It is reassuring to reach out to others who share a similar experience and realise that you are not alone in your struggle. Anxiety among teaching staff and parents has been climbing since the start of the school year, when the second wave of COVID began to build. Helen has written a first novel, Monkey Boots, and is currently researching a second, funded by Arts Council England. Pupil separation anxiety. Helen Kelly has taught in and led schools in Africa, Europe and Asia over the last twenty years. } else { A woman has told how her life was saved when a bullet bounced off her bra. 2019 Lunch Dates . In my article from 2018, Why are Middle Leaders in Schools so Stressed?, I highlighted the increasing demands experienced by middle leaders over recent years and the accompanying stress that this has brought. No Comments, A game of hurling in Mercedes, Argentina (1917), Added by Helen Kelly Genealogy on October 21, 2014 at 4:30am — Events Search and Views Navigation. Blog; Log in; Funeral Directors - Join now. This alone helps middle leaders feel seen, valued, understood and supported. It is well worth exploring what other services are available in your area or online. For example here in Wales, the Regional Education Consortia has employed a clinical psychologist to provide professional development webinars on how to support the mental health of students and staff, while Public Health Wales has developed a free online course Activate Your Life to help those suffering from anxiety. Leading Through a Pandemic: Are Schools Asking Too Much of Middle Leaders? Senior leaders need to ensure that school culture allows for middle leaders to be open and honest in their opinions about what will and will not work and that their views are taken on board before decisions are made. For international school leaders, this experience may be compounded by the lack of personal and professional support systems that leaders are able to rely upon in their home countries. I want to address the role that middle leaders play in supporting the emotional needs of others and the impact this may be having on their own wellbeing. Addressing the needs of middle leaders will enable schools to cope more effectively during the current crisis and provide a launchpad for future growth. MA in Creative Writing. Found Money Assignment Helen Kelly Case Find the opinion of the Oregon Court of Appeals in the 2008 case of Helen Sollars (aka Helen Kelly) and Estate of Helene Valoff v. City of Milwaukie, and answer the following questions about the case. More schools are adopting programmes to support student wellbeing such as Positive Education and there is increasing attention being paid, although still not sufficient, to supporting the health and building the resilience of teachers. Play builds upon children’s natural curiosity and creativity, develops social skills, builds an understanding of how to approach and solve problems and encourages students to use their initiative from a young age. The weight of responsibility for the effectiveness of a school and wellbeing of a whole community can be heavy to bear alone. It is highly unlikely that students graduating from college today will hold down the same job for life but will instead be employed in the “gig economy” on a series of short-term contracts, which will require them to adapt their skills throughout their lives to match the economic demands of the changing world. 0 Comments Our fundraising pages 1 skip to fundraising section. While some wealthy schools, in the private sector, are providing one-to-one sessions with a clinical psychologist for all staff, on demand, this is not an option available to most institutions. Instead, it is middle leaders who are providing emotional support to colleagues, whose issues may be complex and severe. Show Events Search Events Search. Make a page for Helen . Posted on December 8, 2014 at 8:27am 0 Comments 7 Likes. Researching Your Irish Family History: Census Search Forms, Census Substitutes in Irish Genealogical Research, Using Irish Census Returns in Genealogical Research, Griffith's 'Primary Valuation of Tenements', The Wild Geese Irish Heritage Partnership, This Week in the History of the Irish: March 14 - March 20, An Irish American Family's Huge Sacrifices in World War I, This Week in the History of the Irish: March 28 - April 3, Calvary Cemetery -- Historic Resting Place of the New York Irish. So if school leader wellbeing impacts school performance and student outcomes, is it not well within the purview of the board of governors overarching purpose of raising educational standards in their school? As a coaching company we created a series of roller riding sessions … Also dealing with disciplinaries, performance issues, appeals and restructuring staff due to budget. Privacy Policy  |  if (rand == 1 || rand == 2){ In Is a Sense of Over-responsibility Harming School Leaders? Strong, stable school leadership is closely associated with improved student outcomes, the goal of every school. There will also be boards of governors who care very much about the wellbeing of their head of school/principal and go to great pains to ensure they do not burnout. We know that school leaders are experiencing increasing levels of stress. I once witnessed one of my middle leaders arriving home from school at 8pm. The principal asking this question told the group that she had reached out to her board of governors about her increased workload and stress levels but it had been made clear that they were not interested in discussing or supporting her needs. googletag.defineSlot('/111100742/home_leaderboard', [728, 90], 'leaderboard').addService(googletag.pubads()); Powered by, Badges  |  Loneliness results from inadequate external support, the absence of a trustworthy peer group to confide in and insufficient time to connect with others. Register too. Is a Sense of Over-responsibility Harming School Leaders? Application Form; Blog; International. 