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Journal of Educational Change

, Volume 17, Issue 1, pp 115–139 | Cite as

A school wide approach to leading pedagogical enhancement: An Australian perspective

  • Joan M. Conway
  • Dorothy Andrews
Article
First Online:

Abstract

This paper presents how some Australian schools are changing their approaches to leading the teaching and learning in their diverse and multi-characteristic contexts. Experiences of these schools shows that the development of a school wide approach to pedagogy and its implementation needs to be firmly embedded in the leadership of learning. Drawing on recent research conducted in the Sydney Catholic Education Office system in Australia (Crowther et al. in Leading and Managing 18(2):1–33, 2012) there is evidence of relationship between the development and implementation of a school wide approach to pedagogy and student achievement. There is also evidence to support leadership that is based on a mutualistic relationship between teacher leaders and the principal. This paper focuses on the way schools have used their visions and pedagogical frameworks to enhance whole of school quality outcomes. It highlights the power of teacher leaders taking responsibility for pedagogical development and implementation. In addition, it illustrates the power of mutualistic relationships (parallel leadership) when the principal takes responsibility for unleashing and trusting the creative expertise of teacher leaders in line with the role of strategic leadership and management.

Keywords

Collaboration Leading learning Professional learning communities Quality teaching School leadership School improvement Teacher leadership 

Abbreviations

ACT

Aspire create together

AP

Authoritative pedagogy

ESL

English as a second language

HOM

Habits of mind

IDEAS

Innovative designs for enhancing achievements in schools

ideas

Initiating, discovering, envisioning, actioning, sustaining

LBOTE

Language backgrounds other than English

LRI

Leadership Research International

NAPLAN

National Assessment Program—Literacy and Numeracy

PP

Personal pedagogy

SES

Socio-economic status

SMILE

Spirituality, multiculturalism, individuals, life, empowerment

SWP

Schoolwide pedagogy

Sydney CEO

Sydney Catholic Education Office

3-D.P

Three-dimensional pedagogy

USQ

University of Southern Queensland

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Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2015

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Leadership Research InternationalUniversity of Southern QueenslandToowoombaAustralia

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