title: Case study: Applying coaching and mentoring methods to leading a secondary school science department

authors: Anso, Kathleen Mary

subjects: coaching

abstract: Heads of subject departments in New Zealand secondary schools generally have recognised expertise in teaching their subject and this expertise together with a mixture of leadership and organisational skills are recognised in their selection for the position of Head of Department (HOD). They seldom have formal training in leading staff. Single day training in job skills for new HODs is regularly offered at local education centres but few HODs undertake extended tertiary training in leadership skills.

This case study records the experiences of one secondary Head of Department as she does a literature review of coaching and mentoring principles and applies a selection of these principles to her work with her staff. The initial focus of the study was to use coaching and mentoring methods to lead the department in the implementation of differentiation; varying teaching to cater for the diversity of learners. The scope of the study broadened to encompass all coaching and mentoring interactions with department staff.

Both coaches and mentors work with individuals to improve performance in an area. The vision of mentoring moves considerably beyond emotional support and provision of sample lessons to developing staff in best teaching practice and developing the teacher's ability to problem solve for themselves. Coaching is described as the art of identifying the coachee's strengths and using this information to choose an effective approach in a given situation.

The case study is based on the journal records kept of selected routine interactions with department staff. The journal recorded examples which showed common patterns of interaction, and interactions influenced by the coaching/mentoring literature. A second data source was questionnaire responses from staff who left over the course of the year. 

Major themes that emerged in the data analysis were an increased awareness of the importance of learning needs when working with individual staff,  and working strategically. 

The Myers-Briggs description of personality preferences was used as a neutral framework for describing personality. Recognising the learning needs that arise from those descriptions gave a framework and guidelines for purposeful coaching / mentoring interactions with staff. The concept of learning preferences brought clarity to individual staff responses to different situations; instead of being idiosyncratic and unpredictable, they can be explained as due to the individual combinations of learning preferences in each staff member.

There were a variety of competing demands from outside the department and from individual staff priorities. Over the course of this study the HOD did extensive reflection on her selection of differentiation to cater for student diversity, on using a coaching/mentoring approach for this implementation, and on how to work with experienced staff who may have limited openness to change. The reflection increased her clarity about both the direction and the approaches, and this helped her maintain these in the face of completing demands. 

There are few studies of New Zealand school middle-managers using coaching and/or mentoring. This case study contributes an example to show other middle-managers what can be done in one year in one specific context; using coaching/mentoring to implement differentiation in a department.

text: Case study: Applying coaching and mentoring methods to leading a secondary school science department Heads of subject departments in New Zealand secondary schools generally have recognised expertise in teaching their subject and this expertise together with a mixture of leadership and organisational skills are recognised in their selection for the position of Head of Department (HOD). They seldom have formal training in leading staff. Single day training in job skills for new HODs is regularly offered at local education centres but few HODs undertake extended tertiary training in leadership skills.

This case study records the experiences of one secondary Head of Department as she does a literature review of coaching and mentoring principles and applies a selection of these principles to her work with her staff. The initial focus of the study was to use coaching and mentoring methods to lead the department in the implementation of differentiation; varying teaching to cater for the diversity of learners. The scope of the study broadened to encompass all coaching and mentoring interactions with department staff.

Both coaches and mentors work with individuals to improve performance in an area. The vision of mentoring moves considerably beyond emotional support and provision of sample lessons to developing staff in best teaching practice and developing the teacher's ability to problem solve for themselves. Coaching is described as the art of identifying the coachee's strengths and using this information to choose an effective approach in a given situation.

The case study is based on the journal records kept of selected routine interactions with department staff. The journal recorded examples which showed common patterns of interaction, and interactions influenced by the coaching/mentoring literature. A second data source was questionnaire responses from staff who left over the course of the year. 

Major themes that emerged in the data analysis were an increased awareness of the importance of learning needs when working with individual staff,  and working strategically. 

The Myers-Briggs description of personality preferences was used as a neutral framework for describing personality. Recognising the learning needs that arise from those descriptions gave a framework and guidelines for purposeful coaching / mentoring interactions with staff. The concept of learning preferences brought clarity to individual staff responses to different situations; instead of being idiosyncratic and unpredictable, they can be explained as due to the individual combinations of learning preferences in each staff member.

There were a variety of competing demands from outside the department and from individual staff priorities. Over the course of this study the HOD did extensive reflection on her selection of differentiation to cater for student diversity, on using a coaching/mentoring approach for this implementation, and on how to work with experienced staff who may have limited openness to change. The reflection increased her clarity about both the direction and the approaches, and this helped her maintain these in the face of completing demands. 

There are few studies of New Zealand school middle-managers using coaching and/or mentoring. This case study contributes an example to show other middle-managers what can be done in one year in one specific context; using coaching/mentoring to implement differentiation in a department.

year: 2010

title: Staying safe on a surf beach: What are rip currents?

authors: Pitman, Sebastian J.

abstract: Everyone enjoys visiting the beach and playing or swimming in the water, but sometimes, waves breaking on beaches can create strong, narrow currents that can pull you out of your depth and into deeper water, where you may find yourself in trouble. We call these rip currents, and they are the main cause of drowning and rescues on surf beaches. The best way to stay safe at the beach is to always swim near lifeguards and avoid swimming if there are none around. Two important things to know about rip currents are: (1) how to spot them; and (2) what to do if you get caught in one. That is what we want to tell you about in this article!

text: Staying safe on a surf beach: What are rip currents? Everyone enjoys visiting the beach and playing or swimming in the water, but sometimes, waves breaking on beaches can create strong, narrow currents that can pull you out of your depth and into deeper water, where you may find yourself in trouble. We call these rip currents, and they are the main cause of drowning and rescues on surf beaches. The best way to stay safe at the beach is to always swim near lifeguards and avoid swimming if there are none around. Two important things to know about rip currents are: (1) how to spot them; and (2) what to do if you get caught in one. That is what we want to tell you about in this article!

year: 2019

title: Audiences, referees, and landscapes: Understanding the use of Māori and English in New Zealand dual language picturebooks through a sociolinguistic lens

authors: Daly, Nicola

abstract: When non-dominant perspectives are represented in children's literature, it is labelled multicultural, and this form of literature has much potential for altering existing power structures in society. Bishop (1990) first introduced the metaphor of multicultural children's literature offering the possibility of windows - an opportunity to see into others' worlds; mirrors - an opportunity to see your own world being reflected back; and glass sliding doors - an opportunity to step into a world through a book. However, to date, any exploration of the extent to which language diversity contributes to the representation of non-dominant perspectives in multicultural children's literature has been limited, and the use of sociolinguistic theories to frame and theorise such explorations almost non-existent.

text: Audiences, referees, and landscapes: Understanding the use of Māori and English in New Zealand dual language picturebooks through a sociolinguistic lens When non-dominant perspectives are represented in children's literature, it is labelled multicultural, and this form of literature has much potential for altering existing power structures in society. Bishop (1990) first introduced the metaphor of multicultural children's literature offering the possibility of windows - an opportunity to see into others' worlds; mirrors - an opportunity to see your own world being reflected back; and glass sliding doors - an opportunity to step into a world through a book. However, to date, any exploration of the extent to which language diversity contributes to the representation of non-dominant perspectives in multicultural children's literature has been limited, and the use of sociolinguistic theories to frame and theorise such explorations almost non-existent.

year: 2017