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3.23 Developing and sustaining leaders

Description

This is a new AGQTP activity. The activity is designed to support teachers aspiring to and currently engaged in leadership roles within schools. It will provide opportunities for teachers to undertake professional learning within schools through action learning projects that use strategies such as mentoring. Teachers will be informed about current research on leadership, have the prospect of building a relationship with prospective and current leaders in other schools, support teachers to plan career paths that involve leadership within schools and be able to strengthen their knowledge and skills in the areas of curriculum, teamwork and staff management and welfare. Professional development workshops will build school executive staff members and teachers' knowledge and skills in the areas of team building, initiating and sustaining educational change and building leadership capacity within schools.

During 2007 a two-day conference will be conducted where academics and school leaders will share their research and/or experiences. Teachers in schools undertaking an action learning project will be involved in a series of workshops aimed at developing their leadership knowledge and skills, encouraging new initiatives to be practically applied and providing opportunities for individual and group reflection on their learning.

The activity will be managed by a designated officer who will take responsibility for the activity meeting the professional needs of teachers. At this stage it is planned to involve academics from higher education institutions in the two-day conference and series of workshops. Schools undertaking action learning projects will be able to engage academic support.

Contacts

Outcomes

Through participation in an AGQTP project, teachers will have gained new knowledge and skills that contribute to a planned professional learning pathway.
Through participation in an AGQTP project, teachers will have engaged productively in collegial networks that extend and support knowledge and skills.

Access

All teachers in independent schools K-12

Design

The professional learning strategy for this activity includes:

• school-based projects to engage teachers in workplace learning that is based on a cycle of continuous improvement


• clusters of schools working in collegial networks


• workplace mentoring and coaching aligned to meeting the NSW Institute of Teachers professional teaching standards


• flexible learning that includes, face-to-face workshops and discussion groups


• local, regional and state workshops and conferences that enable participants to have their work publicly celebrated and critiqued


• partnerships with higher education institutions to provide expertise in the development, design and/or implementation of professional development activities.

Implementation

The implementation of the activity will be supported by a designated project officer, academics, sector consultants, school based professional learning team, and external provider.

Delivery

Workplace learning, mentoring, action learning project

Timeline

By May 2007:

• schools will have been offered the opportunity to participate in action learning projects and successful schools will have commenced these projects


• the first workshop of the series for participants in the action learning projects will have been held


• two-day conference conducted


• submit progress report in May.

• schools completed the action learning projects


• all workshops supporting action learning project conducted


• two day conference conducted


• submit annual report in November.

Sectors