Resources
The bravest book you’ll ever read? T
his month, we’re reviewing a book especially for the head teachers among our readers (or at least those with leadership aspirations!). Read on for Education Today’s take on ‘Brave Heads: how to lead a school without selling your soul’ by head teacher, Dave Harris.
What does the publisher say? “‘...Dave Harris is well placed to write the ultimate guide to bravery in school leadership. As the principle of a high-profile new academy, he has had to stand by his beliefs about the role of the school in the community – ‘It’s a marathon not a sprint’ – despite the pressure to forget genuinely educating young people and just focus on ‘floor targets’. A book for every leader who wants to make a genuine difference (and get great results, as Dave has done)!”
Is it any good?
‘Brave Heads’ is an in-depth and experience-led guide on how to be a ‘brave’ (read: successful) head teacher. Harris draws on a wealth of personal knowledge to instruct headteachers (or those in the making!) on which strategies worked best for him, especially at Nottingham University Samworth Academy (NUSA). Harris offers practical tips to inspire and engage the reader. For example: he shares his view that “five star food leads to five star learning,” which lead to him recruiting a head
chef through an innovative interview process that required candidates to participate in a ‘cook-off’ and complete a live spreadsheet exercise (to demonstrate their ability to balance the books). The result, says Harris, was the addition of a world-class member to the team, who supports the school wholeheartedly and really believes in their goal. As Harris notes, the ‘brave’ part is being willing to try new things: “You don’t get extraordinary people through an ordinary interview process.” Harris writes with an enthusiasm for education and leadership that is bound to rub off on any reader. In a world with constantly changing goal posts in terms of government objectives and performance indicators, Harris perpetuates a view that reminds readers what should really matter most in education. He asserts: “Bravery is accepting slightly less than perfection,” and “Bravery is not always dancing to the political tune.”
Any downsides?
As far as content goes, this book really delivers. However, the physical format falls a little short. Designed to be a ‘handbook’, the guide is larger than your average, easy-to-carry paperback,and it features a little text for a lot of page. It was possibly designed this way to allow for note taking, but we’re not entirely sure that it’s really required.
Should you buy it?
Harris has an obvious passion for education, his students and staff, which shines through his writing. Harris’s school, NUSA, was an entirely new project, built from scratch and in their first Ofsted inspection they scored ‘Good’ across the board. The man knows what he’s talking about and he’s been brave enough to write it down. Are you brave enough to learn from him?
u‘Brave Heads: how to lead a school without selling your soul’ is by Dave Harris and edited by Ian Gilbert, RRP £18.99. Published by Independent Thinking Press.
24
www.education-today.co.uk
February 2013
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32