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Review of Post Structure

Saibhriú’15A possible approach!

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3.40-4.10pm-Overview

4.10-4.35pm-Workshop on clarification/ general prioritisation-(Group activity).

4.35-5.00pm- Discussion/additions/omissions (Full staff)

5.00-5.20pm-Prioritisation (Individual activity)

5.20-5.30pm-Formation of review group and planning for the next step.

5.35pm-Conclusion

Outline......Croke Park session

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..... create effective in-school management structures to support us in the core business of St. Emmet’s Secondary School

Today is an opportunity to..

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• The Moratorium• Massive changes in recent years e.g. Legislation; WSE/MLL;

Cross -sectoral redeployment, Societal change, Other cutbacks• Significant change in your school-loss of 3AP posts/ 5

SDTs/new Deputy Principal• WSE’13 and its recommendations• Need for distributed leadership in schools today e.g. Literacy

and Numeracy Initiative /School Self-evaluation....... JCT –posts?

• New appointment procedures-new structure?

Why Review?

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• Every two years (recommendation Vol. Sec.)

• Specific review of a post upon request by either post holder or management

• New posts/diminishing posts (SDT teacher area)

• On foot of WSE/MLL recommendations

Need to ensure equity, proportionality and relevance

All staff have a part to play in identifying school needs and in being consulted on schedule of posts

When to Review?

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The quality of in-school management (ISM) is one of the factors to be evaluated. This evaluation to include:-

• The extent to which ISM involves staff in decision making• Awareness among staff of the management structure of

the school and the schedule of duties assigned to ISM• The effectiveness of ISM in ensuring that responsibilities

delegated to post-holders…are carried out effectively and efficiently

• The relevance and clarity of duties• Policy and practice in the monitoring and review of duties

assigned to post-holders-role of BoM

Whole School Evaluation (WSE)

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“This schedule (of posts of responsibility) identifies the duties attaching to each post. However, insufficient evidence was made available during the evaluation to assess the relevance of this schedule in meeting the current needs of the school”

Extract from WSE Report ’11

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ieExtract from WSE Report ’12

‘The schedule of posts of responsibility should be reviewed in the context of current school priorities and needs’.

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‘Staff members who have a post of responsibilityhave been assigned specific duties.Although, there has been some reduction in thismiddle management team following staffretirements, no review of duties has taken place inrecent years. Therefore, it is recommended, thatthe schedule of posts of responsibility should bereviewed in the context of current school prioritiesand needs’.

Extract from WSE ’12

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‘Staff members who have a post of responsibilityhave been assigned specific duties.Although, there has been some reduction in thismiddle management team following staffretirements, no review of duties has taken place inrecent years. Therefore, it is recommended, thatthe schedule of posts of responsibility should bereviewed in the context of current school prioritiesand needs’.

Extract from WSE ’12

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“The middle management team is an important structure in supporting senior management, and non-post holders also make a valued contribution. However, some duties attached to the posts of responsibility are not appropriate to the current needs of the school. In order to build greater leadership capacity, a much needed review of the post structure was initiated recently and is ongoing. The review of the posts should be expedited in a collaborative and consultative fashion to address existing inequities regarding some of the duties and to ensure that they meet the school’s current needs and developmental priorities. In order to optimise the effectiveness of this resource, final decisions regarding deployment of duties to post holders should be overseen by the board. Annual reporting on the performance of duties to senior management and the board should also be developed”.

Extract from report ‘14

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• The posts of responsibility and the timetable should be reviewed to ensure the implementation of best practice with regard to deployment of staff and lesson distribution in the interest of student progress and attainment.

• Leadership roles are distributed at middle management level. The schedule of posts, which has not been reviewed in recent years, identifies year heads and co-ordinators for in-school functions. It would now be timely to execute a formal review to ensure that the overarching needs of the school are identified and that the corresponding responsibilities are assigned.

Extract from Report’14

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“In consultation with the post holders, senior management and the board should review, on a regular basis, the in-school middle management structure, and the duties attached to the posts of responsibility, to ensure that the duties are more closely aligned to the developmental priorities and the needs of the school”.

Extract from WSE Report ‘14

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• A mix of pastoral, curricular and organisational duties.

• Clearly defined duties-which are effectively implemented

• Regularly reviewed for good of school

Recommendations re Posts..

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Equity and Fairness: recognise time required- relativity of AP and SDT posts

Clarity and Openness: √clear job description √regular review √understanding re time

Flexibility: -transferability of posts

Values and Principles which should underpin any Review

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The clear message from the literature is

that school improvement is more likely to occur when leadership is distributed and when teachers have a vested interest in the development of the school

Sharing the load.....

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ieTeaching Council Code of Professional

Conduct

………promotes a professional approach to teaching that acknowledges the educational leadership role played by all teachers.

It clearly states that your role extends beyond their own classroom to working collaboratively with colleagues, management, parents and external agencies to contribute towards a high quality education system.

