Super Head or Superhead? You decide.

How your leadership interacts with culture and determines practice and expectations, attitudes and behaviours..

Understanding the relationship between leadership and culture is generally underdeveloped in schools; it can be unsophisticated and lacking in nuance.

One simplistic assumption is that the cultural drivers of the school are all in the gift of the headteacher and that staff are mere puppets in the theatre of learning created by the headteacher. This simplistic notion finds perfect expression in the popular and populist idea of the ‘SUPERHEAD’.

Apparently the SUPERHEAD is the know all and be all of the school who has all the answers to making progress in any school, regardless of any analysis of the present condition. They carry baggage with them labelled ‘Things I imposed in my previous school which I intend to repeat my new school’. There has never been a better representative of a ‘one-trick pony’.

SUPERHEADS tend to act quickly and decisively because they do not intend staying too lone in one school. Their ambitions constantly lie elsewhere; their current school is merely a stepping stone. They are aware of their diktats and ‘command economy’ approach have a limited time span of effectiveness. Their vision is contained in an elusive document, produced with minimal consultation and staff are expected to make it work on time, within budgetary constraints and without the distraction of developmental feedback.

An initial improvement in standards and performance of a SUPERHEAD run school is always short term. The culture is always results-oriented and is as much due to the shock and awe of a new head who brooks no opposition to their own better judgement as it is to the changes themselves.

Expedience is more significant than strategy to the SUPERHEAD. Their thoughts are focused on maximising short term gain. They know they will not be held accountable for long term failure because they will be away working their management magic in another setting within five years or less.

SUPERHEADs do not stay in one place long enough to allows a full analysis of their impact, their methods and eventually, their shortcomings to be developed.

On the other end of the spectrum are SUPER HEADS. School leaders who are characterised by a ruthless determination to overcome adversity, be it social setting, poor resourcing, apathy or indolence, to ensure that the learning experience they offer their pupils is as good as it could possibly be.

SUPER HEADS are focused and find the time to discuss theory and practice with equal enthusiasm, the generalities and the detail of specific issues and pupils They consult and listen to feedback, measuring it against their version of reality and modifying their actions on reflection.

They are strategic in their intentions, but have a good grasp of the daily detail and can be enterprising in grabbing opportunities. They are effective communicators and can match their message to their audience so that all have the required information to move their performance forward.

When things go wrong, they are anxious to find the failure in the system rather than hunt down a scape goat. They inspire people by their focus, energy and unwavering commitment to staff and pupils. They are known for their personal acts of kindness. They have invested sufficient goodwill in their staff and pupil teams, that they can be honest in demanding improvement when individual performances fall short due to lethargy, lack of forethought and planning. Often, a teacher will know they have fallen short of the super head’s high expectation and will self-correct any shortcomings, without the head having to intervene, such is the esteem in which the head is held.

When these SUPER HEADS move on to another post, which they only do when they have invested sufficient time and energy into their current school, or retire, their way of doing things is continued as an aspiration to excellence. Their work lives on in the hearts and minds of staff. SUPER HEADS believe in shaping systems to maximise learning outcomes for pupils and staff alike.

One trait of the SUPER HEAD that often goes unnoticed is the ability to attract and appoint like-minded staff, who are open to new ideas and unafraid to reflect and experiment in their daily practice.

Their commitment is not to doing things the current way, but in continuously finding better ways to address the key areas of school performance.

In a school run by a SUPER HEAD, people thrive and contribute fully to the refreshing of the school culture.

Are you a SUPERHEAD or a SUPER HEAD?

Love and Light

DAO.