Alan Thompson - Thoughts on Education

    Education - and the road to leadership in education - is notable for how little attention is paid to developing educators as they advance through the leadership 'ranks'. This is a leadership pathway that is defined more by academic subject expertise (study an academic degree, be a superb teacher, become a head of department, join the management team) than it is by any intentional leadership development. An even shakier leadership progression in schools is the route to leadership via the sporting or pastoral pathway. Here, progression is driven by a passion area (say, sport) which progresses to sport administration and then management and leadership.   Both of these pathways, although common, are deeply flawed. They assume that passion and expertise readily translate into vison, communication, and decision-making skills (which are just some of the demands on leaders) and to a large extent reward simply 'being there' at the time of need. neither really require of us w...

Of all of the oddities that school leaders will encounter in their tenure, the concept of tradition in schools is one of the most unhelpful and divisive. It creates a completely false dichotomy (you are either a 'traditionalist' or 'a modern thinker') that hardens opinions and stifles discussion. Tradition is used to justify all manner of things that cannot stand on their own justificatory feet (beyond the 'it is tradition' argument), and can cast its cloak of mystery over practices and rituals that, in the cold light of day, are unjustifiably daft, or worse - damaging.     One of the strangest aspects of tradition is that it is so resistant to examination. It exists in the lore of schools as that untouchable truth which defies scrutiny - we dance around in almost biblical reverence, terrified of falling foul of the great gods of tradition - alumni and parents.   That is not to say that there is no place for beautiful ceremony, quaint practices, and meaningful r...

It is easy to criticise, isn't it? And how often are leaders subjected to criticism and comments that pick up on the negative without offering any wisdom or solutions? Like the food critic offering scathing critique of the balance of the  jus  in relation to the  sous-vide ruby trout  - it is much easier criticise than it is to actually  do . I don't have all of the answers, but as I have been thinking about prefect systems and their fitness for purpose (or lack thereof), I have given much thought as to what I would do if I had the luxury to re-design the system.    Firstly, we need to address the fundamental question as to whether we want enforcers, portfolio secretaries, or actual leaders. I think that we want the latter, and so we then need to ask the question as to what investment in time and effort is needed - so that by the time we are seeking leaders we have provided the skills and training to set them up for success. Look outside of school for ...

I often wonder what historians will write when they reflect on global events of the past twenty years, sometime in the future. For I have a sense that we are living in a time of extraordinary social, political, and environmental change. It will be known as the era where global politics lost innocence (or at least stopped pretending), hitherto unassailable empires crumbled (and new ones formed), and corruption, voter manipulation, self-interest, and extremism intersected on a massive scale. And if we are indeed living through a crisis in global politics,  there can be no doubt that this is symptomatic of  a deeper malaise - corporate and civic governance, law and order - the basic tennets of society - face a crisis of leadership - visionary, principled, ethical servant leadership.   As school leaders we have a duty to our learners to prepare them for this complex world that provides few ethical markers of its own. Sometimes our efforts manifest in overt leadershi...