THE PROFESSIONAL VOICE OF SCHOOL LEADERS
Making School Leadership Doable
134 | OCTOBER 2024
Fostering a Research-Engaged Culture within Primary School
Empowering Education in Rural Ireland: DCU Changemaker School 6 11 19 10
Lorraine Bullard Principal of Barnacogue NS (SN Shéamais)
Children’s Experiences of Coercive Control: The Kids’ Coercive Control Web Being Designated DEIS - What does it actually mean? 16 20
Sarah Rush and Áine Costello Barnardos Childhood Domestic Violence and Abuse Project
Yvonne Uí Fhlaithimhín, Principal of Clashmore NS, Youghal, Co. Cork
Barbara Mulvihill and Marek McGann Mary Immaculate College
Dr. Alan Sheehan Principal, Douglas Rochestown Educate Together National School
One school’s approach to developing sustainable leadership: A journey through Forbairt Understanding the complexity of our gifted and talented children
Dr. Fidelma Healy Eames PhD, MSc., BEd., Consultant at studyandcareers.ie
Legal Diary: Tips for 2024-25 – David Ruddy BL
The day the Ombudsman for Children visited our school! – Goda Laukutyte and Catherine Iarmoliuk, 5th Class Pupils of St Joseph’s Primary School, Tipperary Town Waterford’s Gen Free Charter; Year One - Dr Brian Barron, Principal, Portlaw NS, Co. Waterford
EducationPosts.ie - User profiles and permissions And Finally Also in this issue:
The editorial team contributed the following: The President’s Pen Addressing Disadvantage in All Schools
Editorial: Making School Leadership Doable On Your Behalf
IPPN Conferences
Editor: Geraldine D’Arcy Editorial Team: Geraldine D’Arcy, Brian O’Doherty and Louise Tobin Comments
Are you planning to retire in 2024
If you have made the decision to retire or step back from leadership in 2024, we wish you every happiness and fulfilment in the future.
We would like to thank you sincerely for your professional contribution to colleagues and to the IPPN network of school leaders.
To assist the work being done in the IPPN Support Office could you please let us know of your impending retirement and also the details of the Newly Appointed Principal as soon as that decision has been made? Alternatively, you could ask the new principal to contact us directly. This would be of enormous help to us in the IPPN Support Office and I know would be very much appreciated by the Newly Appointed Principal.
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EDITORIAL MAKING SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
DOABLE
In IPPN’s pre-budget submission, launched in June, IPPN’s top priorities for the budget were set out as follows:
1. Making leadership ‘doable’
2. Resourcing Special Education Needs provision
3. Supporting DEIS schools through the implementation of a DEIS+ band at primary school level
4. Increasing grant funding.
The top priority is the objective of ‘making school leadership doable’. By this, we mean the sustainability of school leadership and those elements of funding that will have the greatest impact on primary schools and school leaders’ capacity to fully discharge their leadership and management accountabilities. With regard to making school leadership doable, four specific areas have the potential to have a profound impact on leadership. IPPN proposes specific actions in all four areas:
Achieving greater role clarity
It is imperative that we create the ‘conducive conditions’ that will empower the leadership agency required to deliver the most effective schools. Central to that process will be reaching consensus on what it is that we want our school leaders to be doing in their role. That role clarity needs to be shaped around the behaviours of effective school leaders, many of which are evident within the standards in the Quality Framework for Leadership and Management (DE Inspectorate, 2022).
IPPN proposes that stakeholders engage with the IPPN Leadership Effectiveness Discussion Document and the reflection tools to progress towards greater role clarity and effectiveness.
Ensuring increased time for leadership
Given the sheer breadth of tasks and actions that derive from the domains and standards of the Quality Framework (as detailed in IPPN’s Role Clarity Discussion Document), IPPN contends that the leadership and management of our primary schools must be a shared responsibility. All those who have such responsibility must be given sufficient capacity, in terms of time, to be able to discharge that responsibility effectively. The number of leadership and management (L&M) days allocated to primary schools is based on the number of pupils in the school. Principals in schools with 168 pupils have one leadership day per week while principals of schools with 169 pupils are fully administrative. A similar issue exists for deputy principals, who are either all in (full-time teaching) or all out (full-time administrative).
IPPN proposes the following model of creating more time in our primary schools for leadership, which has the capacity to have a profound impact on leadership and school effectiveness.
Note: The model mirrors the approach taken to the allocation of leadership time to deputy principals in post primary schools. The blue boxes indicate measures that already exist, the green boxes indicate the measures that require implementation.
Developing a Culture of Shared Leadership
Moving from a hierarchical, duties-focused approach to the more inclusive culture of the shared leadership and management of our schools, where the contributions of all are valued and celebrated, is imperative. Such a culture needs to be developed first before it can be embedded.
To achieve this, IPPN proposes that barriers to accessing team coaching be removed, with all schools allowed to apply, all members of the leadership and management team facilitated to attend, and the number of team coaching sessions increased.
Enhancing school governance structures
The proposed actions relating to governance are outlined in the Sustainable Leadership project update on page 23. They can be summarised as follows:
Extending the small schools pilot projects to June 2026 and exploring the proposed role of Administrative/Compliance Officer and shared professional services.
Determining what governance structure would best meet the needs of schools into the future.
In the year ahead, IPPN will advance these key priorities and will keep you informed via the weekly E-scéal of progress achieved. We look forward to engaging with members and with external stakeholders as we work together towards a more ‘doable’ and sustainable role for school leaders. You can read the full submission on ippn.ie under Advocacy/Submissions.
Is sinne le meas, Leadership+ Editorial Team
Louise Tobin Brian O’Doherty Geraldine D’Arcy President Deputy CEO Editor
DAVID RUDDY BL
Tips for 2024-25
You’re not on your own - It’s all about relationships
It’s no exaggeration to say that school leaders can feel overwhelmed and isolated at times. This is particularly true when you must deal with challenging situations including difficult staff members, angry parents and pupils with very challenging behaviours. Your first port of call should be the Deputy Principal and possibly the wider management team, depending on the circumstances. Any decisions or actions taken by you that may expose the school, namely the Board of Management, to possible liability, necessitates the informing of the Chairperson of the Board at the earliest opportunity. You may also seek advice from your management body and/or Patron who can advise and guide you as to whether you may need to contact your insurance company or possibly seek legal advice.
The Chairperson/Board of Management
It’s important to consider that the Board of Management as your guardian and the custodian of the welfare of both pupils and staff. It’s the Board which signs off on critical policies that help you navigate choppy waters at times. The Board can stress test policies and practices by asking hard questions of you at times. The unique composition of a Board harnesses collective wisdom, which can provide invaluable insight and indeed oversight. You should welcome oversight rather than feel challenged or undermined. The Board is appointed by the Patron to manage the school on
Any decisions or actions taken by you that may expose the school, namely the Board of Management, to possible liability, necessitates the informing of the Chairperson of the Board at the earliest opportunity. You may also seek advice from your management body and/or Patron who can advise and guide you as to whether you may need to contact your insurance company or possibly seek legal advice.
the Patron’s behalf, and is accountable to the Patron. The Board members should be encouraged to attend training provided by their Patron and management bodies.
The Patron – Specific Duties
The Patron provides invaluable support to Boards of Management through a combination of advice and necessary oversight.
Debts incurred by a Board of Management must be approved by the Patron in advance. In addition, any capital expenditure, such as extension
or replacement, must have the prior approval of the Patron. The Patron must approve of licence agreements or other contractual arrangements in relation to the accommodation of the school.
The Patron also (This list is not exhaustive):
1. Appoints nominees to the Board, appoints the Chairperson of the Board and appoints the Board of Management when properly constituted
2. Approves the admissions policy of the school and any amendments
3. Approves the Annual Accounts for the school
4. Seeks Child Safeguarding and Anti-bullying reviews
5. Acts to preserve the characteristic spirit of the school
6. Approves the appointment of the Principal, Teachers, SNAs and ancillary staff
7. Appoints independent assessors to selection boards.
Employment and Recruitment
The Board is the employer of staff. All appointments should not only be approved by the Board, but also by the Patron and Department of Education. All staff must have contracts of employment. A contract is a bargain struck between the Board and the staff member. It contains all the important information and is a reference point for the Board and staff member when there is a dispute or misunderstanding. Notwithstanding the difficulty in recruiting staff at present, consider
leaving a post unfilled rather than recruiting someone about whom there are concerns. Always check references, never take short cuts.
