Framwellgate School
Learning conversations and school leadership
Framwellgate School, Durham is a successful 11-18 comprehensive on the outskirts of Durham City. It is a Science College and a Training School and is a key partner in the newly-established regional Science Learning Centre.
What do they do?
The school has a culture in which everyone is encouraged to be a learner. Leadership responsibility is distributed throughout the school and underpinned by a strong focus on the school aims and four strategic objectives covering both pupil and staff learning. Leadership activity centres around learning and development rather than on administration and maintenance, with an emphasis on understanding the big picture and the creation of meaning. Around 75% of the staff are actively involved in Learning Focus Groups where the emphasis is on professional dialogue and informed decision-making based on research. This approach is modelled by the senior leadership team (the Policy Group) which, incidentally, provides a unique professional development opportunity for two members of staff who join them as full members for an academic year.
How do they do it?
All of the meetings of the Policy Group are focussed on learning. They are single-item-agenda meetings, with supporting papers distributed in advance, that are characterised by an emphasis on reflection and mutual learning. The supporting documentation always contains research papers with between one and three questions designed to stimulate areas of enquiry. Decision-making is guided by clear principles derived from the school’s shared values and underpinned by the strong view that, in the words of the headteacher, Joan Sjøvoll , “Decision-making is a process, not an event”.
Two particular approaches that have been useful are: “Check-in, check-out” (after Senge et al). and “Double-loop Learning” (after Argyris) The “check-in” allows the individuals to “discharge the baggage of the day” at the start of the meetings and the “check-out” provides a process by which individuals identify what they have learned with an emphasis on sharing the implications of the decisions made and on how they intend to involve others. Processes associated with double-loop learning cause the group to explore not just the managerial implications of a potential decision (single-loop) but, crucially, force them to challenge their own norms, attitudes and assumptions and to answer the big questions such as, “How does this fit with our values?”, “Although we can get to be very good at…, let’s ask ourselves whether we should be doing it at all!” (double-loop).
What’s been the result?
With an emphasis on developing professional dialogue and creative relationships, it’s not surprising to discover that the leadership capacity of the school has grown significantly. The head talks about “sharing headship” with her colleagues: “Within the non-negotiables of our shared values and school aims, I’ve had to learn to release control, take risks and support staff in their leadership development”. Staff report that there are “more opportunities to be involved, listened to and to help shape the future”.
The modelling of leadership behaviours and professional dialogue is increasingly reflected throughout the school as meetings, particularly of the Learning Focus Groups, adopt the reflective and research-based approach of the Policy Group.
The Head reports that the members of the Policy Group have grown both individually and as a team and engage in “vigorous and rigorous” professional dialogue. As for the Head herself: “ As headteacher I have many significant opportunities to learn from my staff and have developed my own capacity to reflect on and clarify an enduring vision for our school because of the professional challenge offered by the team that pushes the boundaries of my thinking.”
What is the balance between learning/ development and administration/ maintenance in the leadership of your school?
Are there opportunities you could take with your colleagues to try the ‘check-in, check-out’ approach?
How distributed is the leadership in your school?
Would any of the approaches outlined here work for you?
