading a very large school and being responsible for a large ocean liner. 

 

Both involve leading large numbers of people with very different roles and tasks who all have to be working together to keep that tight course. And of course neither the ship nor the school can be stopped or their course changed suddenly - everything has to be well planned and changes made strategically.

 

If you think about the leader of the ship and the leader of the school, both are very visible at events and presentations which shows their symbolical leadership. I’ve been really touched when past students have come up to me in shops and said “Mrs Gunn, you were my principal.” I’ve never seen myself as the main person of the school but others do and identify the school with the ideas and values you personally present. And of course in times of crisis the media seek you out for their interviews which shows the responsibility of that positional power.

 

Distributive Leadership

As a leader I was always conscious of that symbolic and positional power when required but it didn’t define my style of leadership. I believed in distributing leadership to other people because I didn’t have all the skills or the knowledge required to run that big ship alone. One of the most important things I did was to appoint excellent people around me, people who shared my goals and style of working but could cover my gaps. 

 

Most important though, as the leader, I was responsible for the direction of the school and for ensuring that everyone was working to achieve that. 

 

The best way to have people on board with you is to listen to their ideas, communicate regularly and make them feel part of the process so they have ownership of the outcome.

 

It wasn’t just the senior leadership team I worked with in a team situation. It might have been the academic leaders, the pastoral care leaders, the technology leaders, the property leaders, the student leaders and the Board of Trustees. All are different groups who have deep knowledge in a particular area and must be listened to. 

 

I loved the energy created when a group finds a synergy which combines the skills and knowledge of all for a solution which is far better than each individually could have found. Of course I did have to agree with that solution as I would be the one taking responsibility for it.

 

Values

A leader’s style is driven by their values. For me the most important value is respect. 

I always tried to treat everyone with respect, including those I disagreed with. Respect builds trust which is crucial for productive relationships at work. At the end of the day, I also want to be able to respect myself and the things I have said and done.

 

Integrity is also important to me. I want to be remembered for honesty and doing what I say and ask of others. If I expected staff to work hard, I always showed that I did the same thing.

 

Compassion is also important to me. We don’t always do the right thing; we all make mistakes and we need to learn from those. If I show compassion for the failures of others, I hope they will do the same for me. 

 

Leadership calls on the emotions as well as the mind. Head and heart together create followers. Without followers you are not a leader.

 

Another important driving value for me at school was being student-centred. When making any decision, if I could honestly say it was for the good of the students, then it was right. Of course equity also comes in here. Are you considering the needs of all students, are the gifted and those needing support being catered for ? What effect will this have on staff? In introducing a new subject what effect will it have on existing ones? All issues have to be considered but in the end it should be meeting the needs of students which is paramount.

 

Success as a leader

If you’re successful as a leader, what does that look like? For me it's a happy school where everyone is engaged in learning both students and staff. The important word for me here is belonging. I wanted staff to feel they were valued for what they did and students to feel that they had an important place in the school whether it was in the classroom or in the myriad of extra-and co-curricular activities. I wanted them all to feel they belonged to the school because then they would be confident and learn better.

 

Achievement is important to me as I see the main purpose of a secondary school is to provide students with the key to open the next stage of their learning journey.  Qualifications do that. 

 

I also wanted staff to feel that they were learning and growing. I am very proud of the fact that six of my former staff are now principals of their own schools.

 

Leadership and ACCoS

How do these ideas on leadership fit with ACCoS? 

Jill is the symbolic leader of ACCoS and perhaps we can compare her to the CEO of a shipping line working to bring the captains of a number of ships together. A daunting task but we can see how she works with her Steering Group and distributes leadership for the ASLs through the Champions . 

The careful planning and establishment of shared goals to give direction are crucial and are seen in our initiatives. 

 

The working collaboratively in teams is very evident in the Principals’ group, the ASLs’ group and for each ASL, their group of ISLs. 

 

Mahere Tupu

Mahere Tupu, our growth plan, values respect, collaboration, appreciative inquiry and a student centred focus.

 

Leadership and Across School Leaders (ASLs)

So there are many common links here but how does this apply to leadership for ASLs?

 

I have provided some personal and practical examples of the capabilities we have listed in our Leadership Framework. I have spoken about leadership in a Principal role and your role as an ASL has many of those same opportunities but also some restraints.

 

You are working in a variety of different schools and you have to be sensitive to the culture and the goals of each. Your positional leadership role has to be carefully negotiated with those existing leadership roles within each school.

 

You all know that building relationships of respect and trust are crucial to the success of leading your initiative but this can be difficult when some of your ISLs are not in your own school.

 

Good luck with those opportunities and challenges ahead and enjoy your journey through leadership growth.