Admission/Enrolment
It’s that time of year when the Board must publish its annual admission notice. By its nature, this notice will vary in content from year to year. If any amendments (no matter how slight) are to be made to the admission policy, the Board must seek patron approval in advance. Be aware that some parents in family law disputes may seek to embroil the school by objecting to the decision of the school to accept an application for admission of a pupil by the other parent. The courts take the view that children having a constitutional right to an education are better in school than being out of school. If parents cannot agree as to which school the child should attend, the solution should be sought in the family law courts.
Policy Audit/Review
It may be timely to review policies such as your Code of Behaviour, Data Protection and Safety Statement.
Be aware that some parents in family law disputes may seek to embroil the school by objecting to the decision of the school to accept an application for admission of a pupil by the other parent. The courts take the view that children having a constitutional right to an education are better in school than being out of school. If parents cannot agree as to which school the child should attend, the solution should be sought in the family law courts.
amendments in some cases and more fundamental in others. The process of review can take time, but it yields enormous benefits in that staff, the Board and the school community take ownership of the policy. A starting point this year may be your Anti Bullying Policy. The Department of Education published, in June 2024, its ‘Bí Cineálta’ Procedures to Prevent and Address Bullying Behaviour for Schools
Conclusion
It’s in the interests of the school community, Board, Patron and Department of Education that you have a successful year. While there is no doubt that the role of school leader has become more complex, there are lots of supports and expertise available to support you. ‘A problem shared is a problem halved’.
If you would like to contact David Ruddy in relation to this article, you can email him at druddy@cpsma.ie.
• Start Date: 1 November 2024
• Flexible learning options
• Ideal for those acting as decision-makers within schools, for those who wish to advance to that level, and for those with an interest in education law matters
• Fee: €2,995
APPLY NOW FOR THE LAW SOCIETY’S
DIPLOMA IN EDUCATION LAW
The Law Society’s Diploma Centre is inviting applications for its Diploma in Education Law. Now in its ninth year, this diploma provides comprehensive coverage of the legal issues and pertinent case law relevant to the dayto-day issues that arise when advising on education law matters.
On completion of this diploma, participants will have an understanding of:
• Key employment law issues relevant to the school setting;
• School structures and governance arrangements;
• Admissions policies and student conduct issues;
• The legal issues relating to special educational needs;
• Key considerations regarding negligence and litigation management;
• Child protection issues;
• Data protection concerns;
• Other matters relevant to higher, further and adult education.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
This course is suitable for:
• Key stakeholders and decision-makers within the education setting, including school principals, assistant principals, inspectors, teachers at all levels,
• Teachers in management organisations, trade unions, and staff associations,
• Solicitors, barristers, and trainees who advise or wish to advise on education law.
TO FIND OUT MORE OR TO APPLY:
Visit www.lawsociety.ie/diplomacentre T 01 672 4802
E diplomateam@lawsociety.ie
As we embark on a new academic year, school leaders are encouraged to ‘promote professional learning that is evidence-based and adapted to the needs of the school’ (LAOS, 2022, p.35). The call for ‘evidence-based education’ has intensified in recent years, with a growing number of schools interested in developing research-engaged cultures. The benefits include deep, reflective learning for professionals, enhanced collaboration, job satisfaction and greater retention within the profession. Students experience increased academic attainment, enjoyment in lessons and improvements in teacher feedback (Sharpe, 2007).
As we all know, many teachers are actively engaged in research. Some are involved in formal research programmes within academic institutes, others on innovative action research projects whilst more are engaging in classroom-based initiatives. But where does this research go? Research work undertaken by teachers – such as reflections on practice, action research, and even school self-evaluation – is often undervalued. Too often, research work is done by academics for academics. Valuable evidence produced by schools is often not shared, celebrated or used by others. When research findings are published, they are often presented in academic journal articles, which may differ somewhat to the professional dialect used by practising teachers.
The Teachers’ Research Exchange (T-REX) seeks to address this perceived research-practice gap, by providing a platform for teachers to engage with other educational professionals outside their local geographical area.
Acknowledging the school as context for professional learning (LAOS, 2022), T-REX has a multitude of research
Fostering a Research-Engaged Culture within Primary Schools
BARBARA MULVIHILL AND MAREK McGANN
MARY IMMACULATE COLLEGE
resources that will support school leaders seeking to foster or embed a researchengaged school culture. Such supports include short, self-led courses, research stories from teacher researchers, a treasure chest of research projects, and forums for online discussion. The aim is that T-REX will, in time, become a onestop shop for Irish teachers to share their research findings and to learn from the findings of their colleagues.
A key feature of the community is the presence of Special Interest Groups (SIGs), such as the ’Research in School Leadership SIG‘, established by Dr Nicholaas Blom (UL) and Anna Mai
Rooney (Oide). The purpose of the SIG is to provide a platform for learning, thinking, sharing and discussing ideas about leadership research in schools. The group allows members to interact and share knowledge in three different ways. Firstly, fortnightly discussion posts focus on the positive aspects of school leadership. Secondly, the discussion ‘forum’ allows members to share their thinking and to link-in with others with similar research interests or questions. Finally, leadership resources can be accessed and shared in the ‘documents’ section that can support a research journey.
Fostering a research-engaged culture can involve many different vehicles at school level, including continuing professional learning, shared learning events, research champions, project work and professional dialogue (Ahmed, 2020). T-REX can support schools with such endeavours. With a range of vehicles in place over time, it is hoped ‘new ways of seeing and acting become habitual, reflexive and engrained in practice’ (Swaffield and MacBeath, 2009).
If you would like to join our community, please register for an account on www.t-rex.ie. If you would like to speak with a member of our team, please contact t-rex@mic.ul.ie or barbara.mulvihill@mic. ul.ie. The T-REX Project Team wishes you and your school community every success in fostering and embedding a research culture this academic year!
The authors wish to acknowledge the input and support of Anna Mai Rooney, Leadership Coordinator, Oide in relation to this article.
You can contact the authors by email at Barbara.Mulvihill@mic.ul.ie and Marek.McGann@mic.ul.ie
THE IMPACT OF ADDICTION ON CHILDREN
NIAMH MURRAY PRINCIPAL OF RUTLAND ST NS, DUBLIN 1, A DEIS BAND 1 SCHOOL
The nature of drug use in Irish society has changed with a much larger variety of drugs consumed and a greater prevalence of poly drug use (using multiple drugs at the same time). There are two aspects to the impact of drug use on children – the instability of living with a parent in addiction and the physiological impact of being born addicted to drugs.
I was unaware of the strong correlation between heroin use and poor early attachment until I completed a certificate in Addiction Studies with Merchants Quay Ireland. Heroin, a semi synthetic opiate, partly originating from the opium poppy and derived from the word heroic, was originally intended as a replacement for the painkiller morphine. Discovering that not everyone who uses heroin is equally at risk of becoming addicted to it surprised me, as my understanding was that it was highly addictive to all. Heroin has a potent chemical effect on the human brain – replicating the brain’s reward system, which may be underdeveloped in some adults owing to poor early attachment. It stimulates the brain’s opioid receptors resulting in the release of dopamine, which is known as the pleasure chemical.
Bowlby (& later Ainsworth) developed attachment theory – a secure attachment developed between the infant and the primary caregiver provides a strong base for the child to explore the world. Conversely, children with poor early attachment are at a much greater risk of experiencing and being affected by adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) such as addiction in the home or exposure to domestic violence. Early trauma affects brain development, with children remaining in and responding from
There are two aspects to the impact of drug use on children – the instability of living with a parent in addiction and the physiological impact of being born addicted to drugs
the ‘fight or flight’ amygdala. Recent developments in neuroscience, using brain imaging, have supported this theory. In schools, we see the impact of developmental trauma in children’s behavioural responses.
We may have some insights from children on growing up in a house where parents are addicted to drugs but, generally, we do not have the full picture. Dr. Katriona O’Sullivan articulates the impact of this eloquently in her memoir Poor. Indeed, TUSLA’s current practice is that a child may remain living in a family where a parent is using drugs as long as there is a ‘safe adult’ in the house. This safe adult may be an older sibling who is over 18. Who monitors the presence of such safe adults is questionable. I met with a social worker last year who had just moved back from the UK and was quite surprised by this practice of leaving children in homes where a parent was using drugs (cocaine in this instance, crack cocaine in another). This would not be allowed in the UK.
One of the saddest instances of the cyclical nature of addiction I encountered was a seven-year-old girl, who opened the front door to the Home School Community Liaison Officer (HSCL), who discovered Mam
strung out on heroin in the bedroom. The child was taken into family foster care. Afterwards, the social worker told me she had read Mam’s file, Mam herself had been taken into the care of a relative when she too was seven years old.
