Exploring School Change: Finding What Really Matters
Think about the challenges in your school right now: behaviour issues, curriculum changes, staff workload, and parent concerns. Sound familiar?
In my work with school leaders, I've noticed something interesting. When we try to solve everything at once, we often create our biggest challenge.
For instance…
A leadership team came to me with a list of 15 different initiatives they wanted to implement.
They had plans for a new behaviour system, curriculum changes, well-being programs, and parent engagement strategies.
Now, these weren't bad ideas. In fact, they were all valuable initiatives.
The challenge wasn't the ideas themselves but trying to implement everything at once.
It's a bit like trying to have fifteen different conversations simultaneously - you might be hearing everyone, but you're not really listening to anyone.
The Power of Definition
This is where the 'Define' stage becomes crucial in a change process. It's about making thoughtful choices and finding the courage to say "not now" to good ideas so we can fully commit to what's most important right now.
One of my favourite ways to think about this is like a camera lens.
When you're taking a photo, you have to decide what's going to be in focus. You can't have everything sharp at once - you need to choose your focal point. School change works in much the same way.
Exploring the Challenge
When we're working to define your focus, there are three areas worth exploring together:
Reframing
Carol Dweck's work on growth mindset has fascinating applications beyond individual learning - it's powerful for organisational change too. Let me share an example:
I worked with a school struggling with staff collaboration. They started by saying, "Staff won't share resources." But when we reframed it to "How might we build a culture where sharing feels natural?" everything shifted. The energy changed, the conversations evolved, and different solutions emerged.Visualising Success
What might success look like? What would we see and hear? These aren't just theoretical questions - they help us define where we want to go.Balancing Feelings with Facts
Daniel Kahneman talks about fast and slow thinking - both matter in schools. Here's a real example:
I worked with a school where behaviour incident numbers were decreasing, but teachers were reporting increased stress. When we dug deeper, we discovered why - while there were fewer incidents, they were more complex, involving serious issues like bullying and home situations. Without looking at both the data and the lived experience, we would have missed the real challenge.
Finding Your Focus
When you're in this definition stage, perhaps the most powerful question is: If you could only solve one challenge, what would it be? This isn't just about prioritising - it's about finding what might create positive ripples throughout your school.
Remember, any change has costs - not just financial, but time, energy, and emotional investment, too. As Patrick Lencioni points out, the question isn't whether there will be costs but whether they'll be worth the benefits.
A Practical Step Forward
Here's something you might find helpful:
At your next meeting, try starting with five minutes of silence. Ask everyone to write down what they think the core challenge is. No discussion, just writing. What often emerges are different perspectives on what seemed like one clear challenge. Then, look for patterns - where do these perspectives overlap?
You'll know you're on the right track when people start feeling a little uncomfortable. If everyone's completely comfortable, we might need to dig deeper.
Before you go, consider this: What challenge in your school, if addressed, might make other challenges easier to tackle? Not necessarily the most urgent or visible one, but the one at the root of other issues.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. What emerges as you reflect on your school's challenges?
