New directions in education for headship in Scotland
Joan Mowat
University of Strathclyde
I am an highly experienced educator, spanning a career of 40 years, 27 of which were spent in schools, the last seven of which as a Depute Head in a Secondary School. I am a Senior Lecturer at the University of Strathclyde. I gained my PhD in 2008, which focused upon a social constructivist approach to supporting children with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties. This work was funded by the Gordon Gook Foundation and led to further funding from the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, extending the approach across two local authorities in Scotland. Arising from this, I was offered consultancy by Aberdeenshire and worked across the local authority in training staff in the approach. However, my research interests also span leadership and I took over responsibility for the leadership-related courses at Strathclyde in 2015. I established and co-convene the Scottish Educational Research Association (SERA) Leadership in Scottish Education Network. The principal focus of my work in leadership relates to leadership for social justice and I am currently coordinating a bid for funding from the Scottish Universities Insight institute, bringing together a multi-disciplinary team drawing from four universities and four external partners, focusing on the relationship between poverty, attainment and children’s mental health and wellbeing. My most recent publication (Mowat, 2018) critiqued the approach of the Scottish Government towards addressing the attainment gap associated with socio-economic status.
Mowat, J. G. (2018). Closing the attainment gap – a realistic proposition or an elusive pipe-dream? Journal of Education Policy, 33, 2 (299-321)
Abstract
Despite investment in resources, expansion of educational levels and reforms, most educational systems have failed to prepare young people adequately for the challenges of a rapidly changing global environment (Gomendio,... [ view full abstract ]
Despite investment in resources, expansion of educational levels and reforms, most educational systems have failed to prepare young people adequately for the challenges of a rapidly changing global environment (Gomendio, 2017). Only adaptable systems which ‘enable teachers to transform what and how students learn’ (p.20) can achieve this objective and, this, in turn, is dependent upon high quality school leadership. The importance of high quality school leadership is reflected in a range of Scottish Government policies (Scottish Government, 2016) and endorsed by the International Council of Education Advisors, appointed by the Scottish Government, who call for leadership at all levels of the system (International Council of Education Advisers, 2017). This call for ‘leadership at all levels’ is not new and was highlighted within the Donaldson review of teacher professionalism (Scottish Government, 2010), leading to a wide range of developments including the establishment of the Scottish College for Educational Leadership (SCEL) and a framework for school leadership, an aspect of which was the development of the Specialist Qualification for Headship (SQH). This accredited Masters-level qualification constitutes three stages: Middle Leadership; Into Headship; and Extended Induction. This paper will focus upon the middle stage – Into Headship - which is aligned with the General Teaching Council for Scotland’s (GTCS) Standard for Headship. It will explore some of the influences upon the development of the qualification and how it reflects more contemporary understandings of leadership. It will examine the programme through the following lenses: the importance of globalisation in shaping educational policy internationally and how this impacts upon understandings of the role of headship; the drive for equity and excellence globally; the need for collaborative approaches in furthering school improvement and forging partnerships within and beyond the school; the need to foster criticality and reflective practice at all levels of the system; and the role of socio-cultural learning in fostering communities of practice. As such, the paper aims to advance understandings of education for headship within the context of global education policy and sustainable practice.
References
Gomendio, M. (2017). Empowering and Enabling Teachers to Improve Equity and Outcomes for all. Paris.
International Council of Education Advisers. (2017). Report of the initial findings of the international council of education advisers July 2017. Edinburgh.
Scottish Government. (2010). Teaching Scotland's Future. Edinburgh: Scottish Government.
Scottish Government. (2016). National Improvement Framework for Scottish Education: Achieving excellence and equity. Edinburgh: Scottish Government Retrieved from http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2016/01/8314.
Authors
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Joan Mowat
(University of Strathclyde)
Topic Area
Practitioner Perspective
Session
S6G » Theatre Presentation (15:20 - Saturday, 7th July, Windsor 4)
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