The school improvement process

I am writing this blogpost from Tianjin in China. Tianjin is a bustling and sprawling port city of 15 million people that is approximately two hours from Beijing. I am here leading a team of educators in evaluating an international school that caters for expatriates in Tianjin and offers the PYP, MYP and Diploma Programmes. Tianjin, like most major trading cities around the world, is in a pattern of “wait and see” as trade wars and tariff deals play out on the global stage. This has a direct impact on international schools that serve the expatriate community. Over the last week, we have engaged the school in conversations about how to stay true to their identity, mission and philosophy while remaining agile in a complex, global financial context.  

Always on these visits, I learn as much as I give. As my team would note, I come back with ideas of how we could do “x” better or with new connections that will deepen our work as a school. This time, as the visit comes to a close and I wrap up the report for the school, my reflections are slightly different: 

• Just like the school I am visiting, how do we, in the context of a dynamic and at times volatile financial context, where cost of living pressures are on everyone’s mind, remain agile and true to our values and identity? 
• How might HVGS need to evolve in response to new generations of students and parents who are moving through the school, while honouring the experiences, goals and values of existing families?
• How do we maintain a relentless focus on self-reflection and self-improvement as a school to ensure we are not complacent and that students remain at the centre of our decision-making?
• When parents are living busy lives, how do we deepen home-school partnerships at HVGS so we can truly collaborate?
• How do we ensure the whole community understands and embraces “who” HVGS is and “feels it” in the classroom and beyond? 

On 28th April we launched our Community Survey in collaboration with MMG Consulting. As the survey draws to a close, I am excited to read the report from MMG and work with the broader community to identify areas of strength and development. This is at the heart of school improvement: leaning in and listening to our community. The school I have been visiting in Tianjin, while much smaller than HVGS, is doing this well. They have an established parents’ association that works in collaboration with the school to support initiatives and build connections. This is my hope for the HVGS PCA. Above all, the school remains true to its philosophy and uses it as an anchor for decision-making and work across the school. 

Our evaluation of schools during these visits is based on the standards for school accreditation and evaluation designed by the Council of International Schools (CIS). CIS works with schools around the world, including in Australia, on school improvement and evaluates them across these domains: 

• Purpose and direction – are these clear and permeating the school?
• Governance and financial policies and practices – are they aligned with the school’s purpose and direction as well as compliant with required legislation?
• Curriculum and teaching and learning practices – are they rigorous, coherent, consistent and student centred?
• Child safeguarding and wellbeing practices – are they at the heart of the work in the school and well understood by all?
• Human resources practices – are they compliant, reflective of the values and philosophy of the school and supportive of staff wellbeing?
• Facilities and infrastructure – do they support inclusion, equity of access and the delivery of the learning programmes?
• Home school partnerships – are they strong and central to the work of the school? 

It is a rigorous framework used to evaluate schools and involves a process of “leaving no stone unturned”. Before the visit, written materials provided by the school are reviewed, including their community survey results and analysis and their progress since the last evaluation visit. During the visit, we look for evidence that validates (or does not) the school’s rating of itself through meetings with as many stakeholders as possible, classroom visits and reviewing all aspects of the facilities. The goal is to be a critical thought partner for the school to help them on the next stage of their school improvement journey. 

It is both an invigorating and exhausting process! 

At HVGS, our purpose and direction are clear. Our values are ever present, along with our School Motto, and our five-year strategy provides the vision to guide our actions. As I return to the School, and begin the analysis of our own survey results, I am wondering how we maintain a relentless focus on school improvement while consolidating what works well and not exhausting our staff! Now more than ever, we live in a VUCA world (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous). We can be overwhelmed by that notion, or we can lean into it and remain agile while staying true to who we are and our origins. Our 35th year represents a good time to do just this: revisit our history and origins, trace this through to the present, and continue to look towards the future. The antidote to VUCA is the following: vision, understanding, clarity and agility. Vision is the unrelenting focus on a purpose or goal for the future; understanding is getting feedback and perspective to chart the best way forward; clarity is about defining next steps and actionable outcomes; and agility is about being flexible in response to new, emerging priorities. 

I am looking forward to leveraging the community survey results, our newly formed PCA, student leadership groups and staff committees to create a climate of agility through understanding while remaining true to our purpose as a school: learning and helping our students become the best versions of themselves.