4 Comments, The scarcity of 19th century census returns for Ireland means that we genealogists place a huge emphasis on census substitutes. Since I concluded my doctoral research in 2016, I have felt strongly that principal wellbeing will only be significantly improved when governments and boards of governors recognise their school leaders as a precious resource to be valued and nurtured. Since retiring from her work in schools in July 2020, Helen has been based in beautiful North Wales. var src = (useSSL ? document.write('googletag.defineSlot(\"\/111100742\/home_wide_skyscraper\", [160, 600], \"skyscrapper\").addService(googletag.pubads());'); What is a census substitute ? During the first period of working from home in Hong Kong, earlier this year, I made a jacket, which I worked on late each evening when the emails and WhatsApps abated. Even accounting for response bias, this paints a picture of a significant number of school leaders struggling to manage others’ anxiety, feeling unprepared and unsupported. She leads workshops on improving the wellbeing of leaders and educators in international schools. I have no real regrets yet. 3 Comments, Those of us who are involved in long term genealogical research note that ages recorded on census returns and, indeed, on death records are frequently found to be quite inaccurate. Often they take this out on you as a senior leader. Just notify me. In both Germany and Hong Kong, we had strong principals’ networks, which were not only a valuable source of information but helped keep me sane during tough times. She said. HOW CAN WE PERSUADE BOARDS OF GOVERNORS OR TRUSTEES TO TAKE SCHOOL LEADER WELLBEING SERIOUSLY? Lymn Shirebrook. Application Form; Blog; International. googletag.pubads().collapseEmptyDivs(); Loneliness is one of greatest public health challenges of our time, with damage to long-term health as significant as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Share. The Daily Blog - August 6, 2019. Where face-to-face interactions are not an option, there are a wealth of online training providers offering support to school leaders at the moment. Report an Issue  |  })(); Only 32% of leaders feel they are receiving enough emotional support from home or school. History; Liverpool; Contact us; Select Page . The global pandemic brings anxiety for everyone at some level. It is clear that the middle leaders’ role has brought increasing challenges in recent years as discussed in Why are Middle Leaders in Schools so Stressed?. Helen Kelly is a former international school principal, now independent researcher, writer and speaker. If you notice that your senior colleagues are becoming exhausted and are reluctant to take breaks, gently encourage them to take better care of themselves. 1. I try to make sure that I am available to former colleagues around the world and feel privileged when they reach out to me for support. For those struggling to justify this expense to boards of governors/trustees, please see my article How Can We Persuade School Governors/Trustees to Take School Leader Wellbeing Seriously? There is plenty of research to support the importance of the school leader to the success of a school. Even in situations where senior colleagues are on good terms, it takes a strong and trusting team to create an environment where leaders can be vulnerable about their fears, share their anxieties and seek support from each other. So what can be done to support those individuals who struggle alone and what can they do for themselves? In order to get teachers interested in programmes like Positive Education, school leaders need to fully understand the concepts involved and be able lead through doing. Helen Kelly Director. They describe how middle leaders feel squeezed and under appreciated and describe their position as increasingly untenable. There was an awkward silence and people shifted uncomfortably on their chairs. Middle leadership training is overlooked by many schools and until recently, there has been a paucity of options available to train middle leaders but this is changing. Work-related stress has been linked to turnover of staff in a number of occupations plus there is increasing anecdotal evidence that burnout school leaders are leaving the profession and that this is likely to worsen as a result of the COVID crisis. I know that while many have thrived in the face of recent challenges, despite the long hours, others feel they are failing in all elements of their role – failing students, failing their team and failing to impress their leaders. The Loneliness of the International School Leader. If this does not happen, then the best we can hope for is that senior leaders will themselves feel emboldened to raise the issue of their wellbeing and request that their needs are supported. She doesn’t often feel like it but she must be a bit of a brainbox because she has an MA with Distinction in Playwriting and a PhD. var useSSL = 'https:' == document.location.protocol; Helen is currently the Lower School Principal at Canadian International School of Hong Kong, where she leads Project Innovate, a Pre-K-12 initiative to bring future-ready learning to the school. } Senior leaders must not lose sight of the fact that it is middle leaders who are responsible for implementing plans on the ground and that this implementation will be more effective if middle leaders are brought into the process earlier. How often do we make the time to reach out to family and friends at home? I led a workshop last week for 25, mostly senior, leaders from schools around Hong Kong on school leader wellbeing. (function() { Helen Kelly has taught in and led schools in Africa, Europe and Asia over the last twenty years. document.write('