November 17, 2023 • 46 mins
Discover the transformation journey of Windang Public School. Public education advocate with our guest, the dynamic and inspiring leader, Loreta Kocovska. This episode shines a light on Loretta's unique leadership style, her commitment to fostering a nurturing and collaborative school environment, and the importance she places on core values like respect, integrity, and excellence. Over the course of three years, Loretta has redefined the school, from the front gate to the last classroom.
We then venture into Loretta's strategic planning approach, highlighting the significance of clarity and alignment. She divulges how tools like the Clarity Learning Suite and the school's excellence framework have been instrumental in guiding the school toward its strategic goals. Don't miss out on her insights from the PL session with DEL Karen Brown and PSL Dahlia Fibs, and the exciting transformation of the school's plan into a visually engaging infographic!
Finally, we take a deep look at Loretta's innovative introduction of data walls to stimulate professional conversations about each student's needs. Learn about her emphasis on the importance of knowledge of others in supporting students and the significant cultural transformation she has driven at Windang Public School. Let's celebrate and learn from Loretta's passion and determination in fostering a culture where every child is valued, and each staff member feels engaged and appreciated. So, tune in, because this is an episode you won't want to miss!
Loretta mentioned the following authors during this podcast they are below:
Theory of action by Vivian Robinson,
https://www.amazon.com.au/Reduce-Increase-Improvement-Viviane-Robinson/dp/1506325378
John Gordon's book set:
https://www.amazon.com.au/Jon-Gordon-Box-Set/dp/1118293320/ref=sr_1_10?crid=7SBAFJWJ6PWG&keywords=John+Gordon&qid=1700262819&sprefix=john+gordon%2Caps%2C279&sr=8-10
Clarity Learning Suite: Exclusive to the NSWPPA.
https://www.nswppa.org.au/clarity-learning-suite
Links and References:
To view our Professional Learning Offerings, visit:
https://www.nswppa.org.au/professional-learning
To view our latest offerings, visit: https://www.nswppa.org.au/catalogue
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Loreta (00:00):
When you work in a school and all my school
colleagues and principals willabsolutely appreciate this you
actually watch the kids learn,you watch them grow, you watch
them achieve.
So all the time and effort youactually invest in these
absolute, precious human beings.
You see the end result whenthey go from year six to year
(00:22):
seven.
Drew (00:27):
Welcome to today's podcast .
Great to have you all company.
Well, it gives me absolutepleasure to introduce Loretta
Chovoska, who is the principal,proud principal of Wodang Public
School and she is unpackingtoday the Clarity Learning Suite
and all of the facets that goesinto leading such a successful
(00:50):
school.
So I really enjoy thisconversation where she unpacks
all of the work of ClarityLearning Suite but also
underneath that is, thefoundations that she's
established, particularly withschool culture.
So so many great takeaways.
I hope you have that time to beable to really take in the
(01:12):
learnings that Loretta and thejourney that she is currently
undertaking at Wodang PublicSchool.
So enjoy today's podcast.
Loreta (01:23):
Good morning Drew.
My name is Loretta Chovoska.
Drew (01:31):
Fantastic Loretta Chovoska .
So, Loretta, can you give us abrief understanding of when you
started at Wodang Public Schoolas the principal?
Loreta (01:46):
Early 2019, I applied for the permanent position at
Wendang Public School and therest is history, as they say,
and my plan is to retire fromWendang Public School.
Drew (02:01):
Quite unquote.
Loreta (02:05):
But not in the near future.
Drew (02:07):
Of course Loretta, of course right through, and
public education is such aspecial place for us both.
What do you feel is such astrength of public education?
Loreta (02:23):
Oh, absolutely.
Those of us that work in publicschools know that we have our
nine core values.
The core values starting withrespect, integrity, excellence,
responsibility, cooperation,participation, care, fairness
(02:43):
and democracy.
Now, I absolutely respect andknow that a lot of different
systems have very similar values, but what is special about
public education is it's notreliant on parents postcode for
(03:06):
a child to be successful, it'snot reliant on parents income
for a child to be successful,and I think the most powerful
thing about public education iswe, public schools, are always
on the human side.
We are always advocating on thehuman side.
We do not discriminate.
(03:26):
It's equal opportunity forevery student in every class and
every child accessing qualityteaching and learning, and that
is absolutely what we strivehere at Having a quality
teacher in the classroom everyday.
Drew (03:45):
Couldn't agree with you more.
Well said, Loretta.
Fantastic public educationadvocate there.
That's terrific.
Now tell us further.
Your school's been recognisedfor your work in the Clarity
Learning Suite.
Could you give give, I guesssome background into how you got
into the Clarity Learning Suiteand could you share some
(04:08):
initiatives or what you'veimplemented to enhance a
learning experience for yourstaff and students?
Loreta (04:15):
Sure.
So in terms of Clarity, whichthe title is, leading, a
Collaborative Learning Culturein what Matters Most in Teaching
and Learning.
Before I could even do that, Ihad a job to do as the principal
of the school, and my job wasto make sure that all staff,
(04:39):
students and families had aclear understanding of the
vision, that we all agreed onour vision, we all agreed on our
purpose and we all agreed onour goals and, importantly, I
wanted to create a culture ofwhen you walk into Wendang
(05:01):
Public School, I want everysingle person to leave with a
smile, with a feeling of this isjust something special here.
You know, everybody seems to behappy.
So I started with that notion.
I did as a lot of educators do,did lots of reading, spoke to an
(05:22):
enormous amount of colleagues,and I actually started with
schools that were recognisedacross the state and also in
Victoria, who were achievingextraordinary results in terms
of their culture and also theiracademics with their kids.
(05:42):
So, for example, I'm referringto Blue Haven School, marston
Road Public School, yates PublicSchool and then last year, this
school down in Victoria thatwas recognised and the principal
down there was Greg Clement,who's recently published a book
as well.
(06:02):
So I guess, drew, I ask lots ofdifferent questions.
I do bring the perspective fromK to 12, and my conversations
with principals always startswith tell me about your school,
what areas in your school areyou experiencing success and
(06:23):
what are you doing that's sospecial?
So I leverage from a lot ofeducators and principals who are
doing extraordinary work intheir schools as well.
But sorry, I now digress Backto the vision, the purpose and
the goals, the other thing Iwant to no, I wanted to go into
(06:47):
that.
Drew (06:47):
That's great because that gives us an understanding of
your leadership style.
So you got background.
The key message you were sayingwas about the culture and
culture really is important andthe fact.
You said about people.
You wanted the vision ofeveryone smiling as they left
and come into your school.
(07:09):
So all of that, what did youlearn from speaking to the
principals of those schools?
Was it a similar passion andtheme that you have at leading
your school, or were theredifferent versions of different
schools that you could take awayand implement at Windang Public
School?
Loreta (07:29):
But it all came back to respect in all these schools in
terms of respectfulrelationships between staff,
between the students, betweenthe parents, and also having
respect for your environment.
So children actually beingrespectful towards the school
(07:49):
and the resources and thefacilities they have.
So, in terms of the culture,creating that culture, what I
actually did drew is I startedfrom the front gate and as I
walked through the school,anything that was at Windang
Public School that I thoughtwasn't good enough for my
children, anything that wasn'tgood enough that I would not
(08:12):
want in my house or myorganization, it all went.
Everything was thenstrategically planned,
refurbished or rebuilt.
So I am extremely proud that,working very closely with the
department, the AMU department,so the assets officer that
(08:36):
Windang Public School has beenrefurbished or rebuilt from
outside inside in three years.
So if you come and visitWindang Public School you will
see everything's been done, fromroofs to brand new toilets for
the kids, for staff, new carpet,new blinds, new painting, new
(08:56):
furniture.
We run a one to one deviceprogram from kindergarten to
year six.
All the classrooms have gotbrand new interactive
whiteboards and every classroomhas a bank of devices.