The educational impact of Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome, when children have been exposed to drugs in the womb, thus born with drugs in their system, is not well known. Such children may later present in school with needs which are many and varied or, what one psychologist described to me as ’a mixed profile’. If such needs don’t fall into a specific category for a specific diagnosis, children may miss out on resources. The developmental impact on children is significant, yet we need to learn more about how such a diagnosis is affecting their education. We had a child with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome with significant motor, balance and speech issues who did not meet the criteria for Assistive Technology, despite clearly requiring this. The child’s Guardian Ad Litem (GAL) could not understand how the child was ineligible. This is a rights issue and this particular child was fortunate to have had a GAL who could advocate for them. Many others do not have such a voice.
Ireland also has high levels of foetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), yet there is little knowledge in education circles of the impact of FAS. A greater awareness of the impact of substances on children is needed in order for schools to best meet children’s needs.
If you would like to contact Niamh in relation to this article, you can email her at principal@rutlandns.ie
ADDRESSING DISADVANTAGE IN ALL SCHOOLS
LOUISE TOBIN IPPN PRESIDENT
I consider myself somewhat of a champion for tracking the Delivering of Equality In Schools (DEIS) model in our primary schools, as this has been a focus of some of my work over the past 10 years. I now believe every school has pupils in their classrooms who are at a disadvantage. This may arise from socio-economic challenges in the home, various forms of addiction (See Niamh Murray’s excellent article on page 7 on this topic), unemployment, English being an additional language in the home, traumas experienced, and so much more. Pupils present in our schools with varying levels, and combinations, of such disadvantage. This challenges us educators to deliver supports and resources that will counteract this disadvantage, and to offer these pupils equality of opportunity in accessing their education.
This summer, I greatly welcomed the OECD report on the Review of School Resourcing to Address Educational Disadvantage in Ireland . Sometimes, the publishing of reports during the summer months when schools are closed can result in school leaders missing out on seeing very important research and reports. Hence, my President’s Pen for this issue is on this very important independent, expert opinion on the current approach to resourcing schools in Ireland to address the impact of educational disadvantage on children and young people attending all schools, both DEIS and non-DEIS.
It is important to note that the Report is NOT a review of the overall DEIS Programme... Considering the changing demographics of schools, the scope of this action was extended to consider the allocation of resources to all schools to address educational disadvantage.
It is important to note that the Report is NOT a review of the overall DEIS Programme. Arising from Action 4 of the DEIS Plan 2017, a more tailored or graded model for the allocation for resources to schools in the DEIS programme was recommended. Considering the changing demographics of schools, the scope of this action was extended to consider the allocation of resources to all schools to address educational disadvantage.
The OECD report serves three purposes:
1. to provide insights and advice to Irish education authorities
2. to help other countries understand the Irish approach to equitable education and
3. to provide input for the comparative analyses of the OECD Education for Inclusive Societies project.
Much commendation is given to many aspects of the Irish education system in terms of performance outputs and fairness. The targeted resources in DEIS schools are identified as a positive and efficient use of resources. However, I found the many recommendations in the report most interesting in terms of their scope and relevance to the many challenges we experience as school leaders.
Recommendations:
To strengthen collaboration across departments and agencies, in particular co-ordination of education, health and therapy
Equity in the provision of resources across schools
Review and monitor the cost of education and its impact on families
Refine the indicators and allocation approach of disadvantage to create a model that can adapt to changing needs
Support all children at risk of disadvantage
Address staff shortages, including diversity in the profession
Further promote engagement and collaboration with parents, families and communities
Enhance data usage in the system.
The next steps to be considered by the DE offer some hope - a department
analysis on existing resources; information from the consultations; any immediate actions that can be taken, and further deliberations involving the stakeholders.
I commend Minister Foley for requesting this independent review. We now need action on the recommendations, namely to address the resourcing of all schools to address educational disadvantage and for our schools to be properly funded.
Louise.Tobin@ippn.ie
Practical Tips at start of school year: From the IPPN Positivity For Principals Sub-Committee
P Complete your PIEW framework with your staff
P Do up your weekly personal wellbeing goals and stick to them
P Make wellbeing goals DOABLE
P Set good habits for Self-Care early in the year
P Leave at a reasonable time - school will be there in the morning
P Agree Whole-School Initiatives per month/term
P Use your Termly Staff Meeting to remind ALL on important issues like punctuality, supervision and InHouse Health & Safety procedures
P Eat Your Lunch
P Arrange Staff TreatsBig Breakfast/Cakes/Healthy Shots
P Visit classes regularly
P Focus on relationships over Admin
P Say Well Done and Thank You often
What is BOUNDARY?
TheMindsJournal
Be aware Of what is Unacceptable and Normalise saying no. Do what is best for you And know that it’s not your Responsibility to sacrifice Yourself for others.
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Empowering Education in Rural Ireland: DCU Changemaker School Barnacogue NS
LORRAINE BULLARD PRINCIPAL OF BARNACOGUE NS (SN SHÉAMAIS)
I am the proud principal of Barnacogue NS, a DCU Changemaker School since 2021. Nestled between the rolling hills of Swinford, Co. Mayo and Ireland West Airport, our small rural DEIS school serves twenty-three children, with two teachers.
At first glance, it might seem that a school located three hours from Dublin would be far removed from the vibrancy and innovation of the capital, and in particular from the pioneering practices of the DCU Institute of Education. It might be easy to assume that a small rural school like ours might sometimes feel isolated, a sentiment shared by many rural schools across Ireland today.
However, that could not be further from the truth. We are one of the twenty-eight DCU Changemaker Schools in Ireland, which are ‘university’ schools, working as a professional learning network to enhance the pedagogy and practice of the schools involved, and in turn influence the education of pre-service teachers and engage in research. This Network connects schools to cutting-edge practices and pedagogical innovation, supports schools in developing the 21st century skills of both the staff and children and develops children’s voice and citizenship capacities.
Crucially, the Network facilitates schools like mine to meet schools all over the country, who believe, like I do, that education has the power and potential to transform lives and societies. We receive support through online forums, in-school visits and invitations to conferences and symposia on the DCU Institute of Education campus. This collaborative environment has enabled us to both share our innovative practices and learn from the experiences of other schools in the Network. This engagement has enhanced our teaching in relation to equality, justice, children’s participation and digital technologies. Simultaneously,
we have been able to contribute our own practices in outdoor education, STEM and project-based learning.
‘All children can be Changemakers’ Central to the DCU Changemaker Schools Network is a simple yet powerful idea –that all children can be ‘changemakers’. A changemaker is an active citizen or someone with the skills and confidence to lead change in their home, school and community. At Barnacogue NS, we cultivate this sense of active citizenship through various initiatives, including: Native Tree Planting - to benefit biodiversity
Genius Hour - children are given the autonomy to choose something they are passionate about and a set timeframe to produce a piece of work. There is one rule - that their finished piece must change the world for someone in some small way Local Partnerships and projects with other schools - to share our skills in digital technologies and chess Fundraising initiatives for various charities
Global Projects such as the Blue Star Programme and Green Schools Programme
Entrepreneurship projects such as our Christmas Craft Fair - students are responsible for decisions made, sourcing materials, costings etc. Digital Citizenship - developed through modelling and classroom experiences in which the students engage daily.
Unified by a shared vision, empathy and initiative
DCU Changemaker Schools are unified by a shared vision, empathy and initiative. We believe that education can foster and develop leaders of the future, leaders who will drive change with compassion, creativity and empathy. Real transformative change arises from the collective efforts of many, and
equipping children with the skills and confidence to lead that change is at the heart of the DCU Changemaker Schools Network.
To find out more about the DCU Changemaker Schools Network please visit: https://www.dcu.ie/dcuchangemaker-schools-network
If you would like to get in touch with Lorraine in relation to this article, you can email her at principal1@barnacoguens.ie
Pupils are encouraged to explore their creativity through both the natural environment and 21st Century learning skills.
One school’s approach to developing sustainable leadership: A journey through Forbairt
DR. ALAN SHEEHAN PRINCIPAL, DOUGLAS ROCHESTOWN EDUCATE TOGETHER NS
Most school leaders are aware of IPPN’s Roadmap to Sustainable Leadership. Whilst we can look to the Department of Education to create a more sustainable role, or to IPPN to advocate for changes, our school also believes that we have a responsibility to review and develop our own practices.
We decided to participate in the Oide Forbairt programme in 2023-24. As part of the programme, schools complete a Leadership Development Project. Our school investigated the Looking at our Schools’ Quality Framework and chose the Developing Leadership Capacity domain, in particular the standard: ‘develop their understanding of effective and sustainable leadership’.
