Effective partnerships show:-

1. The changing landscapeand the significance of partnershipExeter Teaching AllianceMonday 10 February 2014

2. Effective partnerships show:- • collective reporting, to tell the story of the partnership and the benefits it brings • collective accountability, to report on the responsibilities and achievements of the partnership • collective celebrating, to honour those who have contributed to the partnership’s collective outcomes

3. The role of school leaders:- school leaders have to inspire and inform their staff, their governing bodies, and their students and their parents. Achieving a self-improving school system entails a radical shift in our notion of a school system, and school leaders will constantly have to persuade and explain what is happening and why !!

4. An ‘agent’ of change? The Importance of Teaching – The Schools White Paper 2010 ‘ ‘Work with each other to improve’ ‘locally we will rely on schools to work together’ ‘enable more schools and clusters of schools to support one another’ www.selt.org.uk

5. Collective capacity • The power of collective capacity is that it enables ordinary people to do extraordinary things • Collective capacity generates the emotional commitment that no amount of individual capacity working alone can come close to matching • Working together generates commitment • Moral purpose stares you in the face; it becomes palpable and indeed truly irresistible • The collective motivational well seems bottomless • The speed of effective change increases exponentially McKinsey and Company 2010

6. What we value, who we are, how we will work together? Some key questions:- What is it that is important about my work- what gets me to school each day? What are to be the core values of our work- the non-negotiables The outcomes will guide our work

7. Getting the words right! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzjEzohHmaM

8. Collective moral purpose ‘collective moral purpose, or that which motivates and sustains teachers in their professional commitment. It is not primarily for financial reward or for social status that teachers do what they do, but rather because preparing the next generation to be fully realised individuals and to create a better society are at the very heart of what education is for.’ David H Hargreaves, 2012

9. The case for collaboration andpartnershipThe Importance of teaching-2010 (5.17) • Standards are likely to rise as the result of the dissemination of best practice across and between schools • Potential for significant economies of scale in economic terms • Shared CPD has the potential to enhance consistent practice • Deployment of staff and resources can be more flexible and effective

10. Silicon Valley where collaboration and competition can live side by side ‘The region’s dense social networks and open labour markets encourage experimentation and entrepreneurship. Companies compete intensely while at the same time learning from one another about changing markets and technologies through informal communication and collaborative practices; and loosely linked team structures encourage horizontal communication among firm divisions and with outside suppliers and customers. The functional boundaries within firms are porous in a network system, as are the boundaries between firms themselves and between firms and local institutions such as trade associations and universities. ‘ Saxenian, 1994

11. 11 “It is one of life’s great ironies: schools are in the business of teaching and learning, yet they are terrible at learning from each other. If they ever discover how to do this, their future is assured” Michael Fullan 2001

12. Stimulating LearningConversations ‘the way that educators make meaning together and jointly come up with new insights and knowledge that lead to intentional change to enhance their practice and student learning. Exploring new ideas and evidence, participants offer diverse perspectives, challenge each other in respectful ways, and are open to being honest and pushing themselves to reflect deeply in ways that challenge their thinking.’ Louise Stoll, 2013

13. Elements of a learning conversation • Participants enter the conversation with a spirit of curiosity; a ‘need to know’ even when what they find out may not fit with their existing beliefs. • Respectful challenge-Being respectful means listening attentively to others, a core feature of coaching relationships. Building positive relationship is an essential starting point for any substantive and critical exchange to take place. • Culture of trust and enquiry – The importance of trust can’t be underestimated. • Time and space –Learning conversations need time and space.

14. A self-improving school system: towardsmaturityDavid H Hargreaves, Wolfson College, Cambridge, October 2012 • ‘Professional development and partnership competence are the soil in which collaborative capital grows into a self-improving school system.’ • The professional development dimension and its strands: —effective joint practice development —mentoring and coaching —talent identification —distributed staff information

15. The partnership competence dimension and its strands: — fit governance — high social capital — collective moral purpose, or distributed system leadership — evaluation and challenge • The collaborative capital dimension and its strands: — analytical investigation — disciplined innovation — creative entrepreneurship — alliance architecture Social capital consists of two connected elements, trust and reciprocity

16. Is TRUST the key? ‘Even if talking about trust can be awkward or uncomfortable, it is only by talking about trust, and trusting, that trust can be created, maintained and restored. Not talking about trust, on the other hand… can too easily betray a lack of trust, or result in continuing distrust. Trust… is, and must be made to be, a matter of conscientious choice.’ Solomon & Flores, 2001:153 ‘School leaders are architects of trust’ McEvily& Zaheer, 2004.