So I guess my message theredrew is and with my staff and
they know this.
(09:18):
I lead with no excuses.
So if a teacher comes up andsays, loretta, I need X, y and Z
because it will actually helpme in the classroom to teach the
kids a certain way where theywill actually be able to achieve
what they're working towards, Iwill work really hard to make
(09:38):
sure that happens.
So I'm really am a no excusesprinciple.
That's the way I like to leadthe other one.
In terms of culture, Drew.
What was really important to meis, as you know, teaching is
exhausting because teachers,along with all educators, we are
making lots and lots ofdecisions almost every second,
(10:05):
and it's the exhaustion in termsof the depth and the breath
that we're expected to know allthe time and every single day,
and that applies to theprincipal position as well.
So I guess that's where thecomplexity is kick in.
So, in terms of culture then,of course, as you know, my goal
(10:29):
was to lead with.
Lots of people have heard aboutflying the plane, while
everybody's trying to build theplane.
So I took a different strategy.
I read a lot of John Gordon'sbooks and I love his messages,
and one particular message isassociated to the energy bus.
(10:52):
So what?
The energy bus is all about isstrategically working and
inviting everybody on the bus.
So what I've done here, windangPublic School, over the last
couple of years is in terms ofestablishing the culture, is
really talking to staff, aboutthis notion of no energy
(11:13):
vampires at Windang PublicSchool.
If there is an issue or aconcern, please speak up but
come with a solution.
If you don't have a solution,keep thinking.
But we definitely will haveworking towards a culture where
we are changing the narrative interms of being positive about
(11:38):
the school, about the kids,about the community, about
absolutely everything.
And I started with myself,because often you will hear
people say I have to go to worktoday.
Oh, it's Monday, I have to goto work.
No, you don't have to.
The fact of the matter is thatyou get to do that.
So even just the narrativebetween me and my staff, like
(12:00):
you know, I would send thememail messages or you know, et
cetera, and I would start I getto go to work on Monday morning
and I'm super excited about itbecause this week is going to be
the best week that we've had.
So just that idea about noenergy vampires at Windang
Public School, because what isthe point of exhausting all your
(12:20):
emotions, all your energyassociated with something that
you can't change.
So, if so, what we've done nowat Windang is, and what my goal
is, we have a set vision, a setpurpose, we know what our goals
are and, as the principal, I amdriving the bus.
So driving the bus, but at thesame time, upskilling and
(12:48):
developing a fleet of busdrivers, which is very important
to me, because if I don't havemy fleet of bus drivers, what
that means is, when I'm not atwork, when I'm not here to lead,
to drive the bus, the bus willtake a different direction,
won't it?
Because lots of people havedifferent agendas and what they
(13:10):
want to see.
So for me, it's reallyimportant the bus keeps on the
road that we have all negotiatedand set.
Drew (13:19):
It could be taken over by vampires by the sound of it.
Well, hopefully not, Loretta,because you're making sure that
I love that quote! That'sfabulous.
No energy vampires, and theyneed to come with a solution.
What an innovative and openmind I can see you leading at
your school.
(13:40):
So that's, and also JohnGordon's book, which we could
put in a reference into our showcourse notes.
Loretta, you come through withsuch passion.
Can you tell us when did youdiscover clarity learning and
can you tell our audience thesteps of implementation of the
(14:02):
clarity learning suite?
Loreta (14:04):
Sure.
So I came across clarity late2020, which is fairly late in my
career really, but late 2020and it was after speaking to a
colleague principal colleague,shelly Fay, who was talking to
(14:26):
me about clarity Because, as Isaid earlier, I like to ask lots
of different questions fromeverybody.
So what I did was I bought thebook, I read the book and was
just absolutely amazed and veryimpressed, because the way I
also like to lead through is Ilike things to be clear, concise
(14:50):
, but also achievable and, mostimportantly, the strategies to
have been trialed and tested bycolleagues where they have
actually used these strategiesand the school has transformed
student learning.
So the whole idea of ourclarity was supporting me and
supporting my executive so wecan lead in what matters most in
(15:13):
teaching and learning totransform the educational
outcomes for our students.
So what I'm trying to say is Icame across clarity late 2021
and then early 2022, as you know, the department allocated all
primary schools and assistantprincipal curriculum and
instruction.
So all of a sudden, myexecutive team grew with more
(15:38):
people, which means the morepeople you have, the less.
You have a set vision, thepurpose, and everybody has their
own agendas.
So it was very important to meand I quickly realized I need to
set the vision, I need to setthe purpose, obviously in
consultation with staff,students and community.
(15:59):
So in fact, it actually took usapproximately eight to nine
months to develop our vision,our purpose and our goals.
So it took quite a bit of time,but we are now set until 2026.
So, in terms of clarity, what wedid Drew is we established a
book club.
All my executives were given aheart copy and that was for them
(16:23):
, for their library, so theycould put post-it notes through
it, etc.
What I also did was we paid forall the executives to enroll
and complete the claritylearning suite online.
There are 12 modules.
So the way we approached thatwas we established meetings,
(16:45):
regular meetings, two per term,and they were two hours each,
and each person as part of thatexecutive team needed to
complete a module prior to ourtwo hour meeting.
So it was their role to come tothe meeting and teach the rest
of us what was involved in thatmodule.
(17:06):
So it was a really good way ofmanaging workload for everybody
because, as you can appreciate,all this work is happening while
we're all employed full time.
So that strategy worked.
It worked because it was thetrain-to-trainer model, so to
speak, and we're stillcontinuing on that journey.
(17:27):
And where we started with theclarity was the three
non-negotiable parameters, whichis what I would recommend any
school thinking about clarity,that you would start with the
three non-negotiable parameters,parameter one being shared
beliefs and understanding.
(17:49):
Parameter six, which is a casemanagement approach.
And parameter 14, which isshared responsibility and
accountability, which is puttingfaces on the data.
Let's be worried.
I didn't have Too much to talkto you about Druidbot.
Now I think I might have a fewhours.
Drew (18:11):
I love it and the passion, the passion's coming through.
So the journey you've had isthat cultural transformation
which you've done with the whole.
Walk through your whole schoolcontext, make it an open
environment, establishing thatculture, and then you've really
honed in on, well, what is thepedagogy, what is our learning
(18:33):
environment going to look andsound and feel like, and then
also the implications of havingnew people into your school
context.
Clarity actually affirmed thatculture of what your vision was.
Can you tell us where that fitsin against the in the New South
(18:54):
Wales context, loretta?
Where does that fit in aligningwith the school plan?
Was it a fairly easy match andfit Does it?
Where did it fit in yourstrategic direction, for example
?
Loreta (19:07):
Oh, absolutely so.
In relation to clarity and the14 parameters, they align nicely
to the school excellenceframework.
That also aligns nicely to thewhat works best documents from
CC.
As you know that we access anduse and it it's not one or a
(19:31):
couple of those key strategiesor frameworks a school would
need.
In fact, what clarity does itactually shares the what and how
to make things happen?
The school excellence frameworkallows us to self assess based
(19:51):
on the 14 parameters that we areimplementing.
The what works best documentsprovide us with case studies of
successful schools, which arealso included in the clarity
book and online modules.
So it's the three keyframeworks complementing each
(20:13):
other.
It's not one or the other.
And, colleagues who are new toclarity, the question always is
well, why do I need clarity?
Why can't I just use the schoolexcellence framework or I'm?
I'm using the CC papers.
What works best and that'swhere I share the 14 parameters
(20:37):
compliments the other two.
It's not one or the other,because the 14 parameters gives
you the what and the how, whichis so powerful, with clarity, in
leading in what matters most,which is teaching, the learning.
Drew (20:52):
It's the what and the how which can somewhat be missing.
Principles can lead throughthose frameworks, but just
having clarity learning suite,Would you say.