We examined three interconnected areas:
We focused on one sustainable support for each of these cogs. Forbairt introduced us to four leadership strategies – Coaching, Dialogue, Modelling and Monitoring – that we used in our project.
1. Sustainable Principalship – Principal Support Group: Coaching and Dialogue
My IPPN Principal Support Group used the dialogue strategy to discuss issues and coaching to ask supportive questions. By using coaching techniques, we developed a greater understanding of the issues, and each principal developed
a solution for their context. We always shared good practice, as a key to sustainable leadership is an openness to new ideas.
2. Sustainable Distributed Leadership – In School Leadership and Management Team (LMT): Coaching, Dialogue and Monitoring
There are nine members of our LMT. I met with each post-holder and used coaching to support them in identifying a priority area. We then created committees led by each post-holder, with a budget to achieve their priority. The post-holders benefitted from working with a number of teachers. These teachers also developed their leadership capacity by participating in these time-bound projects. Our LMT used dialogue to collaboratively identify whole-school priorities. There has been significant cooperation this year as a number of post-holders worked together through the School Self Evaluation Process. We also invited teachers to join our LMT meetings in order to develop their leadership capacity. We conducted pre- and post- meeting surveys to monitor their understanding of the role of the LMT.
3. Sustainable Curricular Change – Lesson Study: Modelling and Monitoring
Lesson Study is a Japanese model of teacher-led research in which a triad of teachers work together to target an area for development in their pupils’ learning. Our Fourth Class Team trialled Lesson Study as a sustainable method for improving learning and teaching with a specific focus on Maths Talk. This is based on the leadership strategy of modelling. We collaboratively planned, taught and reflected upon our lessons. We also engaged pupils in the reflection process by monitoring their participation through the use of questionnaires. As a team, we felt that Lesson Study was an excellent method for improving learning and
teaching. It did not feel like a traditional lesson observation; the collaborative approach successfully placed the focus on improving learning and teaching without it feeling judgemental.
Next Steps
Our project has led us to develop an emerging model of Sustainable Leadership:
For the coming school year, we plan on doing the following:
I. Principal and Deputy Principal Support Group. I would strongly recommend that everyone become involved in an IPPN Support Group. We are also investigating establishing local support networks of API/APIIs
II. In-School LMT: After recognising the organic cooperative practices that developed this year, we are investigating the establishment of a pooled model of leadership whereby duties are collaboratively held among two post-holders. We plan to research the outcome of this initiative to see if it is a viable and effective model of school leadership
III. Lesson Study: We feel that this is an ideal way to sustainably enact the new Maths Curriculum, with our school’s focus on Maths Talk and Playfulness.
If you would like to get in touch with Alan in relation to this article, you can get in touch with him at principal@dretns.ie.
Principal Support Group
Sustainable Leadership Lesson Study
In-School Leadership & Management Team
Sustainable Curricular change - impact on learners
SUSTAINABLE LEADERSHIP PROJECT
OnYourBehalf
GERALDINE D’ARCY IPPN ADVOCACY & COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER
Listed below are some of the projects and advocacy-related engagements that were progressed since the last issue of Leadership+
IPPN met with DE officials in March, April and May to progress proposals relating to recommendations from the Sustainable Leadership Report, namely: Role Clarity / Leadership effectiveness Time to Lead
Enhancing current governance practice
Determining what governance structure would best meet the needs of schools into the future.
This also formed the basis of our Budget 2025 submission. IPPN has also had a number of bilateral meetings with stakeholders to align agendas and to build a coalition of support for our proposals.
Progress to date
IPPN has developed a tool to facilitate schools to reflect on their leadership practice, with reference to the domains and standards of the quality framework for leadership and management developed three costed models for the increased allocation of leadership time to primary schools
written to the Chair of the Primary Education Forum requesting that a working group be established to focus on what governance structure would best meet the needs of schools into the future.
Oide has signalled that greater access to team coaching will be afforded to schools.
The Minister sanctioned a second phase of the Small Schools Action Research project to run until 2026. An increased number of clusters in the research project are exploring the Administrative Officer role.
A comprehensive progress report on the project will be published later this year.
IPPN DEIS Focus Group
The DE DEIS Advisory Group is made up of representatives from the education partners, relevant Government Departments, the Educational Research Centre, Tusla and DES Officials. Louise Tobin is the IPPN representative. The aim of the group is to progress and provide advice on the implementation of the 108 actions in DEIS Plan 2017.
An IPPN DEIS Focus Group was formed in March 2024. Its aim is to discuss progress being made in DEIS schools as per the
actions in the DEIS Plan and the Terms of Reference, to ensure representation of the thinking of primary school leaders on issues regarding adequate resourcing of schools for pupils living in areas of disadvantage.
This information will be used to inform the IPPN rep on the DE DEIS Advisory group, currently Louise Tobin.
The members of the IPPN DEIS Focus Group are:
Louise Tobin, IPPN President/member of DE DEIS Advisory Group, Principal St. Joseph’s Primary, Tipperary Town, DEIS Band 1
Chairperson: Selina Carmody, Wexford Educate Together NS & IPPN Board Member
Secretary: Conor McCarthy, Principal Tallaght CNS, Jobstown, Co. Dublin, DEIS Band 1, IPPN Member
Niamh Murray, Principal Rutland NS, DEIS Band 1, IPPN Member
Maria White, Principal Scoil Oilbheir, Bettystown, IPPN National Council Member Meath
Regina Halpin, Principal Divine Mercy Balgaddy SNS, DEIS Band 1, IPPN National Council Member, IPPN Rep on Barnardos Committee
David O’Callaghan, Principal St. Brigid’s & St. Patrick’s NS, Drogheda, National Council Member Louth.
POSITION PAPERS, SUBMISSIONS AND PRESENTATIONS
IPPN made the following submissions over the past months:
Submission to the DE, Department of Finance and Department of Public Expenditure & ReformPre-Budget Submission for 2025 - June 2024
Submission to the Department in relation to Phase 1 of the Small Schools
Clustering Project
Submission to the NCCA on Draft Curriculum Specifications
Submission to Oide on its Strategic Plan
See www.ippn.ie – Advocacy/ Submissions for all submission documents.
IPPN representatives made presentations on the following To the International Confederation of Principals on ‘Moving the dial on
effective, sustainable leadership’ Misneach and Forbairt cohorts on school leadership
Tánaiste Cohort 6, Kildare EC
Final year Lecture NUI Maynooth.
IPPN Budget 2025 Submission
The focus of IPPN’s budget submission is on the sustainability of school leadership and those elements of funding that will have the greatest impact on primary schools and school leaders’ capacity to fully discharge their leadership and management accountabilities. Thus, IPPN presented four key priorities for Budget 2025:
1. Making leadership ‘doable’, through role clarity, increased time and capacity for leadership and enhanced governance structures
2. Resourcing Special Education Needs provision
3. Supporting DEIS schools through the implementation of a DEIS+ band at primary school level
4. Increasing grant funding.
Details of the proposals pertaining to these priorities are in the submission document, on ippn.ie under Advocacy / Submissions.
Wellbeing Position Paper
In early 2023, following a process of consultation, the Advocacy & Communications committee of the IPPN National Council identified Wellbeing of School Leaders as one of its top two priorities and areas of focus. The other priority – Special Educational Needs Resourcing, Allocations and Appeals –was progressed in 2023 with a position paper published in June 2023 and work is ongoing in this regard.
In late 2023, the committee decided to develop a research-informed position paper on school leader wellbeing; it was finalised in June 2024 and ratified by IPPN’s Board of Directors.
The position paper: takes account of the current reality in which leadership is practiced and its impact on the health and wellbeing of school leaders draws conclusions and makes practical recommendations to impact positively on school leader wellbeing endeavours to communicate a message of hope to school leaders about the importance of their wellbeing, and what they and others can do to promote and protect it. The paper concludes with a set of recommendations for school leaders, Boards of Management, IPPN and the Department. It has been shared and discussed with key stakeholders and IPPN continues to progress the proposals and recommendations with the relevant parties.
