Our inquiry

How do we ensure that play-based and problem solving inquiry leads to higher levels of student engagement and accelerated progress for all students? 

  

Thought Leadership and Followership - Leadership

Media: Enhancing Authentic Leadership-Followership: Strengthening School Relationships

By Carolyn Crippen (Journal article)

Main points

“….. an effective school has established a balanced, authentic leadership and followership dynamic that provides opportunities for all members of the school community regardless of role, to participate.

Leadership is the act of motivating a group of people towards a common goal (Hopeful, open-ended, visionary, creative)

Authentic – being true to oneself, being up-front in relationships

Followership – following the leader

·       Schools are all about relationships and they are developed by caring, listening, collaboration, trust and honesty

·       All relationships in school need to be reciprocal in that we nurture each other’s potential

·       Some of us are leaders most of the time and followers some of the time, others are the opposite

·       Followers are courageous, and they need to trust and be inspired by their leaders

·       Followers are change agents and creators of great leaders

·       The leadership-followership relationship is inclusive.

·       Servant leaders serve with skill, understanding and spirit and servant followers serve with discrimination and determination.

·       The motivation of followers effects the group

·       The best followers are enthusiastic, intelligent and self-reliant.

·       “Authentic relationships require work to build and strengthen and maintain”

·       We move on a continuum throughout our live from servant leader to follower

·       Without shared beliefs we don’t seek to develop relationships

·       Effective leaders are aware of the needs and interests of their followers

·       Followers need to be independent thinkers and carry out their role.

Ideas linked to our inquiry How do we ensure that play-based and problem solving inquiry leads to higher levels of student engagement and accelerated progress for all students? 

We all (staff and students) need to understand that a good leader must be a good follower and a good listener.

We all need to identify and understand our strengths, and use them to rectify our weaknesses. We need to talk about leadership and followership and how they feel and the qualities needed.

We all need to understand that leadership and followership are equally important and that we can all be both at various times. (We are all on a leadership-followership continuum

We need to be true to ourselves and we all have a lot to offer our school community.

Media: World of Learning (video)

Main points:

In a world of learning:

·       Learners move into the driver’s seat rather than the passenger’s seat

·       Academic accomplishments are owned by the student

·       Learning is customised, authentic, connected, relevant, resilient and amplified

Ideas linked to our inquiry How do we ensure that play-based and problem solving inquiry leads to higher levels of student engagement and accelerated progress for all students? 

There needs to be a high degree of student agency in all aspects of learning. What, who with, when, how and why?

Media: 7 Skills Students Need For Their Future – Dr Tony Wagner

Main points:

The skills are:

·       Critical thinking and problem solving

·       Collaboration (understanding and respecting difference) and leading by influence

 (the ability to engage others and ask the right questions)

·       Agility and adaptability

·       Initiative and entrepreneurialism

·       Effective oral and written communication ( in-effective communication reflects ‘fuzzy’ thinking and an inability to write with voice)

·       Accessing and analysing information

·       Curiosity and imagination

Ideas linked to our inquiry How do we ensure that play-based and problem solving inquiry leads to higher levels of student engagement and accelerated progress for all students? 

We must plan for and facilitate learning experiences that will provide opportunities for students to explore and develop these skills and capabilities in relevant and authentic contexts.

These could be the basis for the wording of our problems.