The reader keeps everyone ontrack.
It keeps everyone on the samepage.
Loreta (21:11):
Absolutely what clarity provides for my leadership team,
for myself, it keeps me focused.
It keeps us all focused in whatmatters most.
I keep saying it, and what'sreally important is we are all
staying the course, because whatwe're doing is we are
(21:34):
consistent in terms of ourexpectations and then we are
also persistent in ensuring thatit's actually happening as
planned.
Another important component toall of this, drew, is our school
planning.
So the school planning as partof the school improvement plan
(21:56):
Back in 2021, we also didexternal validation, which set
us set my team and I up nicelyto actually begin the journey
with clarity, with the schoolexcellence framework, with CC
case studies as well.
So what we did, drew, wasobviously, we created our plan,
(22:18):
and colleagues who go to anypublic schools' websites can
download the plan.
The plan is a couple of pagesand it's all text.
So the first thing I did wasconverted the school plan into
an infograph.
So there's nothing magicalthere.
You know.
We just took the school plan.
(22:39):
We have an infograph for eachstrategic direction and each
strategic direction has twoinitiatives with the two
different infographs.
They're printed on a canvas andproudly displayed in the office
for you.
So what that means is when youvisit Winding and you want to
know about Winding public school, you just look at the free
(23:00):
canvases and that's our totalplan.
Again, nothing magical there.
Where the magic happened, drew,was late.
Last year I attended a PLsession with the, with my Dell
Karen Brown and the PSL, dahliaFibs, where they led us through
(23:21):
our three strategic directions,the actual initiatives and the
purpose.
So we really unpacked thepurpose for each strategic
direction.
So, all of a sudden, the textfrom the school plan.
We had more clarity becausethat included, for example I'll
(23:44):
give you an example might be abit easier.
So we started with okay, weneed to collaborate and
implement evidence-basedteaching across literacy and
numeracy.
Okay, that's great, but whatdoes that actually mean?
So we unpack that.
Drew (24:07):
Yeah, they're like there can be some more tokenistic
statements, can't they thosethings like?
But then it's like, well, whatdoes that actually look like and
feel like in a New South Walespublic education school?
Absolutely.
Loreta (24:20):
So for strategic direction one, we need to
collaborate and implementevidence-based teaching across
literacy and numeracy.
Well, that's great.
What does that mean?
So the unpacking included.
If we engage teachers inhigh-impact professional
learning, in explicit teachingand evidence-based literacy and
numeracy pedagogy, then teachersare skilled at evaluating and
(24:44):
tailoring English andmathematics units of work so
that all students improve inreading, comprehension, spelling
, number sense and place value.
So all of a sudden, now thathas been unpacked and is much,
much clearer in terms of what weneed to do, a winding Now, what
(25:06):
I did drew was this was great,but it still wasn't exactly what
I wanted.
It's really important for me atmy school for everyone to
understand what their role andresponsibility is.
So I then took the samestrategy, which is the theory of
action by Vivian Robinson, andwe actually then unpacked each
(25:29):
one at several staff meetings.
So what we did drew is.
So, now that we understand whatwe need to do, I Said to all my
teachers, after putting them ingroups, I said to the AK as a
school, for us to achievestrategic direction one, what do
I need to do as your principal?
(25:50):
Everybody loves to tell theprincipal what they need to be
doing.
My staff told me exactly what Ineed to be doing.
I'll read a couple of dogpoints.
They said to achieve the above.
To achieve the above, theprincipal needs to take this
action Provide time forcollaboration, professional
(26:11):
learning and planning Gradualimplementation of new
initiatives, provideopportunities to see models of
explicit teaching and Sureresources for implementation of
explicit teaching.
I'm sure, perfect, thank you.
All that was written by mystyle.
Then what I said to the groupsokay, now, if I'm doing my job
(26:35):
and I'm Actioning all these dotpoints, what do you need from
the assistant principal tosupport you teachers in the
classroom so that our studentscan achieve these outcomes?
Same process.
The teachers then all identifiedwhat there's, what their
expectation was of the assistantprincipals Said okay, that's
(26:57):
great.
Now Can you please tell me ifthe principal is doing their job
, if the assistant principal isdoing their job, as per what
you've noted, what do you expectfrom the students?
What would you like thestudents to be doing?
Again, they identified severaldot points of the expectations
of every child hey to six.
Then I came all the way aroundwhen back to the teachers said
(27:22):
right, if I, as the principal,am doing this and the assistant
principals are doing their partand the students are responding
and doing what you've asked themto do.
What is your job in this?
What do you have to do as ateacher?
To support the process for ourstudents to be literate numerate
, from when they go to year sixto year seven, and they can
(27:47):
write.
Then the teachers actually wrotewhat their role and
responsibility would be as partof this strategic direction,
which is absolute gold, becausewhat we have now is we have
teachers committed to the schoolplan With explicit instructions
for every initiative, soeverybody understands clearly
(28:08):
what they need to be doing Toensure this is happening.
I now have mid-year check-inpoints and the med year check-in
points is so.
For example, other teachershere have written and if
teachers also take this actionhigh expectations of student
engagement, explain purpose oflearning.
So we're talking about learningintentions and success criteria
(28:30):
, dynamic programming responsiveto student needs.
So my mid-year end of yearcheck-ins are Aligned to those
dot points and the beauty of allof this is the teachers wrote
this.
This is what they have Drafterthat, this is what has been
approved, this is what has beenshared with community and these
(28:53):
are commitments from 2022 to2026 and we are staying our
course and this is the directionof the bus starting from
yourself and making yourselfvulnerable in that you know, and
also making yourself I want tolisten and showing.
Drew (29:12):
I've now, I've done this.
My assistant principals.
Now they're going to implementthis and then, instead of taking
it, good, here you further.
Now, teachers, what are yougoing to do?
How can we support you throughour students?
What's the expectation ofstudents?
So you've, you've, establishedwhat a good learning culture,
(29:34):
expectation, looks like, can you?
And also not only that, you'vealso explored Vivianne Robinson,
which I'm a bit at big advocateof her work as well, through
this of the theory of action.
How long was that process,loretta, until you went?
Okay, now we are.
We are really starting to nowDrive into our school plan here,
(29:57):
through with it, with theimplementation of the clarity
learning suite.
Loreta (30:04):
Absolutely so.
Establishing and unpacking inrelation to the school plan and
then having our theory of actionstrategy for each initiative
took close to eight months.
It was it took time.
It was important for that timeto.
It was important to invest thetime, because people need time
(30:31):
to really think about exactlywhat they're committing to and
exactly to what's going to helpus to improve student outcomes
and to continue on theircontinuous school improvement.
Drew (30:41):
So, while this is all happening, loretta, were you and
your executive working throughthe clarity learning suite at
that time before?
The teachers became part ofthat journey as well.
Is that, is that the?
Am I reading that right?
Loreta (30:58):
Absolutely so.
The executive and I have beenon the clarity journey close to
two years now.
So, while all of this ishappening and remembering we had
COVID, leading through thecomplexities of COVID, shortage
of teachers and everything elsethat happens in a school.
So the executive and our yes,working through clarity over the
(31:20):
last two years and, at the sametime, working towards the
positive school culture withinmy school.
So, for example, regularlydoing short, sharp activities
with staff, for example, in astaff meeting, just doing the 25
(31:43):
fabulous things about WindangPublic School.
So what I did was, instead ofasking staff, you know what
didn't work or what do you wantto stop, et cetera.
The conversation is write down10 things you absolutely love
and you're very happy about thatyou can see at Windang Public
School.
So that instantly changes thenarrative number one.
(32:06):
So that changes the culture andthe lots of different
activities, as the one I've justshared Again, strategies that I
have accessed from variousdifferent books and from
principals who have beenextremely successful, and that's
(32:27):
across the globe, not just NewSouth Wales, but Drew.