MEETINGS/EVENTS
From May to September, IPPN participated in meetings/events relating to the following: ESCI & IPPN regarding the establishment and facilitation of local support groups
Oide Leadership Group Mentor Training
CPSMA Conference Dinner
NCCA Consultative Conference
DEIS Focus Group Meeting – see above Launch of Ireland’s Literacy, Numeracy and Digital Literacy Strategy 2024-2033
ESHA Board Meeting
TRES -Traveller & Roma Education
Strategy Advisory Group
Small Schools Action Research Project
Shared Learning Day
SNA Workforce Development Group, looking at bus escort duties and the role of the SNA
NCCA Bilateral Meeting
NCSE Policy Advice on Inclusive Education
ICP Europe Regional Meeting
Wellbeing For All GroupOmbudsman for Children, IPPN, NAPD, NPC and Teaching Council
NCCA Consultative Conference
NAHT Conference
BATOD/NCSE/FEAPDA ConferenceExploring the Diversity of deaf learners
50th Anniversary WESC
Global Citizenship Education
Symposium - panel contributor
Educate Together AGM, National Council member Dervla Nic Mhathúna, Cabra ETNS represented IPPN
ESB Science BLAST Expo UL
City Connects Launch with Minister Foley Strategic Development Goals National Stakeholder Forum
Women in Leadership and Learning School visits to
• 6 Portlaoise Schools
• Bunscoil na Cathrach, Cahir, Grange NS, Burncourt NS,
Cashel, BNS, Co. Tipperary
• 4 Tullamore Schools
• Tierneevin NS, Gort, Co. Galway
• Rutland NS, 3 Donabate schools, Co. Dublin.
STAY UPDATED
Follow IPPN on social mediaX (@ippn_education) and LinkedIn (@ippn)
IPPN 25th ANNIVERSARY
In 2025, IPPN will mark its 25th anniversary since the official launch in February 2000. Over the course of the year, IPPN will
1. ‘learn from the past while we look to the future’
2. acknowledge and celebrate the first 25 years of IPPN’s work with our members
3. bring key people who have shaped IPPN together to reflect and to celebrate, while we can
4. showcase milestones and other achievements over the years
5. take the opportunity to promote key programmes to members
6. launch its Strategic Plan for the period 2026-2030.
The approach is to weave the celebrations and acknowledgements into the existing workplan.
Leading for School Effectiveness and School Improvement: A Strategic Approach
JACK DURKAN IPPN SUPPORTS & SERVICES MANAGER
As a school leader, your role is pivotal in shaping the culture, environment and educational outcomes of your institution. Excellence in education is not only about academic achievement but also about fostering an environment where students, teachers and staff thrive, learn and grow. So, how can you go about this? I propose the following nine steps:
1. Cultivate a Vision of Excellence
Start by establishing a clear and compelling vision for your school. This vision should articulate what excellence looks like, and serve as a guiding principle for all decisions and actions. Engage staff, students, board, parents and the wider community in formulating this vision, ensuring that everyone understands and is committed to achieving it. The vision should be aspirational yet attainable, emphasising academic rigour, character development and a supportive community. Strive for excellence, not perfection!
2. Empower Your Teachers and Support Staff
Teachers are the single greatest resource, alongside support staff, that any school has. Their effectiveness directly affects student outcomes. The greatest single opportunity you will ever have to bring about improvement in your school is a vacancy on your staff. Invest in professional development that aligns with the school’s vision of excellence. Encourage continuous learning by providing opportunities for teachers and support staff to attend workshops, pursue advanced degrees, and collaborate with peers. Create a culture of collaboration where teachers feel valued and supported. Regular feedback, coaching and recognition can motivate teachers to innovate and excel in their roles.
3. Focus on Student-Centred Learning Excellence in education revolves around the needs and interests of students. Foster a student-centred learning environment where instruction is personalised (AI), engaging and relevant.
Incorporate differentiated instruction to cater to diverse learning styles and abilities. Use data-driven approaches to identify areas where students need additional support or challenge, and implement interventions accordingly.
4. Create a Positive School Culture
A positive and inclusive school culture is essential for fostering excellence. Promote a culture of respect, responsibility and resilience among students and staff. Implement programmes that support socialemotional learning, helping students develop the skills they need to manage emotions, build relationships and make responsible decisions. Additionally, establish clear expectations for behaviour and a consistent, fair approach to discipline.
5. Engage Families and the Community
Strong partnerships with families and the broader community are crucial for achieving school excellence. Keep parents informed and involved in their children’s education through regular communication, parent-teacher conferences and school events. Build relationships with local businesses, organisations and higher education institutions to provide students with real-world learning experiences and resources.
6. Utilise Data to Drive Improvement
Data is a powerful tool for driving school improvement. Regularly collect and analyse data on student performance, attendance, behaviour and other key indicators (LAOS 2022). Use this data to identify trends, strengths and areas for improvement. Data-driven decisionmaking allows you to allocate resources effectively, target interventions where they are needed most, and track the impact of your initiatives.
7. Invest in Technology and Resources
In today’s digital age, technology plays a crucial role in enhancing education. Ensure that your school has the necessary technological infrastructure
and resources to support teaching and learning. Provide training for teachers to integrate technology effectively into their instruction.
8. Promote Innovation and Creativity
Excellence in education is not static; it requires continuous innovation and creativity. Encourage teachers and students to experiment with new ideas, methodologies and projects. Create a safe environment where mistakes are seen as learning opportunities rather than setbacks. Foster a mindset of curiosity and exploration, where everyone is encouraged to think critically and solve problems creatively. Celebrate innovative practices and share successful strategies across the school.
9. Evaluate and Reflect
Regular evaluation and reflection are essential for sustaining excellence. Establish a routine of assessing the effectiveness of your school’s programmes, policies and practices. Solicit feedback from students, staff and parents to gain insights into what is working and what needs improvement. Use this feedback to make informed decisions and adjust your strategies as needed. Reflection allows your school to continuously evolve and maintain its commitment to excellence.
Conclusion
Making your school excellent is an ongoing journey that requires strategic planning, strong leadership and a commitment to continuous improvement. By cultivating a vision of excellence, empowering your teachers and staff, focusing on student-centered learning and fostering a positive school culture, you can create an environment where every student has the opportunity to succeed.
Jack Durkan 2024 M.Ed School Effectiveness Research: Towards a Reconceptualisation of Theory and Methodology in School Effectiveness Studies
Jack.Durkan@ippn.ie
Children’s Experiences of Coercive Control:
The Kids’ Coercive Control Web
Empower Kids, hosted by Barnardos Childhood Domestic Violence and Abuse Project, is grateful for this opportunity to be able to raise awareness for the voice of the child living with domestic violence and abuse. Children and young people with lived experience continue to highlight schools and teachers as vital places of support, safety and buffering. See also Childhood Domestic Violence & Abuse – Not All Hurting is Physical, in Issue 129 of Leadership+ in October 2023.
What we know about Coercive Control US academic and researcher Professor Evan Stark coined the term ‘coercive control’ to describe a persistent pattern of controlling, coercive and threatening behaviour, including all or some forms of domestic abuse (emotional, physical, financial and sexual, including threats of abuse) by a partner or ex-partner.
We now know that coercive control is domestic abuse at its most dangerous, as its presence is a stronger indicator of a future homicide than the presence of physical violence alone. Coercive Control is a criminal offence in Ireland.
Children’s safety, emotional well-being and daily lives are significantly impacted when coercive control is present in a family, and these patterns of behaviour often continue even after parents separate.
...this new resource is important because it develops our understanding that children are impacted by coercive control in their own right, and provides professionals with a practical tool to give children and adults the language to begin talking about the subject.
Children’s Experiences of Coercive Control - The Kids’ Coercive Control Web
In November 2023, Empower Kids launched the Kids’ Coercive Control Web, which describes children’s experiences of coercive control using their own words.
Inspired by the Duluth Adult Model of Power and Control, this new resource is important because it develops our understanding that children are impacted by coercive control in their own right, and provides professionals with a practical tool to give children and adults the language to begin talking about the subject.
As one young person in the project said, ‘it’s like a dictionary of our (coercive control) experiences’
Key to this new resource are the words and images used by the children to describe how coercive control makes them feel, for example, Making us feel alone – like a puppet – (feels like) drowning – in chains – broken heart...
The Kids’ Coercive Control Web (see page opposite) is available in poster versions (A4 and A3).
Since its launch, the Kids’ Coercive Control Web has been highlighted by professionals, including schools and teachers, as a practical, usable and valuable tool in their work with children and families. It helps to educate and inform professionals about the impact of coercive control, giving visibility to a relational dynamic that is often ‘hidden in plain sight’ and providing the language to begin talking about it. This resource can be downloaded from Barnardos website.
Using the Kids’ Coercive Control Web
The children and young people who helped create the web have shared key messages for professionals about using the resource:
All schools to put up for teachers to see
Use it as a conversation starter with a child; invite them to pick a section that describes their experience
Take it section by section and go slowly; allow the child to go at their own pace and in their own way
Talk to children quietly, using a gentle voice.
