Job Title: School Principal,
Location: NSW
Leaders build relationships based on trust, collegiality and mutual respect to inspire and motivate.
This is done by actively setting an example, being involved and involving all stakeholders in the
change process. This process is ongoing and constant and I have demonstrated my ability to do
this with the students, staff and community, especially as Principal at Teralba Primary School.
As a visible leader, I am committed and involved in establishing relationships between the school
and the community ensuring this is done in a collaborative and inclusive environment. I have
achieved this by meeting local business owners, hosting various breakfast and lunches for these
business owners and I currently sit on the Friends of Teralba Community Committee and the local
Metromix Quarry Consultative Group. This gives the school great insight into those businesses and
people, and also showcases the great achievements of our staff and students over recent years. I
recognised the need for my school and the local area to be promoted and engaged local
businesses to help in this promotion, which has resulted in increased private sponsorship at my
school.
These relationships have fostered greater involvement of students in local businesses, with
student excursions to these businesses becoming an annual event and I have actively met all of
our school neighbours and consulted with them to find out what they want to see happen at the
school and any concerns they may have. Recently I have demonstrated my visibility in community
and local events, including cooking the barbecue at the local car boot sale, digging the garden at
the school working bee and representing the school at a range of local events.
Outcomes:
There has been an increase of revenue for the school through strengthened and
maintenance of business relationships in the local area, including a variety of sponsorships
and donations comprising of iPads, soft fall for the playground, football uniforms, school
Wi-Fi and excursion sponsorship. There has been an increase in student enrolments
especially in Kindergarten due to better promotion of our school in local pre-schools.
Incidents of major vandalism or robberies at the school have decreased since I have been
there and students have participated in sailing lessons with our neighbour who was a past
Australian sailing champion.
I have established traditions that will engage students and families, in order to give rich lifelong
experiences. These events have included a Family Fun Day, community markets, community BBQs
and community forums. In my time as Principal at Teralba Public School I have taken an active role
in revitalising the school image and was instrumental in leading the design of the new school
uniform and the development of the school vision. I am very active during the day-to-day running
of the school, including playground duties and parent meetings, whilst still enthusiastically
involved in the education of all classes. My open door policy allows an ear to all people who are
involved with the education and welfare of the students and being a collaborative leader I take on
board the many different suggestions given me and assess the value to implement these
suggestions for the improvement of the school.
Outcomes:
There has been a demonstrated increase in confidence in the decision making process at
Teralba Public School from the school community and the staff, as well as greater unique
opportunities for all students. An increased pride in the school has led to a decrease in
serious incidents over time and thus an increase in the significant time each child spends in
the classroom.
In my Learning Management Group (LMG) I have taken the lead role in establishing a Principal
network to write a new plan with one common strategic direction for the LMG. This role involves
writing similar strategic directions and coordinating between the Principals about different LMG
resources, establishing stronger links programs between schools and resource allocations. I have
planned and ran LMG staff development on the ideas for new strategic directions with a particular
focus on sharing resources and programs. Other ways I have developed relationships with other
schools includes, organisation of combined camps to Canberra and Bathurst involving four other
schools, and planning and organisation of the Newcastle small schools athletic carnival, including
six schools with over 400 students attending.
Demonstrated ability to create a culture of high expectations that enhances teaching and
ensures effective learning for all students.
In the 21 st Century school differential learning and technology plays a vital role in preparing students
for careers and the world they are to face. It is necessary that schools equip all their staff and
students with the ability to use such tools to their full potential.
In order to accommodate for the various learning styles and levels of all students I have established a
thorough assessment timetable for all students in the school. This assessment allows teachers to
know the strengths of each student, as well as their personal areas of interest. Each student then sets
personal goals and pathways in which they can achieve their own goals. From this assessment, focus
groups have been established, each of which work closely with staff to improve the educational
outcomes needed. The staff and I have worked together in the implementation of the Australian
English curriculum, utilising the resources available on the Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational
Standards (BOSTES) website. I have established links with LMG schools to enable stage specific
training for all staff which was run by myself along with Teralba Public School’s Instructional Leader.
