SACPPA CONFERENCE
Usually the SA Catholic Primary Principal’s Association holds an annual conference. Last year the conference was cancelled, like so many events.
This year the theme of the conference was, “Outstanding Leadership for Excellent Schools.”
As leaders in Catholic Schools in South Australia we have been challenged to work together in a systematic way to ensure each and every one of our schools excels. We are all striving to provide an education which develops a generation of young people who are “thriving people, capable learners and leaders for the world God desires.” The Blue Print for Step Change outlines clearly defined strategies and expectations about our ways of working. In order for Catholic Education South Australia to become a system of excellent schools, we need to also ensure that we have a system full of outstanding leaders.
This year the conference was centred around collective leadership and we were fortunate to hear from some nationally and internationally renowned presenters.
The speakers included:
Louka Parry - the CEO + Founder of The Learning Future and works globally as a speaker, learning strategist and education futurist. He speaks on innovation, leadership and change having worked with thousands of leaders and educators from diverse contexts all across the world, including in high-level policy fora such as the OECD, UNESCO, and the European Commission, and with all Australian States and Territories.
Dr Peter Goss - leads PwC Australia’s school education consulting practice. His focus is to help school education systems and departments to develop and deliver better policy and improve how they support schools and teachers and ultimately lift student outcomes.
This builds on the six years Pete spent leading the School Education program at the Grattan Institute. His work focused on how education systems and data can help schools and teachers adapt and improve their practice. His team provided independent, rigorous and practical solutions to some of the country’s most pressing problems in school education. During his time at Grattan, Pete was a frequent media commentator and was twice published in The Conversation Yearbook “50 standout reads from Australia’s top thinkers”.
Michael Fullan - OC is the former Dean of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, and Professor Emeritus of the University of Toronto. He is co-leader of the New Pedagogies for Deep Learning global initiative (npdl.global). Recognized as a worldwide authority on educational reform, he advises policymakers and local leaders in helping to achieve the moral purpose of all children learning. Michael Fullan received the Order of Canada in December 2012. He holds honorary doctorates from several universities around the world.
Key take-away: Collective Efficacy - the shared belief in conjoint capacity to produce results, where the primary input is ‘evidence of impact.’ A culture of collaboration to implement
high-yield strategies.
Peter Kenyon - is a social capitalist, community enthusiast and founder of the Bank of I.D.E.A.S. (Initiatives for the Development of Enterprising Action and Strategies). Over the last four decades he has worked with more than 2000 communities throughout Australia and overseas seeking to facilitate fresh and creative ways that stimulate community and local economic renewal. He is motivated by the desire to create healthy, caring, inclusive, connected, sustainable and enterprising communities and local economies.
In the last week of this term, I will be taking a week of Long Service Leave and caravanning over to Perth! Narelle will be assisted by Stella Foley and Dominique Laurendi (whom we will release from class) during the last week.
Enjoy the last few weeks of term.
Damian Weeks