I just want to touch one morething in terms of culture.
What was really important to mehere at Windang was that every
staff member was known, is knownand feels valued and
appreciated and part of theschool culture.
So this year when we did ourstaff photo, I ensured that that
(32:51):
staff photo also includes Glen,our crossing supervisor.
It also includes our twocleaners, also includes the GA,
the Cairnt team manager.
So everybody is part of theschool team because everybody's
job is just as important.
So, for example, if Glen's nothere in the mornings to
(33:12):
supervise the crossing, then Ihave to go out there, or one of
my executive team.
But if you make people feelvalued and be genuine because
they know if you're genuine ornot if you make people feel
valued and they're part of theteam, they want to come to work.
They love coming to work, whichis why our attendance rate,
(33:36):
including our students we'reactually for seven weeks
straight with top attendance inthe network.
Drew (33:45):
Fantastic work, Loretta.
You should be very proud andI'm sure you are, in terms of
the same.
Let's move to further into cango a couple of directions here I
was going to go into you didthe work with your executive.
Can you go into where you're atin the journey of
implementation, from moving fromexecutive into the teacher
(34:09):
implementation of ClarityLearning Suite.
Loreta (34:14):
Absolutely.
The one thing that resonatedwith me from the Clarity
Learning Suite was knowledgeableothers how important and
powerful it is to haveknowledgeable others, and that's
in all aspects.
In terms of leading a school, Ifeel very privileged to be the
(34:37):
principal and to be the leaderof one of our amazing public
schools in New South Wales, butI cannot do this job on my own
without the knowledgeable othersaround me.
So I've had the same commitmentfor my staff.
So what I'm trying to share isin terms of mathematics.
There was a strong need toimprove mathematics across the
(35:01):
school.
So not approximately 18 months,we started our journey with
Anita Chin, who is a numeracyexpert across the state.
She became our knowledgeableother for 12 months, upskilling
dem lessons with teachers,providing feedback to teachers
(35:24):
to really invest in teachers.
So we've done that.
At the beginning of last term wekicked off our relationship
with the 24-7 training team, whoare literacy experts.
So we're working closely withMel Kase from the 24-7 training
(35:46):
team.
She's actually here today andher job is to upskill all
teachers so that all theteachers at Windham Public
School K-6 are strong in everyaspect of literacy to support
our students in the classroom.
So knowledgeable othersextremely important and they
(36:12):
come in the forms of otherprincipals, other colleagues,
other teachers, our corporatecolleagues and then, obviously,
our consultants, who havecredibility because they have
led transformation acrossdifferent systems, different
schools, across different statesWith the 24-7 training team.
(36:35):
They're also global as well, soat the moment they're our
knowledgeable others, but theymay not be in the future, once
all the teachers are at acertain level.
Drew (36:48):
Okay.
So in terms of that's great, interms of the support mechanisms
you're putting in, where doesthe clarity learning suite fit
in that transformation forteachers?
Loreta (37:02):
That's parameter number seven, drew, which is focus,
professional learning at staffmeetings.
It's also parameter 11,collaborative inquiry in terms
of whole system approach.
And again, this is why I lovethe 14 parameters, because they
(37:23):
explained the why and the how,and it's the how that's the most
powerful.
Okay, that's great.
We know what we need to do, buthow are we going to make it
happen?
So, in terms of knowledgeableothers, that works side by side
with our case managementapproach.
What the case managementapproach is all about is there
(37:47):
is data and teaching andlearning associated with
February child.
So we basically wrap aroundevery single student at Windang
Public School with the learningthat they need to achieve.
And we can only do that througha case management approach
where we have weekly meetingswith key personnel.
(38:07):
Teachers are involved, studentlearning support officers are
involved, school counselorsinvolved.
It just depends on the need ofthe child.
So we are really workingtowards every child being
literate, numerate and can writefrom year six to year seven and
being at grade level.
Drew (38:29):
Well, it's that notion that every child can succeed
which is that ethos through andyou can hear it in your voice of
every child can succeed,through public education, just
ensuring that the parameters ofsuccessor put up so that they
can actually succeed.
Finally, you said you'vecommenced the introduction of
the data walls in a staff at thestart of this term, 2023, and
(38:55):
you said that it's transformedthe professional conversation
among teachers in the staff room.
Can you go into that a littlebit further of how that has
happened in such a short periodof time, or would you say it's
that build up prior work, thatit's just naturally progressed?
Loreta (39:15):
Honestly, I am very proud of our data wall as my
executive and teachers, and thereason we're very proud of our
data wall is it's actually nowallowed us to have professional
conversations about the needs ofevery student and really
knowing every student fromkindergarten to year six.
(39:38):
We have just under 200 kids atour school and I can share with
you that I know all the kidsnames, I know exactly where
they're sitting in terms oftheir learning, and so do my
teachers.
So the data wall happened andthe conversations were
(40:01):
transformed overnight becausethe conversation.
So I'll give you an example.
So, for example, there aredifferent sections of the data
wall.
Section number one is K to 2,and what we have is we use the
Australian decodables K to 2.
So we have our data wall thatidentifies every child in terms
(40:22):
of how they are going withlearning to read.
They are aligned on the datawall based on their level and
what happens is teachers arestanding there and having
conversations.
Now there are nine levelsassociated with the Australian
decodables.
(40:43):
So, as a principal and also asmy executive, I often, if not
every day, will go and have alook at the data.
The next day I'll do the same.
The next day, I'll do the same,and after a fortnight, if a
child hasn't progressed, theconversation with the teacher is
instant.
It's okay.
Well, such and such has beenhere.
(41:04):
What have you done over thelast fortnight?
What support do you need fromthe learning and support team so
we can support you for such andsuch to actually improve?
So what the data wall hasallowed us to do is to not miss
any child.
No children are being lost forthe net.
(41:27):
Every child is known and thedata and how they are
progressing is on that wall.
Because I get it like a lot ofall the data is in a spreadsheet
, it's in a software programsomewhere, but it's not visual,
it's not right there in yourface and you can't hide when
it's there in front of you.
(41:48):
And the beauty of having thedata wall is teachers.
The conversation they arehaving is oh, I had such and
such last year and this is whatI tried and it worked really
well for them.
Maybe you might want to givethat a go, if we have.
Well, we would, because allschools do children who are not
(42:09):
progressing for a full day oflearning every day.
Drew (42:17):
Yeah, so where do the data walls?
Where do they exist in yourschool context?
Loreta (42:26):
In the staff room.
The data wall includes trackingfor the Australian Decodable
Readers, K-2.
Then we have a data wallaligned to the learning
progressions.
We have understanding text andwe have creating text.
We also have the data wall forour NAP plan results.
We also have a data wall forour phonics assessment as well,
(42:50):
and we also have informationassociated with Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander childrenas well.
There are 18% of Aboriginal andTorres Strait Islander children
at Windang Public School andI'm absolutely proud to share
that.
They are on par or doing betterthan all the children at our
(43:12):
school, Because at Windang webelieve high expectations for
every single child.
Drew (43:22):
Do the staff get overwhelmed with the amount of
data that they're looking at, orhow is that managed?
Because it's visual, it's easyto unpack and understand and
they understand the purpose.
Loreta (43:37):
Absolutely so.
Every four weeks all staff havea professional data planning
day and at those four weeksstaff are led by an assistant
principal.
We have the data conversationsand staff are actually teachers
are creating a data action plan,so they are actually officially
(44:00):
updating the data wall everyfour weeks.
But I often see teachersthroughout the week or when
children progress.
They'll quickly just go movethat child's photo to where they
should be.
The feedback from staff hasbeen extraordinary.
The feedback from staff hasbeen so positive that I wish I
(44:23):
did it a few years back.
Drew (44:25):
For fellow principals or educational leaders considering
clarity learning sweet.
What advice would you give them?