This same system of training and development is currently being used to train staff in the
establishment of the Australian Mathematics and Science Curriculum.
Outcome:
We have seen and facilitated the systematic introduction of the new curriculum across the
LMG, including an increased understanding of the changes needed to introduce the new
curriculum and how it affects students at Teralba Public School. A variety of new pedagogical
strategies, focused on improving literacy have been implemented across the school and this
focus has been data driven, using the Best Start, NAPLAN and other assessment sources.
With Teralba Public School, I have led the implementation of the Great Teachers Inspired Learning
(GTIL) initiative, empowering teachers to improve their skills, and have supported both early career
teachers and experienced teachers in benefiting from the program and time to undertake the
training. I have aligned this with the expectation that this training will enhance the teaching and
learning across the school, and have seen some of the results already.
Outcomes:
As previously mentioned, students in all stages at Teralba Public School are producing higher
quality work and reaching more key indicators than they were previously. Some of these
outcomes include: increase in reading levels for K-2 classes, improvement in end of
Kindergarten reading levels, an average growth for reading above State average growth for
Year 5 students, above average growth in all areas of the NAPLAN, all students achieving
minimum reading standards in grades K-3 and all students attaining L3 set goals in K-3.
I have embedded technology in the scope and sequence of my teaching program and have
encouraged and insisted that staff also embed technology into their program. This is done through
continual professional development for teachers in accessing Department of Education and
Communities (DEC) COWS, the use of interactive whiteboards and connected classroom technology.
We have developed a school ‘app bank’ with parents and students actively seeking new and exciting
educational applications for personal devices.
Outcomes:
I have written, filmed and produced a virtual excursion for students in my school. This
excursion was used in conjunction with a variety of Key Learning Areas (KLAs) including HSIE
(Global Connections), CAPA- Art, dance and drama as well as the use of the connected
classroom. Students were able to study their local suburb, produce a DVD and then share this
with other schools across the State. This production also allowed local businesses to become
involved in the school, opening their doors to allow filming to take place.
Demonstrated success in strengthening community engagement and in providing effective
communication for active parent and community participation
My tenure at Teralba Public School has seen the development and strengthening of community
engagement and a significant increase in parent confidence in school leadership, measured
through a parent survey instrument. This has been achieved through a conscious and
comprehensive program of firstly listening to the parent community to determine their priorities
for their children’s school, and implementing those and other programs to the benefit of students,
parents, staff and the school community. Using open conversation and situational and system
analysis, I then understood what the community wanted and what I needed to do to improve the
delivery of education in order to maximise student and community outcomes. Meeting in different
forums including formal meetings and casual conversations, I have gained an excellent
understanding of changes required and have worked hard to implement changes, moving the
school in a positive direction.
Outcomes:
A significant increase of 26% in parent confidence in the school leadership has been
achieved (parent survey 2013), as well as increased kindergarten enrolment over the past 5
years by 100%. As mentioned previously, I have shown leadership in the writing of a school
values statement, developed in consultation with the students, the staff and the
community, utilising the principles of Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL). This shared
vision has allowed for improved communication throughout the school and significantly
improved understanding between all stakeholders. Achievement of this change has
required strong communication with staff as well as between the school and the
community.
Within my role, I have hosted a number of community and parent events, which have assisted the
school to strengthen community engagement including community BBQs for parents and business
leaders, Father’s Day breakfasts and a Father’s Fishing Day to increase a Father’s engagement with
their child’s educators, and numerous other events and activities.
Outcomes:
Teralba Public School has shown a steady increase in school enrolment reversing a
longterm trend, including the re-enrolling of previous students. Parents are feeling more
confident and happy with our school and the programs we offer.
Maintaining a focus on improving student outcomes, I have attracted sponsorship from the
corporate community in the form of iPads and wireless internet and have encouraged and
sponsored local business through the community market, which is now held at the school every
month and has proven very popular.
