NZAIMs

NZAIMS  is an organisation that focuses specifically on learners in the Intermediate/Middle School years, and this event was an opportunity to explore issues and ideas relevant to our older learners. Two key presenters, Steve Francis and Alison Mooney,  facilitated the learning and discussion over the course of the day.

Adapt or Die:Thriving in Times of Change - Steve Francis
Steve suggested that we are reaching a tipping point in education, where change of some time is almost inevitable. With this in mind, we need to consider the implications for both our school staff and our parent community, as school is different from what they have previously experienced.

He talked about there being predictable stages of concern when people are faced with change (Ken Blanchard). These are:

• Give me all the information
• What does this mean for me?
• How will we start implementing?
• Impact (when you start doing)
• Collaboration (best done with someone experiencing the change alongside you, or a little way ahead)
• Refinement

It is important to keep in mind that you need to take time to address the first two points, before you can successfully address the others. Steve noted that there are two factors to successful change; your attitude and your ability to learn. Keep in mind that things tend to get worse before they get better.

When it comes to implementing change initiatives, you should only focus on 3 big areas per year (Steve referred to these as the 'big rocks'). It is important to communicate these clearly and consistently and monitor progress towards your goals. As a leader, you need to be clear about what it will be like after the change, paint a picture so that you have a clear and compelling vision. A suggestion was to priority plan and break the year into 5 week chunks, and to display this in the staff room so that everyone can see where they are heading and the progress made to date.

Motivation is the key to successful change and there are three key drivers for motivation:

• Purpose - people like to be purposeful
• Mastery - people like to be seen as good at what they do
• Autonomy - people like to have the power to make some choices

However, it is also important to be clear with everyone about the flip side of each of these:

• Responsibility - because we change lives
• Change - be willing to tweak and refine
• Accountability - yes you have choices, but if these are not leading to outcomes for our learners then this is a problem

In order to achieve desired change, you need to have a compelling vision or you will get confusion. Change needs to be planned and staged or people will feel that the pathway is unclear. Training needs to be provided, if required, or people will feel anxious. You need to ensure the necessary resourcing is in place or people will feel frustrated. Finally, momentum needs to be established or people will get 'change fatigue'.

Four Things Great Leaders Do and Three They Don't - Steve Francis

Leaders need to make sure all of their 'moments of truth' are sending the messages that they want to be sending. This includes when meeting with members of the school community, online interactions and all of the usual home/school communication. 

Great leaders focus on their teachers; they ensure they are doing everything they can to make them feel supported and valued, while also ensuring they are on the same page with the school's vision and beliefs, and that they are accountable for themselves and their learners.

There are four key criteria for identifying a great leader:

• They expertly manage staff, students and parents, keeping in mind that all 3 groups are interrelated and connected
• They make decisions based on what their 'best people' will think
• They focus on people, not programmes
• They ruthlessly invest their time and do what only they can do, delegating other tasks as appropriate

Fostering Intelligent Relationships - Alison Mooney

This was an exploration of 4 key personality types: Playful, Powerful, Peaceful and Precise. Being aware of an individual's personality can help with responding and interacting with others in a purposeful and productive way. 

Alison identified a key word for each personality type:

• Playful - People
• Peaceful - Steady
• Precise - Thorough
• Powerful - Action

Each personality type has a specific leadership style:

• Playful - Inspirational leader. Loves to encourage
• Peaceful - Diplomatic. Cares about people
• Precise - Strategic. Sets goals and works backwards from them in order to work out steps
• Powerful - Visionary. Loves achieving things

Finally, each personality type has a different set of needs:

• Playful - attention, affection and approval
• Peaceful - respect, value and harmony
• Precise - space, quiet and sensitivity
• Powerful - credit, loyalty and appreciation

To explore the four personality types further, read Alison's book "Pressing the Right Buttons"