More Less New Whilst working with our staff on our school’s strategic plan evaluation about three years ago, I became stuck on how we would move ahead. Our staff had spent a lot of time across the previous six months, pulling apart our data in every conceivable way trying to effectively evaluate our impact. They…
Tag: you should read this blog
If you only read one educational leadership book in 2017 make it this one
Leading Teaching and Learning Stephen Dinham If you are only going to read one educational leadership book in 2017, then make it Leading Teaching and Learning by Stephen Dinham (and then get your priorities in order and read more books!). This book is an excellent summary of the broad range of educational research and evidence,…
You should read this if you want to be a Superboss
Superbosses – Sydney Finkelstein Superbosses is an amazing piece of research, summarised into outstanding lessons for leaders of organisations and schools, that ultimately works better as a short article than a book. I came across this book in an HBR article (HBR – January-February 2016), which summarised the main findings of author Sydney Finkelstein’s research….
You should read this if you want to understand everything wrong with leadership
Leadership B.S. – Fixing Worplaces and Careers One Truth at a Time by Jeffrey Pfeffer – Stanford Graduate School of Business I have written often about the great work of Bob Sutton from Stanford University, and now his faculty colleague and sometimes writing partner Jeffrey Pfeffer has given us Leadership B.S. – Fixing Workplaces and…
Batfleck and Change Management
Batfleck and Change Management Dealing with change – The Ben Affleck as Batman case study Change is hard in schools, and it is ever present. Schools are constantly dealing with a moving educational and political landscape, classroom teachers are constantly dealing with dynamic classrooms and change initiatives within their schools and Principals are constantly dealing…
Closed loop classrooms – Tom’s Restaurant vs. Scotty’s Diner
Closed loop classrooms – Tom’s Restaurant vs. Scotty’s Diner A couple of questions have been tormenting me for a few weeks now, regarding teachers and leaders for whom things on the surface seem to be going well. We all know that there are teachers out there who seem to make things look easy. Their classes…
Three great books I haven’t blogged about yet – but that every educational leader should read!
Three great books I haven’t blogged about yet – but that every educational leader should read! We’ve recently started a new feature in our PLT’s, where each session a different member brings along an article, book or reading that has had an impact on them as a teacher. Last week a colleague brought along an…
Leadership Transitions
Earlier this week I co presented a workshop for aspiring leaders within my school and local school network. The workshop was the first of three for the year, and was designed to get participants to actively and honestly engage in self-reflection, as a foundation for leadership development. The workshops are designed to assist leaders at…
Leadership books you may have missed in 2014
Leadership books you might have missed in 2014 Regular readers of this blog will know that I am a sucker for a good list, and the New Year’s period always provides some worthy list fodder such as Top 5 Movies of 2014, Top social media fails of 2014 and other such nonsense. So I thought…
You should read this if you want to improve the organisational health of your school
The Advantage – How organisational health trumps everything Patrick Lencioni Staff opinion surveys are the bane of many a school leader. Many tend to see them more as an imposition, rather than a chance to really understand how their school is operating. Staff may realise the survey…
Collaboration for improved student learning
Collaboration for improved student learning Recently my school welcomed Dr. Ben Jensen from the Grattan Institute. Dr. Jensen presented a summary of his findings into top tier Asian schools, based on his 2012 report. One of the more revealing aspects of Dr. Jensen’s report (and a little reported on aspect) are the collaboration strategies employed…
You should read this if you are leading change
Switch – Chip and Dan Heath Chip and Dan Heaths excellent ‘Made to Stick’ has already been reviewed here, now their next major book, ‘Switch, How to Change Things When Change is Hard’ is a standout read in the ever growing canon of change management books. Drawing from a wide array of research in psychology…
You should read this if you want to become a true instructional leader
Leverage Leadership Paul Bambrick-Santoyo Paul Bambrick-Santoyo is managing director of the high performing North Star Academies in the US and an instructional leader to be admired. He is also the author of Leverage Leadership, a practical, hands on guide to leading school improvement, which demonstrates clearly and decisively the actions school leaders should be taking to…
On the humanity of leadership and legacies
On the humanity of leadership and legacies Recently the foundation Principal of my school Mill Park Secondary College, Adrian Bennetto passed away at the age of 74. I was tasked with writing the notice for our College newsletter. Opening in 1992, I count myself lucky to have been one of the original cohort of students…
You should read this if you want double the capacity of your team
Multipliers: How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter – Liz Wiseman with Greg McKeown Across your career in teaching, there have probably been school leaders that you have loved working with and others that you have loathed working for. With some leaders you will have felt smarter, valued, supported, challenged and loved your work while…