Within my recent Acting Principal position at Marks Point Primary School, I have engaged the
parental community in discussion after listening and hearing some disquiet around constant
school fundraising and the impact this is having on household budgets. This kind of issue can have
a real impact on parental and community involvement in school activities and needs to be
rationalised. I have embarked on the task of itemising the spending expected of parents, so the
school can get an overall picture of the exact dollar amount required or expected from parents in
order to address the issue and find a solution.
Understanding of educational reforms and priorities with the ability to ensure effective
implementation at a school level in a time of significant educational change
Currently the NSW DEC is undertaking many changes to improve the educational outcomes of all
of its students. It aims to do this by reforming many systems that are outdated, placing more
emphasis on the Principal to become a leader in their community. It places more emphasis on staff
to become more efficient in their jobs, improving their capacity to lead and on the community to
become more involved in the educational outcomes of its students. Overall these changes are very
significant and widespread. As a Principal in these new times it is imperative that I lead by
empowering staff in these reforms, informing the community and establishing systems to help the
students.
New reforms which have been implemented at Teralba Public School are the Early Action for
Success (EAfS) and Every Student Every School (ESES) programs, which I have personally trained
staff in, as well as other LMG schools. This has not only allowed my staff to have a better
understanding of the direction that the DEC are taking but also has reduced tension and stress
about the changes. As staff have gained a better understanding, they have been able to
communicate other concerns and identify further directions needed for professional development.
Within the ESES program, I have worked with Hunter Health and Regional staff to develop a plan
that will allow a student to attend my school with significant health and learning concerns. We
have employed extra staff and provided the opportunity for existing staff to develop their skills
and knowledge in this area. This program has also resulted behavioural support for some children,
enabling them to better access the curriculum, through the implementation of Positive Behaviour
for Learning (PBL).
Outcome:
We have experienced a greater capacity of staff to accept and adapt to the changes in the
DEC, as well as a greater ability for all members of staff to explain changes to the
community. In addition, we have improved systems in our school and across other local
schools.
As mentioned earlier, I have implemented the Great Teachers Inspired Learning (GTIL) reform
within Teralba Public School, which has empowered teachers to improve their skills, resulting in
students in all stages at Teralba Public School producing higher quality work and reaching more
key indicators than they were previously.
I have introduced my staff to new ways of engaging their students using the new Australian
Mathematics curriculum. This has been through greater use of technology, including iPads,
interactive lessons, basic web design and presentations. Although this approach is not new, the
current technology at our school is new. This technology is accessible to students both in the
classroom and often in the home. As students use this technology and download the different
apps on personal devices then current mathematics lessons become more significant.
Outcome:
This new interactive teaching method has only recently been used at Teralba Public School
so significant data is unavailable but all teachers are seeing a significant increase in student
participation. All teachers have noted a number of parent conversations about different
apps and home discussions and more parents have contributed to the ‘app bank’ that the
school have developed.
I am a member of the Newcastle/Hunter Principal Conference Committee; this committee plan the
annual Principal’s conference, anticipating the needs and wants of Principals’ professional
development. This committee has engaged speakers who are leaders in their field including
Professor Brian Caldwell, an expert on ‘local schools local decisions’.
Outcome:
Knowing the direction that the NSW DEC is taking is vital in the planning of such an event.
The trends and anticipated trends are used so that each conference can be engaging and
significant to the audience and the current direction of the DEC.
I am currently completing my Master Degree in Educational Leadership at the University of
Newcastle. This University Post-Graduate degree has allowed me to further study the reforms that
are taking place in our educational system and in the Federal education system. I have chosen to
complete this degree so I can exemplify the principles that I teach every day, to always improve.
This has also allowed me to relate better to students and how they learn using different styles and
approaches. This is done through my own personal journey at University.
Outcome:
Understanding the rationale behind reforms and knowing the trends associated with other
reforms, has helped to plan professional development for my staff. This greater
understanding of directions has enabled my staff to focus on the important and significant
parts of the reforms and how it will affect their classroom and their professional
development.