Loreta (44:34):
Why the books.
Hand out the book to theexecutives.
Start with the threenon-negotiables, even if you
start with parameter number one.
It's really important to havethat shared belief and
understanding amongst your team.
If you do not have that, itmakes it extremely difficult.
I would strongly suggest, interms of building the school
(44:58):
culture and starting with thenotion of are you an energy
vampire?
You should self assess yourself.
If you are going to work andyou are being negative, that is
going to show in your style.
So the first thing I did was Iself reflected and thought, okay
, if I don't want any energyvampires in my school, well, I
(45:25):
need to not be an energy vampiremyself.
I need to stay positive andjust lead with that passion and
excitement.
And really, andrew, it's allabout the students.
Students come first.
Drew (45:46):
You haven't been an energy vampire today.
You've been full of energy,full of enthusiasm.
It's been a pleasure to get toknow you further through our
podcast today and for ouraudience.
Loretta, thank you very muchfor your time today.
Loreta (46:04):
I really appreciate it, thank you.
When you work in a school and all my school
colleagues and principals willabsolutely appreciate this you
actually watch the kids learn,you watch them grow, you watch
them achieve.
So all the time and effort youactually invest in these
absolute, precious human beings.
You see the end result whenthey go from year six to year
(00:22):
seven.
Drew (00:27):
Welcome to today's podcast .
Great to have you all company.
Well, it gives me absolutepleasure to introduce Loretta
Chovoska, who is the principal,proud principal of Wodang Public
School and she is unpackingtoday the Clarity Learning Suite
and all of the facets that goesinto leading such a successful
(00:50):
school.
So I really enjoy thisconversation where she unpacks
all of the work of ClarityLearning Suite but also
underneath that is, thefoundations that she's
established, particularly withschool culture.
So so many great takeaways.
I hope you have that time to beable to really take in the
(01:12):
learnings that Loretta and thejourney that she is currently
undertaking at Wodang PublicSchool.
So enjoy today's podcast.
Loreta (01:23):
Good morning Drew.
My name is Loretta Chovoska.
Drew (01:31):
Fantastic Loretta Chovoska .
So, Loretta, can you give us abrief understanding of when you
started at Wodang Public Schoolas the principal?
Loreta (01:46):
Early 2019, I applied for the permanent position at
Wendang Public School and therest is history, as they say,
and my plan is to retire fromWendang Public School.
Drew (02:01):
Quite unquote.
Loreta (02:05):
But not in the near future.
Drew (02:07):
Of course Loretta, of course right through, and
public education is such aspecial place for us both.
What do you feel is such astrength of public education?
Loreta (02:23):
Oh, absolutely.
Those of us that work in publicschools know that we have our
nine core values.
The core values starting withrespect, integrity, excellence,
responsibility, cooperation,participation, care, fairness
(02:43):
and democracy.
Now, I absolutely respect andknow that a lot of different
systems have very similar values, but what is special about
public education is it's notreliant on parents postcode for
(03:06):
a child to be successful, it'snot reliant on parents income
for a child to be successful,and I think the most powerful
thing about public education iswe, public schools, are always
on the human side.
We are always advocating on thehuman side.
We do not discriminate.
(03:26):
It's equal opportunity forevery student in every class and
every child accessing qualityteaching and learning, and that
is absolutely what we strivehere at Having a quality
teacher in the classroom everyday.
Drew (03:45):
Couldn't agree with you more.
Well said, Loretta.
Fantastic public educationadvocate there.
That's terrific.
Now tell us further.
Your school's been recognisedfor your work in the Clarity
Learning Suite.
Could you give give, I guesssome background into how you got
into the Clarity Learning Suiteand could you share some
(04:08):
initiatives or what you'veimplemented to enhance a
learning experience for yourstaff and students?
Loreta (04:15):
Sure.
So in terms of Clarity, whichthe title is, leading, a
Collaborative Learning Culturein what Matters Most in Teaching
and Learning.
Before I could even do that, Ihad a job to do as the principal
of the school, and my job wasto make sure that all staff,
(04:39):
students and families had aclear understanding of the
vision, that we all agreed onour vision, we all agreed on our
purpose and we all agreed onour goals and, importantly, I
wanted to create a culture ofwhen you walk into Wendang
(05:01):
Public School, I want everysingle person to leave with a
smile, with a feeling of this isjust something special here.
You know, everybody seems to behappy.
So I started with that notion.
I did as a lot of educators do,did lots of reading, spoke to an
(05:22):
enormous amount of colleagues,and I actually started with
schools that were recognisedacross the state and also in
Victoria, who were achievingextraordinary results in terms
of their culture and also theiracademics with their kids.
(05:42):
So, for example, I'm referringto Blue Haven School, marston
Road Public School, yates PublicSchool and then last year, this
school down in Victoria thatwas recognised and the principal
down there was Greg Clement,who's recently published a book
as well.
(06:02):
So I guess, drew, I ask lots ofdifferent questions.
I do bring the perspective fromK to 12, and my conversations
with principals always startswith tell me about your school,
what areas in your school areyou experiencing success and
(06:23):
what are you doing that's sospecial?
So I leverage from a lot ofeducators and principals who are
doing extraordinary work intheir schools as well.
But sorry, I now digress Backto the vision, the purpose and
the goals, the other thing Iwant to no, I wanted to go into
(06:47):
that.
Drew (06:47):
That's great because that gives us an understanding of
your leadership style.
So you got background.
The key message you were sayingwas about the culture and
culture really is important andthe fact.
You said about people.
You wanted the vision ofeveryone smiling as they left
and come into your school.
(07:09):
So all of that, what did youlearn from speaking to the
principals of those schools?
Was it a similar passion andtheme that you have at leading
your school, or were theredifferent versions of different
schools that you could take awayand implement at Windang Public
School?
Loreta (07:29):
But it all came back to respect in all these schools in
terms of respectfulrelationships between staff,
between the students, betweenthe parents, and also having
respect for your environment.
So children actually beingrespectful towards the school
(07:49):
and the resources and thefacilities they have.
So, in terms of the culture,creating that culture, what I
actually did drew is I startedfrom the front gate and as I
walked through the school,anything that was at Windang
Public School that I thoughtwasn't good enough for my
children, anything that wasn'tgood enough that I would not
(08:12):
want in my house or myorganization, it all went.
Everything was thenstrategically planned,
refurbished or rebuilt.
So I am extremely proud that,working very closely with the
department, the AMU department,so the assets officer that
(08:36):
Windang Public School has beenrefurbished or rebuilt from
outside inside in three years.
So if you come and visitWindang Public School you will
see everything's been done, fromroofs to brand new toilets for
the kids, for staff, new carpet,new blinds, new painting, new
(08:56):
furniture.
We run a one to one deviceprogram from kindergarten to
year six.
All the classrooms have gotbrand new interactive
whiteboards and every classroomhas a bank of devices.
So I guess my message theredrew is and with my staff and
they know this.
(09:18):
I lead with no excuses.
So if a teacher comes up andsays, loretta, I need X, y and Z
because it will actually helpme in the classroom to teach the
kids a certain way where theywill actually be able to achieve
what they're working towards, Iwill work really hard to make
(09:38):
sure that happens.
So I'm really am a no excusesprinciple.
That's the way I like to leadthe other one.
In terms of culture, Drew.
What was really important to meis, as you know, teaching is
exhausting because teachers,along with all educators, we are
making lots and lots ofdecisions almost every second,
(10:05):
and it's the exhaustion in termsof the depth and the breath
that we're expected to know allthe time and every single day,
and that applies to theprincipal position as well.
So I guess that's where thecomplexity is kick in.
So, in terms of culture then,of course, as you know, my goal
(10:29):
was to lead with.
Lots of people have heard aboutflying the plane, while
everybody's trying to build theplane.
So I took a different strategy.
