Starting out in headship is an exciting time, but can be quite a daunting experience too. In this blog Max Kelly reflects back on his time as a headteacher and offers his insights for those new to the role by listing the top 10 things he wish he’d known when he was starting out.
I recently completed my seventh year as headteacher at a school and realised that the departing Y6s were the fist ever cohort that I’d seen all the way through their primary education as a headteacher. Seeing how well all the children had done, and watching them leave as confident and resilient learners, was a proud moment and told me a lot about the successes (and lessons to learn!) of my headship.
The demands of leadership on Prime Ministers and Headteachers are colossal. Leaders must have conviction; the capacity to communicate and persuade; they must manage people and communities; they must translate their convictions to policy detail and then ensure successful implementation of their policies. All the while they must be the relentless and charismatic figurehead and carry the hopes and dreams of others alongside their own personal ambitions.
In this blog, Max Kelly draws on the work of political commentator Steve Richards to analyse the demands of leadership and to draw a correlation about the qualifications necessary to lead a country and to lead a school.
There are loads of blogs and articles out there which give advice on the mechanics of running an effective staff meeting: let everyone know in good time, welcome everyone by name, share the successes… you get the picture. But did you know there are some fundamental steps you can take right now which will increase staff meeting effectiveness ten-fold?
The full manifesto from NAHT Isle of Man can be accessed here. NAHT are asking all prospective candidates for Keys to endorse the manifesto and put “education” at the heart of this General Election.
Members of school leaders’ union, Isle of Man NAHT, are calling on candidates in the upcoming general election to join them in pledging to put support for education at the heart of their campaigns. The pledge forms part of a wider manifesto for education published today (12 August) by Isle of Man NAHT ahead of the House of Keys elections with the title “Our schools. Their future. Your choice”.
manxmaxim.com 