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ieStepping up- skills and dispositions

• Tight-loose leadership

• High emphasis on personal accountability

• Modelling

• Strategies for sharing leadership

• Focussed and systematic management

• Strong sense of personal and team autonomy in the context of accountability

• High levels of trust and support for innovation

• High personal credibility as practitioners

• Excellent interpersonal relationships and communication skills

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Three types of people......

• Those who make things happen

• Those who watch things happen

• Those who wonder what’s happened

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• Principals reluctant to share, delegate, empower

• Teachers’ perceived lack of status in the school

• Absence of any formal authority for Teachers• Lack of shared decision making• Listening only to inner circle-Year Heads...

Barriers to Teacher Leadership

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• BoM is ultimate authority and appointing body• Central role of Principal• All teachers participate in initial facilitated

review• Post holders must be consulted in advance of

any change – but note provision in Croke Park Agreement (1)

Needs of the school take precedence

Principles which underpin a Review

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“In accordance with existing circulars staff must be consulted if the school is drafting, reviewing or changing the school’s schedule of post duties.

Where a review has taken place, school management may, in accordance with existing circulars, reassign a post holder other duties from the schedule, appropriate to the level of the post (special duties or assistant principal) as required by the priorities and needs of the school”

Croke Park

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• Apart from the ‘alleviation measures’ set out in C04/2014, the moratorium continues to apply as it has done since 27 March,2009 on the filling of vacant posts of responsibility at Special Duties Teacher level, arising as a consequence of any promotions to Assistant Principal under these alleviation arrangements.

• It continues to be a matter for school authorities to re-organise and prioritise the appropriate duties for post of responsibility holders ,in the context of the application of the moratorium.

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• Effective: Jan 2014 and based on pupil enrolment on Sept. 30thof the previous school year.

• Schools that fall below the Assistant Principal thresholds set out in the TABLE can fill Assistant Principal vacancies as they arise to the level of the thresholds set out in the TABLE.

• These measures are applicable to schools for the duration of the Haddington Road Agreement

Alleviation Measures’ set out in C04/2014

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Alleviation Table

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There is provision also in the C04/2014 for the filling of a Programme Co-ordinator post at Assistant Principal level where a school meets each of the following criteria:

(1)The school has 100 or more pupils on such programmes(2) The overall number of Assistant Principal posts is at or below the thresholds set out in the TABLE.

Programme Co-ordinator posts

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The review should be based on the following principles:• consultation with all the teaching staff;• there should be real participation by teachers in this process;• consensus among teachers is the best way to conduct the reviews;• consultation must be open and transparent;• the definition of posts must be inclusive so as to allow any

competent, eligible member of staff to apply;• the duties should reflect the grade of the post;• every effort should be made to ensure equity between post

holders in the division of duties, i.e. no one post should be over burdensome when compared with others in the same category.

ASTI

Review of Post Duties-other perspectives

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(a) Consider your current posts to determine whether they:- Meet the most important school needs? Provide an opportunity for teachers to assume responsibility

for instructional leadership and curriculum development?Are they supportive of the core business of the school i.e.

learning and teaching? (b) Check out whether there are other needs which should be

incorporated into the schedule? (c) Are there duties which could be carried out administratively

to create greater capacity in the post schedule?

Today’s Tasks-1

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• Amend the current schedule through discussion and dialogue.

• Each individual staff member prioritises his/her schedule of duties (on computer/laptop)

• A composite of these priorities will form the basis of the revised schedule.

Today’s Task-2

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• Set up a task group to assist the Principal in dealing with the report.

Suggested composition:

PrincipalDeputy Principal2 Assistant Principals2 Special Duties Teachers2 Non-post holders

Today’s task-3

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• The brief of the group is to prepare a discussion document (based on the facilitator’s report)-not to produce a completed ‘take it or leave it’ document.

• The group will have to consult with staff at every opportunity in order to keep the review process going!

• The review and amendments take time but should be time bound-mid-term?

Brief of ISM Task Group

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• Based on this document Principal draws up a draft post schedule aligning agreed needs to available posts (AP level/SDT level)

• Following consultation with staff, Principal refines schedule for presentation to BOM

• BOM considers and provisionally ratifies

• Principal allocates revised posts through consultation with post holders individually

• BOM ratifies final schedule and allocation of revised posts

• DES is notified

Bringing the Process to a Conclusion

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• Year Head• Special Needs Co-ordinator• ICT for teaching and Learning• Examinations Co-ordinator• School Planning and policies• Marketing and PRO/Awards• Student Council• Book Schemes/Lists• Health & Safety* Programme Co-ordinator role

Typical Schedule:-

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• This process may mean that some current duties will possibly no longer be seen as appropriate to ISM schedule and as a result there will inevitably be changes in some posts.

• This is not to undervalue work being done already but the needs of a modern school are constantly changing and new priorities emerge.

• Needs of the school now and in the medium term are paramount and it is vital that this is kept in mind both today and throughout the process.

• Remember that not all needs are met through the post structure-teaching and learning functions –subject Departments....

Points to Ponder