SARAH RUSH AND ÁINE COSTELLO BARNARDOS CHILDHOOD DOMESTIC VIOLENCE & ABUSE PROJECT
For more information and guidance about supporting and responding to childhood domestic violence and abuse see the video Supporting children and young people living with domestic violence and abuse (a collaboration between NCCA and Barnardos CDVA produced in 2022).
And finally, a reminder that experiencing domestic violence and abuse is a child protection concern that needs to be discussed with your school’s designated liaison person (DLP). Services local to your area are also sources of support and help including the Gardaí, Tusla Child and Family Agency, specialised domestic abuse services and family resource centres.
To find out more about the Barnardos Childhood Domestic Violence and Abuse Project, visit Barnardos.ie.
If you would like to get in touch with Áine or Sarah in relation to this article, you can get in touch with them at aine.costello@barnardos.ie or sarah.rush@barnardos.ie
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The day the Ombudsman for Children visited our school!
GODA LAUKUTYTE AND CATHERINE IARMOLIUK
5th CLASS PUPILS OF ST JOSEPH’S PRIMARY SCHOOL, TIPPERARY TOWN
We, the pupils of 5th class in St. Joseph’s Primary, Tipperary Town were delighted to hear the news that our amazing principal Ms. Tobin had invited the Ombudsman for Children, Dr. Niall Muldoon, to our school on the 6th of March. We were very excited about this and we eagerly started our preparations for his visit.
Our class researched the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. We showcased our learning by designing posters for the different rights we felt were important. We learned about the things all children should be able to do and things you should have so that you can have the best childhood possible and grow up to be the best person you can be.
...we children have the right to be happy, the right to have joy in our lives and the right to have a safe place to learn and play.
We prepared a very special assembly for Dr. Muldoon. We included songs, dance and positive affirmations. Every class learned the song ‘We’ve All Got Rights’ , which reminds us of how important it is to be listened to and to remember that we are all VIPs (Very Important People). As the song says, we children have the right to be happy, the right to have joy in our lives and the right to have a safe place to learn and play. We were very proud of our performance on the day.
St Joseph’s NS 5th class pupils and teacher
Ms Kate Ryan
Here in St. Joseph’s, we have a whole school approach to making sure that our school is a happy, positive and kind place. We are very proud to have 24 different nationalities in our school. The Growth Mindset Initiative has taught us so much about positivity, good friendships, gratitude and kindness. We have a monthly school assembly, led by pupils, to celebrate and recognise all the hard work of everyone in our amazing school. We have learned about the importance of a can-do attitude, that it is ok to make mistakes and that we can learn from them. Dr. Muldoon really enjoyed our assembly and said we should share our can-do attitude and our positivity with other schools.
On the day of the visit, Dr Muldoon told us that ‘having a say and being listened to’ was one of our rights that he felt strongly about. In St. Josephs, we get lots of opportunities to express ourselves on different school committees. We have a Student Council, the Active School Committee and the Green Schools Committee. We regularly meet and have the chance to give our point of view and plan events for all the students. Recently, our Student Council organised a crazy hair day and art activities. We love to organise these events for everyone to look forward to.
After the assembly, we welcomed Dr. Muldoon to our classroom for a talk. He told us more about his role as Ombudsman for Children in promoting the rights of young people. Dr. Muldoon asked us for our opinion on which rights we felt were most important and why. Our favourite rights for all children are:
You have the right to give your opinion, and for adults to listen and take it seriously
You have the right to the best health care possible, safe water to drink, nutritious food, a clean and safe environment, and information to help you stay well
You have the right to a good quality education. You should be encouraged to go to school to the highest level you can Your education should help you use and develop your talents and abilities. It should also help you learn to live peacefully, protect the environment and respect other people
You have the right to play and rest.
We were very grateful for this opportunity to meet and speak with Dr. Muldoon. We learned so much from our preparation for his visit and from him talking to us about children’s rights.
‘After this great day and the wonderful levels of pupil engagement, I saw an opportunity to include Student Voice in our Leadership+ magazine. I hope you enjoy this new feature. Please contact me if your students have a story to tell.’ Louise Tobin, Principal of St Joseph’s, seconded to IPPN to take on the role of IPPN President
You can contact Louise, Goda and Catherine by email at louise.tobin@ippn.ie
“I know another way Miss”
Understanding the complexity of our gifted and talented children
DR. FIDELMA HEALY-EAMES PHD, MSC., BED., CONSULTANT AT STUDYANDCAREERS.IE
Why invest in our gifted and talented children? ‘Sure, aren’t they fine, it’s the others I worry about,’ I hear you say. Not so. Worldwide they are an ‘at risk’ group, at risk of mental health issues including depression, substance abuse, and adolescent suicide (Katz, 2013). That is, unless they’re understood. To be truly understood, their gift needs to be identified and nurtured. Our world needs them. They become our insightful musicians, medics, scientists, researchers, writers, leaders, athletes and more. They make our world a better place. The chilling news is that these gifted children are in each of our classrooms, comprising the top 10% of our learners. Do you see them?
What is giftedness?
The Columbus group (1991) defined giftedness as:
‘asynchronous (uneven) development where advanced cognitive abilities and heightened intensity combine to create inner experiences that are different from the norm’.
Teachers understand advanced abilities. However, having studied nineteen gifted learners, and listened to their teachers and parents, I found their inner sensitivities are less well understood, because giftedness involves emotional complexity.
Neither are they all on an upward trajectory. Underachieving gifted learners may have been lost along the way, feeling no one understands them. Our twiceexceptional (2e) learners, children with a gift and a disability, frequently attend SEN but for their difficulties only, their gift often remaining unseen.
Annemarie Roeper (2016) designed the AMR method of qualitative assessment (QA) to arrive at a picture of a gifted child (ages 3-6). Her interesting work revealed that young children’s language usage of the words ‘approximately’ or
Our world needs them. They become our insightful musicians, medics, scientists, researchers, writers, leaders, athletes and more. They make our world a better place. The chilling news is that these gifted children are in each of our classrooms, comprising the top 10% of our learners. Do you see them?
‘precisely’ was an early indication of giftedness. There is much to learn. Our gifted children are complex. Their gifts can manifest differently and in one domain only. They see the world differently. They are different.
How can we help them?
This was the focus of my research for my book ‘The Gifted Learner: How to Help’. Chapters are dedicated to their many strengths (e.g., curiosity; problem-solving; cognitive flexibility) and sensitivities (e.g., perfectionism; stress; boredom). Learners, teachers and parents’ voices are shared along with a ‘how to help’ section in each chapter, particularly useful for primary schools.
Some useful pointers
1. Recognise them. Identify their gifts through your observation, listening, frameworks, checklists, their scores. The gifted learner framework (GLF) in my book is useful in this regard (p.12).
2. Give them outlets. Find their interests; there could be a passion that they’re not yet exposed to. This is useful for all children. Set up occasional talent trails – activity stations (cross-curricular) for their exploration. Notice what they’re
drawn to. Watch RTÉ Nationwide programme on opportunities for gifted students.
3. Challenge them in class. The kick they get from harder and novel work is enormous. It fulfils them. Don’t give them more of the same, it breaks their spirit. Differentiate using Blooms’ taxonomy or Hattie’s (2017) ‘surface, deep, transfer’ approach.
4. Give them choice. One child spoke about enjoying a choice of harder or easier work once her classwork was completed. Offer them self-directed options e.g., where they can work on a project of their own choosing.
5. They crave understanding. Include them, they can feel left out. They need social and emotional supports. Reassure them; anchor them with a quiet word. Prone to stress, over-thinking and self-criticism, a notebook is useful for their thoughts. Listen; provide feedback. No one said it was easy!
6. Sensory issues: Be aware of potential environmental sensitivities (e.g. sounds).
7. Facilitate Idea-mates not just agemates. Give them opportunities to meet with like-minded peers across the school. They love this.
8. Gifted learners can be demanding. Be kind to yourself and your staff. Avail of CPD to make life easier for everyone.
9. Exciting news. Where gifted and talented programmes have been implemented, they have been shown to lift all boats for all learners.
This is just a start. I’m honoured to address you at your forthcoming IPPN principals’ conference.
You can contact Fidelma via social media at X: educate_talent Instagram: fidelma_studyandcareers LinkedIn: Dr. Fidelma Healy Facebook: Fidelma Healy Eames
Being Designated DEIS - What does it actually mean?