I read a lot of John Gordon'sbooks and I love his messages,
and one particular message isassociated to the energy bus.
(10:52):
So what?
The energy bus is all about isstrategically working and
inviting everybody on the bus.
So what I've done here, windangPublic School, over the last
couple of years is in terms ofestablishing the culture, is
really talking to staff, aboutthis notion of no energy
(11:13):
vampires at Windang PublicSchool.
If there is an issue or aconcern, please speak up but
come with a solution.
If you don't have a solution,keep thinking.
But we definitely will haveworking towards a culture where
we are changing the narrative interms of being positive about
(11:38):
the school, about the kids,about the community, about
absolutely everything.
And I started with myself,because often you will hear
people say I have to go to worktoday.
Oh, it's Monday, I have to goto work.
No, you don't have to.
The fact of the matter is thatyou get to do that.
So even just the narrativebetween me and my staff, like
(12:00):
you know, I would send thememail messages or you know, et
cetera, and I would start I getto go to work on Monday morning
and I'm super excited about itbecause this week is going to be
the best week that we've had.
So just that idea about noenergy vampires at Windang
Public School, because what isthe point of exhausting all your
(12:20):
emotions, all your energyassociated with something that
you can't change.
So, if so, what we've done nowat Windang is, and what my goal
is, we have a set vision, a setpurpose, we know what our goals
are and, as the principal, I amdriving the bus.
So driving the bus, but at thesame time, upskilling and
(12:48):
developing a fleet of busdrivers, which is very important
to me, because if I don't havemy fleet of bus drivers, what
that means is, when I'm not atwork, when I'm not here to lead,
to drive the bus, the bus willtake a different direction,
won't it?
Because lots of people havedifferent agendas and what they
(13:10):
want to see.
So for me, it's reallyimportant the bus keeps on the
road that we have all negotiatedand set.
Drew (13:19):
It could be taken over by vampires by the sound of it.
Well, hopefully not, Loretta,because you're making sure that
I love that quote! That'sfabulous.
No energy vampires, and theyneed to come with a solution.
What an innovative and openmind I can see you leading at
your school.
(13:40):
So that's, and also JohnGordon's book, which we could
put in a reference into our showcourse notes.
Loretta, you come through withsuch passion.
Can you tell us when did youdiscover clarity learning and
can you tell our audience thesteps of implementation of the
(14:02):
clarity learning suite?
Loreta (14:04):
Sure.
So I came across clarity late2020, which is fairly late in my
career really, but late 2020and it was after speaking to a
colleague principal colleague,shelly Fay, who was talking to
(14:26):
me about clarity Because, as Isaid earlier, I like to ask lots
of different questions fromeverybody.
So what I did was I bought thebook, I read the book and was
just absolutely amazed and veryimpressed, because the way I
also like to lead through is Ilike things to be clear, concise
(14:50):
, but also achievable and, mostimportantly, the strategies to
have been trialed and tested bycolleagues where they have
actually used these strategiesand the school has transformed
student learning.
So the whole idea of ourclarity was supporting me and
supporting my executive so wecan lead in what matters most in
(15:13):
teaching and learning totransform the educational
outcomes for our students.
So what I'm trying to say is Icame across clarity late 2021
and then early 2022, as you know, the department allocated all
primary schools and assistantprincipal curriculum and
instruction.
So all of a sudden, myexecutive team grew with more
(15:38):
people, which means the morepeople you have, the less.
You have a set vision, thepurpose, and everybody has their
own agendas.
So it was very important to meand I quickly realized I need to
set the vision, I need to setthe purpose, obviously in
consultation with staff,students and community.
(15:59):
So in fact, it actually took usapproximately eight to nine
months to develop our vision,our purpose and our goals.
So it took quite a bit of time,but we are now set until 2026.
So, in terms of clarity, what wedid Drew is we established a
book club.
All my executives were given aheart copy and that was for them
(16:23):
, for their library, so theycould put post-it notes through
it, etc.
What I also did was we paid forall the executives to enroll
and complete the claritylearning suite online.
There are 12 modules.
So the way we approached thatwas we established meetings,
(16:45):
regular meetings, two per term,and they were two hours each,
and each person as part of thatexecutive team needed to
complete a module prior to ourtwo hour meeting.
So it was their role to come tothe meeting and teach the rest
of us what was involved in thatmodule.
(17:06):
So it was a really good way ofmanaging workload for everybody
because, as you can appreciate,all this work is happening while
we're all employed full time.
So that strategy worked.
It worked because it was thetrain-to-trainer model, so to
speak, and we're stillcontinuing on that journey.
(17:27):
And where we started with theclarity was the three
non-negotiable parameters, whichis what I would recommend any
school thinking about clarity,that you would start with the
three non-negotiable parameters,parameter one being shared
beliefs and understanding.
(17:49):
Parameter six, which is a casemanagement approach.
And parameter 14, which isshared responsibility and
accountability, which is puttingfaces on the data.
Let's be worried.
I didn't have Too much to talkto you about Druidbot.
Now I think I might have a fewhours.
Drew (18:11):
I love it and the passion, the passion's coming through.
So the journey you've had isthat cultural transformation
which you've done with the whole.
Walk through your whole schoolcontext, make it an open
environment, establishing thatculture, and then you've really
honed in on, well, what is thepedagogy, what is our learning
(18:33):
environment going to look andsound and feel like, and then
also the implications of havingnew people into your school
context.
Clarity actually affirmed thatculture of what your vision was.
Can you tell us where that fitsin against the in the New South
(18:54):
Wales context, loretta?
Where does that fit in aligningwith the school plan?
Was it a fairly easy match andfit Does it?
Where did it fit in yourstrategic direction, for example
?
Loreta (19:07):
Oh, absolutely so.
In relation to clarity and the14 parameters, they align nicely
to the school excellenceframework.
That also aligns nicely to thewhat works best documents from
CC.
As you know that we access anduse and it it's not one or a
(19:31):
couple of those key strategiesor frameworks a school would
need.
In fact, what clarity does itactually shares the what and how
to make things happen?
The school excellence frameworkallows us to self assess based
(19:51):
on the 14 parameters that we areimplementing.
The what works best documentsprovide us with case studies of
successful schools, which arealso included in the clarity
book and online modules.
So it's the three keyframeworks complementing each
(20:13):
other.
It's not one or the other.
And, colleagues who are new toclarity, the question always is
well, why do I need clarity?
Why can't I just use the schoolexcellence framework or I'm?
I'm using the CC papers.
What works best and that'swhere I share the 14 parameters
(20:37):
compliments the other two.
It's not one or the other,because the 14 parameters gives
you the what and the how, whichis so powerful, with clarity, in
leading in what matters most,which is teaching, the learning.
Drew (20:52):
It's the what and the how which can somewhat be missing.
Principles can lead throughthose frameworks, but just
having clarity learning suite,Would you say.
The reader keeps everyone ontrack.
It keeps everyone on the samepage.
Loreta (21:11):
Absolutely what clarity provides for my leadership team,
for myself, it keeps me focused.
It keeps us all focused in whatmatters most.
I keep saying it, and what'sreally important is we are all
staying the course, because whatwe're doing is we are
(21:34):
consistent in terms of ourexpectations and then we are
also persistent in ensuring thatit's actually happening as
planned.
Another important component toall of this, drew, is our school
planning.
So the school planning as partof the school improvement plan
(21:56):
Back in 2021, we also didexternal validation, which set
us set my team and I up nicelyto actually begin the journey
with clarity, with the schoolexcellence framework, with CC
case studies as well.
So what we did, drew, wasobviously, we created our plan,
(22:18):
and colleagues who go to anypublic schools' websites can
download the plan.
The plan is a couple of pagesand it's all text.
So the first thing I did wasconverted the school plan into
an infograph.
So there's nothing magicalthere.
You know.
We just took the school plan.
