Written material has been provided by the school.
At Jubilee Park Primary School we have been focused on developing a culture of learning since the school opened in September 2017. In my experience leaders drive behaviour and behaviour creates a culture. Our culture is an output of our behaviour. To establish a culture of professional learning we have focused on the notion of ‘process over product’. Developing processes to enable all staff to learn and collaborate underpinned by our mission statement, to ‘Inspire, Nurture and Celebrate Success’. To ensure we remain focused on our mission statement, we have three vision principles that guide our decisions and are the foundation for our strategic purpose.
We are committed to:
Igniting a passion for learning
Creating the conditions to thrive
Growing together with the community
Our vision principles, curriculum design and professional learning all triangulate to support our development as a learning organisation. Each element is interdependent upon each other and flexible in responding to the needs of our community and to national policy. We cannot just focus on one aspect, for example, curriculum development, without considering how this relates to our vision principles and professional learning.
How does your approach to curriculum design and professional learning and development triangulate with your vision?
When considering and responding to national policy it is important that we don’t lose sight of the moral purpose and our ‘why?’. The expectation upon the teaching profession is high, never more so than in the current climate of mass educational reform in Wales. During such a period of change it is vital that, as school leaders, we remain focused on our vision principles and develop strong collaborative relationships. A positive climate for learning requires clear, open and honest communication and a commitment to our profession. The outcome of which is trust, an essential component of collaboration.
We started by working with all staff to explore our professional capacity and questioning ‘what does it mean to be a member of staff at Jubilee Park Primary School?’. This reflection resulted in a co-constructed professional charter for all staff and a collective commitment to learn, enquire and take responsibility for our professional learning.
What does it mean to be a member of staff at your school?
For staff to take responsibility for their own professional learning requires a climate and culture of trust. School leaders create such a culture through carefully considering systems and structures which focus on learning. Our structure ensures all leaders have a responsibility for professional learning, in my experience and opinion, it is not the job for just one leader. Such collaborative leadership ensures clarity, cohesion and a commitment to professional learning from the outset which is further supported by specific pathways. Our professional learning and development pathways value the choices that individual staff make within our school; whether that is a leadership role, being a teacher or teaching assistant or specialising in a specific area. Each pathway consists of opportunities that are available for all staff within the school and provide an entitlement for each individual learning pathway.
What systems and structures are in place in your school? Are they focused on learning and do they promote collaboration? Do they provide an entitlement for individual learning pathways?
Individual learning pathways do not mean that staff all work in silos and their actions are disparate across the school. On the contrary, all professional learning is focused upon our vision principles and school improvement. It is well-designed so that it includes a blend of approaches and is focused upon our common language of learning.
Our language of learning supports a collective understanding of Curriculum for Wales, a focus on reflective practice and professional growth. We make choices about our use of language, for example we do not have ‘staff meetings’ instead we have ‘professional learning and development sessions’. Such a small tweak can have a big impact across a school. Our weekly sessions are attended by both teachers and teaching assistants and are planned in advance of each term. Sessions are led by staff within our school, valuing their expertise and ensuring that the content of sessions are bespoke for our school. We maximise the time available through ensuring sessions are focused and provide time for staff to talk, reflect and collaborate.
What is your language of learning?
From experience, providing time for staff to talk and collaborate is essential. We provide time for our teachers and teaching assistants to engage in research which is directly linked to our school improvement. Each fortnight, teachers are provided with dedicated reading and research time which has been crucial for our curriculum development and reflective practice. In addition all staff engage in an individual professional inquiry throughout the year, again, time is provided for staff to fully immerse themselves in this work.
All staff are supported to become reflective practitioners. They maintain a professional learning diary which focuses on their progress and impact. They also map out a five year professional plan. We have found that moving away from thinking about progress in academic years and encouraging longer term growth has enabled staff to consider the impact they are having within the areas of the professional standards and what they need to continue to thrive as a professional.
How are you supporting your staff to become reflective practitioners?
Creating the conditions for our practitioners to thrive is enabled through high quality professional learning. Within our school, teacher agency is encouraged, collaborative agency expected and dedicated time is provided for all staff to research, collaborate and trial new ideas. There is a collective purpose and this, joined with trust, ultimately benefits staff and children. We know that children learn from everything around them - people, environment, atmosphere, routine and experiences. As a headteacher I believe that schools should be relentlessly focused on learning. For this to be a reality requires a culture of learning, effective relationships and trust, so that all practitioners and children are afforded the opportunity to thrive.
How are you building the capacity of your learning community so that all staff can thrive?
Catherine Place
Headteacher
Jubilee Park Primary School, Newport, South Wales