PRINCIPAL OF CLASHMORE NS, YOUGHAL, CO. CORK
In March of 2023, our small country school was designated as DEIS Rural. DEIS Rural is the lowest band of DEIS, with DEIS band 1 and 2 being the highest. Most notably, DEIS status is not something you can apply for, rather it is granted by the Department of Education based on set criteria.
So, What Does it Mean?
Essentially DEIS means that there is a cohort of students at risk of educational disadvantage in your school setting. To say that we were surprised to be designated as a DEIS school is an understatement and it has been a learning journey for us.
Thankfully, there is a range of supports that DEIS schools have access to. For us, supports began with two DEIS training seminars for the Principal/ Deputy Principal. Following this, we had PDST (now Oide) in-school support for the In-School Management Team and the staff as a whole. As a starting point, we as a staff had to identify the ‘at risk’ pupils in the school.
The DEIS Plan
Next, work began on our DEIS Plan. This plan serves as our School Self-Evaluation Plan and School Improvement Plan all in one, thus cutting down on paperwork. The DEIS Plan focuses on the following targeted areas for a 3-year period, namely:
Attendance
Literacy
Numeracy
Partnerships with Parents & Others
Progression & Transitions
Retention.
Within each area, a review must be completed which documents current good practices as well as establishing
baseline data for areas in need of improvement. Establishing the baseline data proved very insightful for us as a school as very interesting and unexpected data emerged. In terms of our attendance, there was a huge percentage of our children leaving school early.
Once this piece of work was completed, a maximum of two SMART targets were set for each area with accompanying administrative actions for the lead teacher in that area and actions for class teachers themselves. The themes of Wellbeing and CPD are weaved throughout the document itself.
The Inspectorate also offers an Advisory Visit to DEIS Schools to support and guide schools on their DEIS journey. We did avail of this visit and found the Inspector to be extremely supportive and helpful in this respect, particularly regarding our DEIS Plan.
The school is also in receipt of a DEIS Grant which is used to resource the endeavours in the DEIS Plan.
For me personally, the DEIS plan is one of the best plans we have created in the school. It is a very focused plan specific to our school. It is on the agenda for each In-School Leadership and Management Meeting as well as each staff meeting to monitor progress, followed by an annual review. Thankfully, after one year of the plan in motion, we are seeing the fruits of our labour.
The Hot Meals Programme
In addition to this, we now have access to the Hot School Meals programme. This programme is funded by The Department
of Social Protection, and each year we must make an application for funding.
As a Principal, I found the Schools Procurement Unit extremely helpful in relation to guiding me through setting up the e-tendering process to source a suitable food supplier for the hot school meals. As well as guiding me through the process, the SPU provided all of the necessary templates and contracts.
While it was a challenge to find a suitable space to house the hot meals in a small school, we did get there in the end.
A couple of interesting facts to note about the hot school meals: All that is required in the space that houses the hot school meals is a hand-wash basin and enough space for the fridge/cooker door to open out
Meals are dropped on site very early each morning
They are placed in a refrigeration unit that also serves as the cooker
The meals come pre-cooked and are reheated on site
All packaging is de-compostable and is disposed of in a decompostable bin provided by our food supplier
The food supplier has hired a hot food operative who distributes the food and collects the decompostable bags for the bin from each room.
Our DEIS journey has been an interesting one, with lots of work done and much more to do.
If you would like to contact Yvonne in relation to this article, you can email her at clashmorens2018@gmail.com
YVONNE NÍ FHLAITHIMHÍN
Trauma Informed Practice in Schools
DEIRDRE MCHUGH ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, NEPS
What is Trauma?
Trauma is the emotional, psychological and physiological impact of the heightened levels of stress that accompanies the experiences of a traumatic event that is perceived by students as extremely frightening, harmful or threatening. Trauma can be influenced by a number of factors, such as actual or perceived coping skills, a person’s efficacy at the time, pre-existing vulnerabilities, genetics, community, cultural, and societal factors. While there are many types of traumatic events, not all people who experience a traumatic event, or events, are traumatised by them. Also, no two people, will experience a traumatic event in the same way and therefore not everyone will be ‘traumatised’ by the same event.
Prolonged exposure to stress can negatively impact on health, wellbeing, behaviour and learning. Exposure to extremely stressful situations and ongoing stress, for example, in their family, or fleeing war can result in trauma for some children. Children can experience stress for a number of reasons, other than trauma, but a trauma informed approach will support these children too.
What is the Impact of Trauma on Learning?
Trauma can arise from one-off incidents or a series of experiences that are chronic or even generational, such as abuse, neglect, bullying, violence, loss, poverty, racism or discrimination. The more persistent the trauma and the more pervasive other risk factors in the student’s life (poverty, homelessness, neglect), the greater the impact of the trauma on development.
Traumatised students have an impaired stress response system which reduces their ability to tolerate everyday stressors. It affects the brain’s ability to process information and manage emotions, leading to difficulties with concentration, memory and behaviour. In school, students might display heightened levels of anxiety, aggression, withdrawal or other challenging behaviours.
Responding to students who have experienced Trauma at School
Hobfoll et al. (2007) identified five principles of psychosocial care which build resilience and promote recovery. These include promoting a sense of safety, calm, self and collective efficacy, connectedness, and hope See Figure 1 above.
Hobfalls Principles
Safety: Promote a sense of safety through practices such as establishing predictable routines, clear boundaries and a nurturing atmosphere at school.
Connectedness: Promote connectedness by promoting inclusivity and respect for diversity, through peer-tutoring and mentorship programmes, regular communication with parents/guardians.
Calm: Promote calm by maintaining consistent schedules and routines and develop skills to self-regulate by incorporating mindfulness, relaxation and breathing exercises into daily routine and providing access to calming and regulating spaces.
Self and Community Efficacy: Promote through participation in student councils, feedback surveys or school projects and access to skill building programmes to help build
Promoting Resilience & Recovery
Feeling I belong SELF & COMMUNITY EFFICACY
Feeling I/we can manage SAFETY
1: Hobfall’s principles
coping and problem-solving skills. Hope: Promote hope through practices such as celebrating student successes and progress, teaching the skills required to develop hope (helpful thinking styles, coping strategies, regulation skills, growth mindset), sharing stories of individuals who have overcome adversity.
Creating whole school and classroom environments that are Trauma Informed
Trauma-informed practice involves ensuring students have a strong sense of safety, calm, connectedness, hope and efficacy through whole school, multi-component approaches. This involves approaches to reduce stress, building positive relationships, adjusting the environment and teach skills to help students cope. NEPS have developed an eLearning training course to support schools introduce trauma informed practice at whole school and classroom level.
The course Introducing a Trauma Informed Approach - The Stress Factor, Getting the Balance Right, is on demand, self-paced and can be completed in 2-212 hours. It comprises of video presentations, downloadable reflection activities and information handouts. Register on (www.gov.ie) or through your local education centre or NEPS office.
This article was written on behalf of the NEPS wellbeing working group, which includes Orla Dunne, Adele McConkey and Caroline Cleary. If you would like to get in touch with the team in relation to this article, you can email neps@education.gov.ie
FIGURE
Waterford’s Gen Free Charter: Year 1
DR BRIAN BARRON PRINCIPAL, PORTLAW NS, CO. WATERFORD
In August 2023, primary schools in Waterford launched the Gen Free Charter. It was a first step in helping parents say no to social media and smartphones for their children. Each school used the same letter to parents, the same physical charter or contract for parents to sign and display at home, but each school engaged with the process in their own contextspecific way.
Not the school’s job
As experienced teachers and principals, we understood that the school was only one small part of the equation when it came to the issue of smartphones and social media. That’s why each school worked with their Parents’ Association and reflected the need of their own reality. The Gen Free Charter was not a school rule or school-enforced initiative, it was your local school creating the space for parents to have this conversation and together build some tools that would help parents make informed decisions for their children.
The most advertised work in this area is by Jonathan Haidt in his book The Anxious Generation. He is clear that children under fourteen should not have their own smartphone, and under sixteens should not be on social media.
Parent peer pressure
As anyone working in education knows, technology has had a massive impact on the children we serve. Increasingly, we found that more and more parents were buying their child a phone and allowing them on social media because of the pressure they felt from other parents to follow the trend. Parents are worried their child will be excluded or left out if they are not on social media. Charters like ours empower people to form groups with like-minded parents and to garner strength in numbers.
The evidence
Schools have known for a long time that excessive screen time negatively affects children and that social media is a dangerous place for young people. This is backed up in study after study. A recent paper from Holland showed how secondary schools which banned phones outright performed better than those that allowed students to access their phone throughout the day. The
conclusion was that, when a person knows their phone is accessible, or will be soon, they are distracted by it. The most advertised work in this area is by Jonathan Haidt in his book The Anxious Generation. He is clear that children under fourteen should not have their own smartphone, and under sixteens should not be on social media.