(22:39):
We have an infograph for eachstrategic direction and each
strategic direction has twoinitiatives with the two
different infographs.
They're printed on a canvas andproudly displayed in the office
for you.
So what that means is when youvisit Winding and you want to
know about Winding public school, you just look at the free
(23:00):
canvases and that's our totalplan.
Again, nothing magical there.
Where the magic happened, drew,was late.
Last year I attended a PLsession with the, with my Dell
Karen Brown and the PSL, dahliaFibs, where they led us through
(23:21):
our three strategic directions,the actual initiatives and the
purpose.
So we really unpacked thepurpose for each strategic
direction.
So, all of a sudden, the textfrom the school plan.
We had more clarity becausethat included, for example I'll
(23:44):
give you an example might be abit easier.
So we started with okay, weneed to collaborate and
implement evidence-basedteaching across literacy and
numeracy.
Okay, that's great, but whatdoes that actually mean?
So we unpack that.
Drew (24:07):
Yeah, they're like there can be some more tokenistic
statements, can't they thosethings like?
But then it's like, well, whatdoes that actually look like and
feel like in a New South Walespublic education school?
Absolutely.
Loreta (24:20):
So for strategic direction one, we need to
collaborate and implementevidence-based teaching across
literacy and numeracy.
Well, that's great.
What does that mean?
So the unpacking included.
If we engage teachers inhigh-impact professional
learning, in explicit teachingand evidence-based literacy and
numeracy pedagogy, then teachersare skilled at evaluating and
(24:44):
tailoring English andmathematics units of work so
that all students improve inreading, comprehension, spelling
, number sense and place value.
So all of a sudden, now thathas been unpacked and is much,
much clearer in terms of what weneed to do, a winding Now, what
(25:06):
I did drew was this was great,but it still wasn't exactly what
I wanted.
It's really important for me atmy school for everyone to
understand what their role andresponsibility is.
So I then took the samestrategy, which is the theory of
action by Vivian Robinson, andwe actually then unpacked each
(25:29):
one at several staff meetings.
So what we did drew is.
So, now that we understand whatwe need to do, I Said to all my
teachers, after putting them ingroups, I said to the AK as a
school, for us to achievestrategic direction one, what do
I need to do as your principal?
(25:50):
Everybody loves to tell theprincipal what they need to be
doing.
My staff told me exactly what Ineed to be doing.
I'll read a couple of dogpoints.
They said to achieve the above.
To achieve the above, theprincipal needs to take this
action Provide time forcollaboration, professional
(26:11):
learning and planning Gradualimplementation of new
initiatives, provideopportunities to see models of
explicit teaching and Sureresources for implementation of
explicit teaching.
I'm sure, perfect, thank you.
All that was written by mystyle.
Then what I said to the groupsokay, now, if I'm doing my job
(26:35):
and I'm Actioning all these dotpoints, what do you need from
the assistant principal tosupport you teachers in the
classroom so that our studentscan achieve these outcomes?
Same process.
The teachers then all identifiedwhat there's, what their
expectation was of the assistantprincipals Said okay, that's
(26:57):
great.
Now Can you please tell me ifthe principal is doing their job
, if the assistant principal isdoing their job, as per what
you've noted, what do you expectfrom the students?
What would you like thestudents to be doing?
Again, they identified severaldot points of the expectations
of every child hey to six.
Then I came all the way aroundwhen back to the teachers said
(27:22):
right, if I, as the principal,am doing this and the assistant
principals are doing their partand the students are responding
and doing what you've asked themto do.
What is your job in this?
What do you have to do as ateacher?
To support the process for ourstudents to be literate numerate
, from when they go to year sixto year seven, and they can
(27:47):
write.
Then the teachers actually wrotewhat their role and
responsibility would be as partof this strategic direction,
which is absolute gold, becausewhat we have now is we have
teachers committed to the schoolplan With explicit instructions
for every initiative, soeverybody understands clearly
(28:08):
what they need to be doing Toensure this is happening.
I now have mid-year check-inpoints and the med year check-in
points is so.
For example, other teachershere have written and if
teachers also take this actionhigh expectations of student
engagement, explain purpose oflearning.
So we're talking about learningintentions and success criteria
(28:30):
, dynamic programming responsiveto student needs.
So my mid-year end of yearcheck-ins are Aligned to those
dot points and the beauty of allof this is the teachers wrote
this.
This is what they have Drafterthat, this is what has been
approved, this is what has beenshared with community and these
(28:53):
are commitments from 2022 to2026 and we are staying our
course and this is the directionof the bus starting from
yourself and making yourselfvulnerable in that you know, and
also making yourself I want tolisten and showing.
Drew (29:12):
I've now, I've done this.
My assistant principals.
Now they're going to implementthis and then, instead of taking
it, good, here you further.
Now, teachers, what are yougoing to do?
How can we support you throughour students?
What's the expectation ofstudents?
So you've, you've, establishedwhat a good learning culture,
(29:34):
expectation, looks like, can you?
And also not only that, you'vealso explored Vivianne Robinson,
which I'm a bit at big advocateof her work as well, through
this of the theory of action.
How long was that process,loretta, until you went?
Okay, now we are.
We are really starting to nowDrive into our school plan here,
(29:57):
through with it, with theimplementation of the clarity
learning suite.
Loreta (30:04):
Absolutely so.
Establishing and unpacking inrelation to the school plan and
then having our theory of actionstrategy for each initiative
took close to eight months.
It was it took time.
It was important for that timeto.
It was important to invest thetime, because people need time
(30:31):
to really think about exactlywhat they're committing to and
exactly to what's going to helpus to improve student outcomes
and to continue on theircontinuous school improvement.
Drew (30:41):
So, while this is all happening, loretta, were you and
your executive working throughthe clarity learning suite at
that time before?
The teachers became part ofthat journey as well.
Is that, is that the?
Am I reading that right?
Loreta (30:58):
Absolutely so.
The executive and I have beenon the clarity journey close to
two years now.
So, while all of this ishappening and remembering we had
COVID, leading through thecomplexities of COVID, shortage
of teachers and everything elsethat happens in a school.
So the executive and our yes,working through clarity over the
(31:20):
last two years and, at the sametime, working towards the
positive school culture withinmy school.
So, for example, regularlydoing short, sharp activities
with staff, for example, in astaff meeting, just doing the 25
(31:43):
fabulous things about WindangPublic School.
So what I did was, instead ofasking staff, you know what
didn't work or what do you wantto stop, et cetera.
The conversation is write down10 things you absolutely love
and you're very happy about thatyou can see at Windang Public
School.
So that instantly changes thenarrative number one.
(32:06):
So that changes the culture andthe lots of different
activities, as the one I've justshared Again, strategies that I
have accessed from variousdifferent books and from
principals who have beenextremely successful, and that's
(32:27):
across the globe, not just NewSouth Wales, but Drew.
I just want to touch one morething in terms of culture.
What was really important to mehere at Windang was that every
staff member was known, is knownand feels valued and
appreciated and part of theschool culture.
So this year when we did ourstaff photo, I ensured that that
(32:51):
staff photo also includes Glen,our crossing supervisor.
It also includes our twocleaners, also includes the GA,
the Cairnt team manager.
So everybody is part of theschool team because everybody's
job is just as important.
So, for example, if Glen's nothere in the mornings to
(33:12):
supervise the crossing, then Ihave to go out there, or one of
my executive team.
But if you make people feelvalued and be genuine because
they know if you're genuine ornot if you make people feel
valued and they're part of theteam, they want to come to work.
They love coming to work, whichis why our attendance rate,
(33:36):
including our students we'reactually for seven weeks
straight with top attendance inthe network.
Drew (33:45):
Fantastic work, Loretta.
You should be very proud andI'm sure you are, in terms of
the same.
Let's move to further into cango a couple of directions here I
was going to go into you didthe work with your executive.
