Essential questions for the future school

Mr Peter Chambers Publications Editor Specialist Schools & Academies Trust, London, UK

Addressing the need for transformational, systemic change to meet the needs of current and future learners

A publication reproduced by kind permission of the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust, 2006

The contribution of the Australian colleagues who assisted with the writing of the "Essential Principles" part of the publication is gratefully acknowledged.
Ms Patricia Cowling – Genazzano FCJ
Ms Gabrielle Leigh - Caroline Springs College
Ms Aine Maher – Association of Independent Schools Victoria
Mr Tony O'Byrne – Aquinas College  
Mr Glenn Proctor – Glen Waverley Secondary College
Ms Melanie Ruchel – Collingwood College
Mr Ken Thompson - Gladstone Park Secondary College
Dr David Warner – Eltham College

Essential questions point the way to transformation

Foreword by

Professor Brian J. Caldwell
Educational Transformations
Melbourne, Australia

At the turn of the century, a group of headteachers in England came together to research and write a ground-breaking publication that was to have a major impact on policy and practice. An initiative of the Vision 2020 group of heads of specialist schools under the auspices of the then Technology Colleges Trust, One world: one school acknowledged the dramatic changes in society around the world, and their impact on the place called school. They looked ahead to describe a new and preferred future for schools and the roles of those who would lead them. The leaders of the project engaged their colleagues around the country to identify what should be the subject of innovation and what ought to be abandoned. I consider the report of the project one of the most important of its kind. It was groundbreaking because it was the work of headteachers.

One world: one school remains the most explicit account in education of the need to balance innovation and abandonment in schools. Achieving such a balance was considered necessary by the late Peter Drucker in his book Management challenges for the 21st century. The authors of One world: one school and many of their colleagues proceeded to implement much of what was proposed, thereby contributing to the transformation of secondary education in England. The emergence of specialist secondary schools, now exceeding 80% of all secondary schools, is in my view the most significant development in secondary education in any nation. These leaders seem to have shed the image of the over-worked and stressed headteacher, and one senses in their endeavours a spirit of exhilaration. They were not ‘wiped out’ by the waves of change that continue to be a feature of the educational scene. It is regrettable that policymakers have frequently failed to take to heart the need to achieve a balance of innovation and abandonment.

The work of the Vision 2020 group was a key driver in the establishment of a new project of the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust, formerly the Technology Colleges Trust. Known as International Networking for Educational Transformation or iNet, its intention is to share knowledge, work together in addressing common problems, and where possible pool resources in an effort to achieve the transformation of schools in participating countries. Transformation is defined in this context as significant, systematic and sustained change that leads to high levels of achievement for all students in all settings.

The pages that follow constitute the sequel to One world: one school, extending the endeavour to other countries through iNet. There are further contributions from headteachers in England, but there is much more to enrich the account, with examples of transformation in schools, and insights on how to achieve it, from Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States. An iNet conference in Georgia in April 2006 was the setting for generating many new ideas on the theme of transformation, with a particular focus on personalising learning, the application of new technologies, and the utilisation of new pedagogies.

A feature of this publication is its insistence that further innovation must be balanced by abandonment of policies and practices that may have been well suited to former times but are now essentially obsolete. It is even more important than before that achieving this balance be a priority for policymakers and practitioners everywhere. The consequence of neglecting this task may be, at best, a failure to achieve transformation, and at worst, the meltdown of public education, as meeting expectations becomes ‘mission impossible’.

To the best of my knowledge, this publication remains unique in that it is entirely a work for school leaders by school leaders, with a particular focus on the contributions of headteachers and principals. The authors draw on the work of academics, whose own endeavours are rather different to those of others who research and write about leadership and the transformation of schools. They are very much grounded in practice, reflecting more a ‘development and research’ orientation than a ‘research and development’ approach. This is also my disposition, and this book based on practice will become part of my well of knowledge about transformation and how best to balance innovation and abandonment.

While this may be an initiative of current and former leaders in schools, it is important to acknowledge those in government and in the public service who have provided a framework for new practice to emerge. While there is still too much centralisation and an often unbearable burden of compliance, most of the practices and possibilities described in these pages have occurred in systems of public education where significant authority and responsibility has been devolved to schools. This is particularly the case in Victoria, Australia, New Zealand and England. This is a tribute to those who created the framework as well as to those who seized the opportunities that were created.

This is an outstanding publication that, if taken to heart by all stakeholders, will make a major contribution to the transformation of schools. The chief beneficiaries will quite rightly be students, but there will also be significant benefits for those who have the privilege to lead, because their work will at least be more satisfying, if not exhilarating. The authors have taken us to the edge of a new, exciting era in schools and school leadership.

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A publication reproduced by kind permission of the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust, 2006