WRITER’
A fine book but it doesn’t tell the whole story
The Learning Imperative – Raising performance in organisations by improving learning by Mark Burns and Andy Griffith Crown House Publishing: paperback, 240 pages
This looks, initially, like just another addition to the bookshelves of management development books but, delving deeper, there are a number of useful elements that educational leaders might find valuable. Section 1 outlines the research underpinning the approach taken
by the authors, both directors of a corporate training company. It develops a common nomenclature in the principles of KASH (Knowledge, Attitudes, Skills and Habits) and REFRESH (Resilience, Enquiring, Feedback, Revising, Effortful, Sharing, Habitual) in understanding the behaviours of individuals. Section 2 takes this knowledge and develops a differentiated
approach to building a learning mindset within teams, before Section 3 takes this further into providing a step-wise approach to designing training sessions or longer programmes. The concept of ‘planning backwards’ from the desired outcome shouldn’t be new to experienced teachers, but it’s a useful reminder for new leaders who, in building new leadership skills, may forget that their teaching skills are just as useful in planning delivery to staff teams. All the way through I found myself thinking that the book was fine, but what if I’m not a leader with the confidence, or resilience, to take this forward? Unfortunately, it’s only in the last two pages that the authors address this, so while this is a useful read which will prompt valuable reflection in leaders approaching this aspect of their role, it’s not the whole story. Maintaining personal resilience, developing confidence and organisational culture, the peculiarities of educational organisations and the variety of other approaches also need to be considered.
Review by Stuart Barlow who is a Member of SET and a SET Mentor and former senior manager in further education.
WRITERS BLOG
By Chris Eyre Like it or not, as teachers we will face a mountain of emails. Here are some tips on making sure they don’t dominate our working life. 1. Like other addictions try cutting down first. Check your email first thing and at the end of the day only (and lunchtime if you really must).
2. Turn off email when teaching. It is not fair on the class you are teaching. They need your full attention.
3. Are you worried about forgetting an email? You can avoid this by creating a ‘deal with me’ folder and moving important/urgent emails to it, so you don’t forget them. Deal with them when you have time.
MEMBER OFFER SET members can claim 20 per cent off the RRP for this book when ordering directly from the Crown House Publishing website. Use discount code InTuition20. This offer is valid until 31 January, 2019.
4 Avoid email out of hours. If you do read them you don’t have to reply. Model your work-life balance to staff and students; in some cases waiting will mean you give a better and calmer response.
5. Think about others. Don’t send emails after hours. If you are tempted to email, use timed delivery or press save. Sometimes I draft emails on Sunday, save them and send them first thing on Monday morning.
The Intensive Interaction Handbook, second edition Edited by Dave Hewett Sage Publishing: paperback, 184 pages This book is aimed at teachers, support staff, speech and language therapists, carers and parents who look after and support people with profound and complex learning difficulties, and autism. It guides you through the
Intensive Interaction approach developed by Dave Hewett in the 1980s when he worked in a school near London. The approach is based on learning the fundamentals of communication, such as eye contact and facial expressions, and using these to develop a relaxed and natural approach to communication and building relationships. This workbook is well-furnished with
case studies, photographs, advice and tips on methods, approaches and practice.
MEMBER OFFER SET members can claim 20 per cent of the RRP for both Sage Publishing books on this page when ordering them from the Sage Publishing website. Use code SAGE20SET. The offer is valid until 31 January, 2019.
6. Be polite. I have a friend who is a senior manager in a school. He operates by the rule that if an email asking for something doesn’t contain a please or a thank you, then he ignores it. I rather like this.
Chris Eyre
is the humanities curriculum manager at City of Stoke Sixth Form College. Chris’s book, The Elephant in the Staffroom: How to reduce stress and improve teacher wellbeing, is published by Routledge.
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