Other grassroots movements
Since Gen Free was launched in August 2023, we have been contacted by many parents around the country who want to establish their own version in their communities. We happily share all our material and are delighted to give any insights we might have from our own experience. What is clear is that parental demand for action is growing.
Next Steps
Launching a smartphone-free childhood initiative is the easy part, sustaining it is difficult. In recent conversations with similar groups in London and Scotland, they each have a person working full time to coordinate their efforts. For us, the next step has to be legislation. We hope to move into a national movement to lobby our politicians and policy-makers to put protections in law for our young people. A common refrain is that ‘the horse has bolted’ or the Irish government will not stand up to big tech. We think that’s not good enough, and we have to make them.
If you would like to contact Brian in relation to this article, you can contact him at brianobarron@gmail.com or on X @brianwaterford
Sustainable Leadership Project Update
BRIAN O’DOHERTY IPPN DEPUTY CEO
As I exit the role of Sustainable Leadership Project Coordinator to take up the role of Deputy CEO of the organisation, I wanted to take the opportunity of reaffirming IPPN’s and, indeed, my own ongoing commitment to the project. It is one of our strategic priorities and central to the mission of IPPN. While we intend to publish a further progress report this November, which will include the most up-to-date data and developments, I thought it might be useful, at this transitional phase, to bring you up to speed.
In keeping with our core purpose of enhancing leadership capacity, effectiveness and sustainability, a key focus for IPPN’s advocacy work has been to seek progress on the implementation of the recommendations contained in the original Sustainable Leadership report. IPPN published its progress report on the project in November 2023, in order to reaffirm the rationale underpinning the project, to highlight what actions had been undertaken and what progress has been made since the publication of the original report, and to provide an up-to-date evidence base that demonstrated an ongoing need for urgent action.
At the IPPN/NAPD symposium on education and leadership in January 2024, the DE acknowledged that it accepted the data and analysis with regard to the unsustainability of school leadership roles and that the focus now needed to move to actions and solutions. To that end, IPPN developed discussion documents with specific proposals as follows:
Role clarity / leadership effectiveness
Recognise the use of the Quality Framework as a basis for establishing a shared understanding of the practice of effective leadership in primary schools among practitioners and stakeholders.
Discrete time for leadership / capacity to share leadership
Sanction an increased allocation of discrete leadership time to all primary schools in accordance with the size of the school and in keeping with the model used in post-primary schools
Remove the impediments to schools being able to avail of team coaching for their leadership and management teams.
Enhancing governance practice
Sanction a second phase or iteration of the small schools’ project to run until June 2026
Agree a role specification for an Administrative/Compliance Officer, designed to support school leadership and enhance governance
Allow each cluster participating in the second phase of the research project the opportunity to avail of the support of an Administrative/ Compliance Officer
Identify a cohort of schools willing to participate in a cluster with access to shared professional services on a pilot basis
Ensure the cohort of schools identified includes schools of varying size, context, etc., so that it is a representative sample.
Determining
what governance structure would best meet the needs of schools into the future
Establish a working group of the Primary Education Forum whose focus is on school governance
Task the working group with facilitating collaborative engagement with a view to the development of discussion papers for the consideration of the wider membership of the Forum
Request progress reports from the working group at each meeting of the Forum
Set a target date of June 2026 for the finalisation of proposals for governance reform.
IPPN met with DE officials in March, April and May to progress these proposals, which also formed the basis of our Budget 2025 submission. A further meeting with senior DE officials is due to take place in late September.
IPPN has also had a number of bilateral meetings with stakeholders to align agendas and to build a coalition of support for our proposals.
Progress to date
A tool has been developed by IPPN to allow schools to reflect on their leadership practice with reference to the domains and standards of the quality framework for leadership and management
IPPN has developed three costed models for the increased allocation of leadership time to primary schools
Oide has signalled that greater access to team coaching will be afforded to schools
The Minister sanctioned a second phase of the Small Schools Action Research project to run until 2026
An increased number of clusters are exploring the Administrative Officer role
IPPN has written to the Chair of the Primary Education Forum requesting that a working group be established to focus on what governance structure would best meet the needs of schools into the future.
In terms of our ongoing advocacy on Sustainable Leadership, we have been told that we ‘don’t need to keep hammering the nail’. However, until substantive and meaningful progress have been achieved in terms of enhancing the experience of the practice of leadership, IPPN will continue hammering!
Brian.ODoherty@ippn.ie
Global Citizenship in Primary Schools A Global Village Update
CLAIRE GLAVEY EDUCATION OFFICER, GLOBAL VILLAGE
The October 2023 Leadership+ article by Carol Burke-Heneghan and Damian White shared key activities from the 2022/23 Global Village pilot programme. Global Village is the strategic partnership for Global Citizenship Education (GCE) in primary schools in Ireland, between Irish Aid at the Department of Foreign Affairs and a consortium of four partners: IPPN, Dublin City University (DCU), Irish National Teachers’ Organisation (INTO) and Trócaire.
Global Village is now in its full programme phase, as demonstrated by the expansion of professional development supports offered to primary school leaders and teachers in 2023/24. Classroom resources using picture books as a stimulus to explore global themes were made available online. A series of webinars and tailored in-person workshops for staff were offered to schools on the island of Ireland. Webinar and workshop topics included: GCE across the Curriculum; Whole School Approaches to GCE; Taking Action on Global Themes; and GCE and Outdoor Learning. Our supports for school leaders and teachers are always curriculumlinked and, within the context of the new Primary Curriculum Framework, are particularly relevant to the key competencies of ‘being an active citizen’ and ‘being an active learner’.
Further opportunities for primary educators to engage with GCE included the Global Village School Leadership Symposium. Held in May at Iveagh House, Dublin, it gave school leaders space to reflect upon and discuss the role of leadership in embedding GCE across whole school communities. Louise Tobin represented IPPN in a panel discussion on opportunities for GCE in school culture and practice, along with representatives from the National Council for Curriculum
Global Village is the strategic partnership for Global Citizenship Education (GCE) in primary schools in Ireland, between Irish Aid at the Department of Foreign Affairs and a consortium of four partners: IPPN, Dublin City University (DCU), Irish National Teachers’ Organisation (INTO) and Trócaire.
and Assessment (NCCA), INTO, Trócaire and the Development and Intercultural Education (DICE) Project. Dr. Maria Barry presented research findings from a National Survey of Irish Primary Teachers and Global Citizenship Education carried out by DCU on behalf of Global Village. 50% of the participants in this survey held a leadership post.
In May, the Global Village Teach Meet at Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, focused on the theme of ‘Local and Global Voices for Social Justice’. Participatory workshops supported primary school teachers to engage in critical reflection and discussion on opportunities and challenges when teaching GCE at primary level. Presentations and a resource fair featuring initial teacher educators, student teachers and nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) provided further practical information, ideas and encouragement for exploring GCE in primary classrooms.
A collaboration with Laois Forest School proved very popular, with a first
GCE and Outdoor Education event oversubscribed, and a second date organised to meet demand. Primary teachers visited Laois Forest School in June, engaging with critical global justice issues including the climate crisis and biodiversity loss; participating in experiential and play-based activities suitable for outdoor spaces of all sizes. The cost of substitute cover was made available to schools to facilitate teacher participation in the Outdoor Education events, the Teach Meet and the School Leadership Symposium.
The year concluded with the accredited Global Village Summer Course taking place for the second year. Teachers spent a week on DCU All Hallows Campus in July, developing their knowledge and skills on how to integrate GCE across the Curriculum.
This school year, Global Village is once again offering school staff workshops; GCE teaching resources; a Teach Meet; a School Leadership Symposium; outdoor events and a summer course. We are also working towards offering workshops as Gaeilge from early 2025. We continue to work closely with IPPN to learn more about school leaders’ needs and interests, and to further develop whole school GCE support strategies for leaders and school communities.
For more information and to access free GCE teaching resources and research, visit www.globalvillageschools.ie. To sign up for the Global Village mailing list, for event and resource updates, email info@ globalvillageschools.ie
If you would like to get in touch with Claire about this article, you can email her at claire.glavey@globalvillageschools.ie
And Finally…
Great teamwork is the only way we create the breakthrough that define our careers.
Pat Riley
Never say anything about yourself that you don’t want to come true.
Brian Tracy, American Author QUOTATION
The Ultimate Classroom Upgrade: 16x iPad Class Sets for Engaged Learning
16x iPad Class Set
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