You should read this if you want to instil your students with character and grit
How Children Succeed – Grit, Curiosity, and the hidden power of character Paul Tough In ‘How Children Succeed – Grit, Curiosity and the hidden power of character’ Paul Tough identifies the character strengths that make a difference in education and tells the stories of the leaders and schools that are making a difference. Tough highlights…
You should read this if you want to think better, teach better and understand people better
Think! Before it’s too late Edward De Bono It is not for this review to outline the decades of influence on education and thinking that has made Edward De Bono’s career. However, if you are looking to improve your students’ depth of thinking and creativity, enhance your own thought processes, and understand school, work and…
You should read this if you want to be a better boss
Good Boss, Bad Boss Robert L. Sutton Following on from his hugely successful, zeitgeist-grabbing book “The No Asshole Rule”, Robert Sutton delivers again with his book “Good Boss, Bad Boss”. The genesis of this book is in the hundreds and thousands of emails Sutton received after the publication of “The No Asshole Rule”. Startlingly many of…
You should read this is you want to sharpen your skills as a classroom teacher
Teach Like a Champion – 49 Techniques that Put Students on the Path to College Doug Lemov Doug Lemov has fast become a leading name in educational practice. His instant classic ‘Teach Like a champion’ provides teachers and school leaders with over 40 simple, yet highly effective strategies that can be incorporated into any classroom,…
Rules for analysing your student learning data @ysreadthis
Rules for analysing your student learning data From youshouldreadthisblog.wordpress.com Data causes teachers to react in many strange ways. Many teachers gleefully dive into reams of data, poring through pages intent on finding every nuance, detail and wrong answer. Some put their head in the sand, hiding their data in the dark recesses of a…
Top 5 Short Reads for Educational Leaders
You Should Read This Top 5 Short Reads for Educational Leaders We all know that teachers and principals are constantly pressed for time. We also know that a 300 or 400 page tome on leadership such as Jim Collins ‘Good to Great’ may not make everyone’s nightstand. The allocation of teacher work time is one…
You should read this if you want to develop skill and passion in your career
So Good They Can’t Ignore You – Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love Cal Newport I’m a sucker for a good book title, and this book does not disappoint. What a cracker of a book this is by Cal Newport. ‘So good they can’t…
Top 5 books for aspiring educational leaders
Top 5 books for aspiring educational leaders Who can resist a top 5 list? Well certainly not me. Here’s a top 5 list of books for aspiring leaders in education. If you are at the stage of your teaching career, where you are considering applying for responsibility positions or leadership positions, there are far worse…
You should read this if you want the best research into leadership, management and organizational change
Harvard Business Review Why should educators read Harvard Business Review? The prospect of reading a periodical like HBR might seem unnecessary for many educational leaders. We are in teaching after all, not business. Many think that the worlds of business and education are just too far apart…
You should read this if you want to see how Obama built an election winning team
Game Change* John Heilemann and Mark Halperin Halperin and Heileman’s definitive account charting the course of the historical 2008 US Presidential election campaign may seem like an odd choice to include on an educational leaders reading list. However, the lessons from the candidates, their teams and their strategies are highly relevant to educational leaders. Many…
You should read this if you want to lead in a civilised workplace
The No Asshole Rule – ‘Building a civilized workplace and surviving one that isn’t’ Robert L Sutton The No Asshole Rule is an outstanding read and a must for anyone looking to improve the culture of their schools and staffrooms. Perhaps the subheading best sums up the nature of this book, ‘Building a civilized workplace…
You should read this if you want to lead but don’t have a title
Seth Godin Tribes True leaders don’t need a title, and true leaders don’t wait to be asked to lead are just two of the key messages which shine through in ‘Tribes’ by Seth Godin. Seth Godin is a force of nature. Author, blogger, marketer, theorist, entrepreneur, ideas man… the list goes on. ‘Tribes’ is one…
You should read this if you want to make a lasting impression
Made to Stick Chip and Dan Heath Have you ever struggled to make your ideas stick? Have you ever taught your students concepts which they have promptly forgotten? Watched your staff nod in agreement during a meeting, only to watch them continue to act and behave the same old way? Well, help is at hand…
You should read this if you want to fix your meetings
Patrick Lencioni Death by Meeting If you work in a school that has an outstanding culture of collegiality, sharing and team planning; where everyone enjoys and adds value to their meetings, then you can probably skip reading this book. For most of us though, the reality is that a couple of nights a week we…
You should read this if you want the definitive research into what works best in education
Visible Learning John Hattie Every single time I open this book, I find something that changes the way I think, act and lead educationally. John Hattie’s seminal work “Visible Learning” is now the Bible for all educators. The key premise; most things that teachers and schools do work, but there are some things which work…