Can you go into where you're atin the journey of
implementation, from moving fromexecutive into the teacher
(34:09):
implementation of ClarityLearning Suite.
Loreta (34:14):
Absolutely.
The one thing that resonatedwith me from the Clarity
Learning Suite was knowledgeableothers how important and
powerful it is to haveknowledgeable others, and that's
in all aspects.
In terms of leading a school, Ifeel very privileged to be the
(34:37):
principal and to be the leaderof one of our amazing public
schools in New South Wales, butI cannot do this job on my own
without the knowledgeable othersaround me.
So I've had the same commitmentfor my staff.
So what I'm trying to share isin terms of mathematics.
There was a strong need toimprove mathematics across the
(35:01):
school.
So not approximately 18 months,we started our journey with
Anita Chin, who is a numeracyexpert across the state.
She became our knowledgeableother for 12 months, upskilling
dem lessons with teachers,providing feedback to teachers
(35:24):
to really invest in teachers.
So we've done that.
At the beginning of last term wekicked off our relationship
with the 24-7 training team, whoare literacy experts.
So we're working closely withMel Kase from the 24-7 training
(35:46):
team.
She's actually here today andher job is to upskill all
teachers so that all theteachers at Windham Public
School K-6 are strong in everyaspect of literacy to support
our students in the classroom.
So knowledgeable othersextremely important and they
(36:12):
come in the forms of otherprincipals, other colleagues,
other teachers, our corporatecolleagues and then, obviously,
our consultants, who havecredibility because they have
led transformation acrossdifferent systems, different
schools, across different statesWith the 24-7 training team.
(36:35):
They're also global as well, soat the moment they're our
knowledgeable others, but theymay not be in the future, once
all the teachers are at acertain level.
Drew (36:48):
Okay.
So in terms of that's great, interms of the support mechanisms
you're putting in, where doesthe clarity learning suite fit
in that transformation forteachers?
Loreta (37:02):
That's parameter number seven, drew, which is focus,
professional learning at staffmeetings.
It's also parameter 11,collaborative inquiry in terms
of whole system approach.
And again, this is why I lovethe 14 parameters, because they
(37:23):
explained the why and the how,and it's the how that's the most
powerful.
Okay, that's great.
We know what we need to do, buthow are we going to make it
happen?
So, in terms of knowledgeableothers, that works side by side
with our case managementapproach.
What the case managementapproach is all about is there
(37:47):
is data and teaching andlearning associated with
February child.
So we basically wrap aroundevery single student at Windang
Public School with the learningthat they need to achieve.
And we can only do that througha case management approach
where we have weekly meetingswith key personnel.
(38:07):
Teachers are involved, studentlearning support officers are
involved, school counselorsinvolved.
It just depends on the need ofthe child.
So we are really workingtowards every child being
literate, numerate and can writefrom year six to year seven and
being at grade level.
Drew (38:29):
Well, it's that notion that every child can succeed
which is that ethos through andyou can hear it in your voice of
every child can succeed,through public education, just
ensuring that the parameters ofsuccessor put up so that they
can actually succeed.
Finally, you said you'vecommenced the introduction of
the data walls in a staff at thestart of this term, 2023, and
(38:55):
you said that it's transformedthe professional conversation
among teachers in the staff room.
Can you go into that a littlebit further of how that has
happened in such a short periodof time, or would you say it's
that build up prior work, thatit's just naturally progressed?
Loreta (39:15):
Honestly, I am very proud of our data wall as my
executive and teachers, and thereason we're very proud of our
data wall is it's actually nowallowed us to have professional
conversations about the needs ofevery student and really
knowing every student fromkindergarten to year six.
(39:38):
We have just under 200 kids atour school and I can share with
you that I know all the kidsnames, I know exactly where
they're sitting in terms oftheir learning, and so do my
teachers.
So the data wall happened andthe conversations were
(40:01):
transformed overnight becausethe conversation.
So I'll give you an example.
So, for example, there aredifferent sections of the data
wall.
Section number one is K to 2,and what we have is we use the
Australian decodables K to 2.
So we have our data wall thatidentifies every child in terms
(40:22):
of how they are going withlearning to read.
They are aligned on the datawall based on their level and
what happens is teachers arestanding there and having
conversations.
Now there are nine levelsassociated with the Australian
decodables.
(40:43):
So, as a principal and also asmy executive, I often, if not
every day, will go and have alook at the data.
The next day I'll do the same.
The next day, I'll do the same,and after a fortnight, if a
child hasn't progressed, theconversation with the teacher is
instant.
It's okay.
Well, such and such has beenhere.
(41:04):
What have you done over thelast fortnight?
What support do you need fromthe learning and support team so
we can support you for such andsuch to actually improve?
So what the data wall hasallowed us to do is to not miss
any child.
No children are being lost forthe net.
(41:27):
Every child is known and thedata and how they are
progressing is on that wall.
Because I get it like a lot ofall the data is in a spreadsheet
, it's in a software programsomewhere, but it's not visual,
it's not right there in yourface and you can't hide when
it's there in front of you.
(41:48):
And the beauty of having thedata wall is teachers.
The conversation they arehaving is oh, I had such and
such last year and this is whatI tried and it worked really
well for them.
Maybe you might want to givethat a go, if we have.
Well, we would, because allschools do children who are not
(42:09):
progressing for a full day oflearning every day.
Drew (42:17):
Yeah, so where do the data walls?
Where do they exist in yourschool context?
Loreta (42:26):
In the staff room.
The data wall includes trackingfor the Australian Decodable
Readers, K-2.
Then we have a data wallaligned to the learning
progressions.
We have understanding text andwe have creating text.
We also have the data wall forour NAP plan results.
We also have a data wall forour phonics assessment as well,
(42:50):
and we also have informationassociated with Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander childrenas well.
There are 18% of Aboriginal andTorres Strait Islander children
at Windang Public School andI'm absolutely proud to share
that.
They are on par or doing betterthan all the children at our
(43:12):
school, Because at Windang webelieve high expectations for
every single child.
Drew (43:22):
Do the staff get overwhelmed with the amount of
data that they're looking at, orhow is that managed?
Because it's visual, it's easyto unpack and understand and
they understand the purpose.
Loreta (43:37):
Absolutely so.
Every four weeks all staff havea professional data planning
day and at those four weeksstaff are led by an assistant
principal.
We have the data conversationsand staff are actually teachers
are creating a data action plan,so they are actually officially
(44:00):
updating the data wall everyfour weeks.
But I often see teachersthroughout the week or when
children progress.
They'll quickly just go movethat child's photo to where they
should be.
The feedback from staff hasbeen extraordinary.
The feedback from staff hasbeen so positive that I wish I
(44:23):
did it a few years back.
Drew (44:25):
For fellow principals or educational leaders considering
clarity learning sweet.
What advice would you give them?
Loreta (44:34):
Why the books.
Hand out the book to theexecutives.
Start with the threenon-negotiables, even if you
start with parameter number one.
It's really important to havethat shared belief and
understanding amongst your team.
If you do not have that, itmakes it extremely difficult.
I would strongly suggest, interms of building the school
(44:58):
culture and starting with thenotion of are you an energy
vampire?
You should self assess yourself.
If you are going to work andyou are being negative, that is
going to show in your style.
So the first thing I did was Iself reflected and thought, okay
, if I don't want any energyvampires in my school, well, I
(45:25):
need to not be an energy vampiremyself.
I need to stay positive andjust lead with that passion and
excitement.
And really, andrew, it's allabout the students.
Students come first.
Drew (45:46):
You haven't been an energy vampire today.
You've been full of energy,full of enthusiasm.
It's been a pleasure to get toknow you further through our
podcast today and for ouraudience.
Loretta, thank you very muchfor your time today.
Loreta (46:04):
I really appreciate it, thank you.
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