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Especially
for Co-ordinators - Managing the English Program
Staff Meetings
General principles
Different purposes for staff meetings
Running staff meetings
General
Principles
As
English co-ordinator, it is important to be well organised for all staff
meetings.
Staff
meetings are important for passing on information, developing teamwork,
sharing ideas, supporting professional learning and organising new initiatives.
Schools should have allocation of time for English staff meetings. Ensure
that this time is an integral aspect of the school program. Attendance
at meetings by senior management is desirable.
In
secondary schools, staff meetings should be held regularly and time should
be made available during school hours. In primary schools, time should
be allocated to English in general staff meetings and English team meetings
should be held regularly.
Each
meeting of the English team should have a specific focus and realistic
goals. Teachers should be invited to contribute agenda items and an agenda
should be published.
Staff
meetings are central to the establishment and maintenance of the principles
that underline the teaching and learning of English. To achieve this,
the coordinator should ensures there is a set of long-term aims to which
teachers feel committed and that act as a guide in planning the content
of staff meetings. Examples of long-term aims include:
Different
Purposes for Staff Meetings
Building
collegial support networks.
- Strategies
to achieve this should be built into each staff meeting so they are
enjoyable, interactive and encourage a wide range of input. Try providing
food, meeting at a local café or visiting local bookshops. Ensure
teachers have regular opportunities for informal talk and sharing of
resources and ideas.
Reflecting
on whole school as well as English priorities and policies
- Foci could
include such topics as the impact of inclusion,
the use of learning technologies , and
literacy and numeracy in English. These meetings
can often help teachers to contribute to the development of whole school
policies.
Providing
for professional learning
- This could
include input from visiting speakers and teachers with particular expertise
in the school - for example, a drama teacher talking about ice-breakers
to use with new classes. See Co-ordinating Professional
Learning for further suggestions.
Organising
celebrations of students’ work
- There
are numerous ways of celebrating students’ achievements, such as
class or school publications, placing negotiated studies and published
students' writing in libraries or waiting areas for parents to read
and publishing on a web site. Refer to Special
Events for more ideas.
Running
staff meetings Effective
staff meetings develop a sense of collegiality within the English team.
The following suggestions may assist this to develop:
- Rotate
the chairing of meetings.
- Use a
variety of strategies to help everyone to contribute — for example,
pair talk, and think-pair-share.
- Acknowledge
the source and respect the ownership of good ideas — and try to
find a good idea from everyone in the department at some stage.
- Have nominated
time frames and keep to them. (Don’t be afraid to stop the discussion
if it is straying from the topic.)
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