Diploma of School
Business Management
Reflective Log
1Purpose
The purpose of the Reflective Log is to provide you with a record of your thoughts, observations, ideas and reflections as you work through the programme. You can use the Log to record:
a)Reflections on activities carried out at the three phase workshops
b)The outcomes of any Module Activities you complete
c)Reflections on online discussions conducted through ‘My Network’
d)Comments/feedback from your mentor
You will find these reflections useful when you come to complete the assessment tasks:
a)Most of the Module Activities have a clear link to the assessment task at the end of the module. By completing the activities as you work through a module, you will be building up some of the knowledge and information that you will need to fulfil the assessment requirements. By regularly reflecting upon what you have read or investigated, you will be developing your ability to provide evidence against the ‘Analysis, reflection and personal learning’ assessment criteria
Assessment criteria: Analysis, reflection and personal learning
This area focuses on the ability of you to manage your own professional learning, reflect on experience, develop insights into yourself, and take action to enhance your competency through the programme. It also covers your ability to make effective decisions, exercise sound judgement and make ethical choices in your professional practice.
b)The assessment task at phase 5 (reproduced in the box) asks you to produce a personal statement about the impact of the DSBM programme on you and your school, which will then form the basis of a 30 minutes discussion with an assessor. You will find it much easier to complete this task if you record your thoughts as you progress through the programme, rather than trying to recall everything you have done at the very end.
Phase 5 Assessment
Phase Five of the programme involves completion on an assessment ‘module’, although there is no taught content related to this. The assessment involves a personal statement and interview, conducted via WebEx. The statement and interview focus on:
- Your progression through the programme and completion of the previous phases;
- Gains in terms of your professional competency and study skills;
- Reflections on the lessons you have learned and your personal development;
- The impact on the school in terms of its performance, efficiency, systems and cultures
- Your knowledge and understanding of the profession of school business management and your changing role as an SBM; and
- Your plans for further professional development and career progression
Additional Notes
- We recommend that you complete, and store, the Reflective Log electronically until you have completed each module, and then print it off and store in a file.
- You should keep any diagnostics you complete in your Reflective Log.
- You are not expected to complete all of the Activities. You should choose those which you feel are likely to be of greatest benefit to you.
- You may wish to store newspaper articles, extracts from websites etc in your Reflective Log.
- Your Reflective Log is your personal possession. It does not have to be handed in, nor will your facilitator ask to see it (although he/she may give you guidance as to which Activities he/she thinks you should complete). The Reflective Log is not part of the assessment requirements for the programme.
- We would advise that you record your thoughts and comments as notes rather than continuous prose.
Diploma of School
Business Management
Phase 4 Module 1: Understanding school improvement
Reflections
Activity 1.1: What is Quality?
There are many possible indicators of the quality of a school’s educational provisionand some are listed below. Think about each quality indicator and then decide:
a) Whether it is a process or an output indicator – show this by writing ‘O’ or ‘P’ in
the second column.
b) Which your school values most highly – this judgement should be based notupon what the school says but what it actually does (for example a school maysay that it values extracurricular activities, but whenever it receives anyadditional funding this is used for extra lessons). Award the Quality Indicatorthe school values most highly a rank order of ‘1’, the second ‘2’ etc.
Quality Indicator / O/P / Rank / ExplanationPerformance in public examinations
Engagement of parents in pupils learning
Professional skills of staff
Engagement with other agencies, local stakeholders
Relationships between pupils
and staff
Pupil happiness and engagement as indicated by
feedback from ‘pupil voice’
mechanisms
Progression to the next stage (e.g. readiness for high
school, employment, higher education)
Activity 1.2: School Improvement
Download a copy of the 2010 White Paper 'The Importance of Teaching' from the Module resources. Skim the whole document then focus on chapter 7 'School Improvement' and compare the policies proposed in the White Paper with the research findings listed above to see if you can find evidence that the White Paper has been influenced by the research into school effectiveness.
At the same time think about the strategies currently being used in your school to bring about improvement and which of these has been influenced by the evidence above.
Use the table below to record your thoughts. You may be able to find more than one example in many of these sections.
Factors which contribute to school effectiveness (research findings) / Policies in 2010 White Paper which relate to the research / Policies in my school which relate to the researchHome and school
Focus on teacher effectiveness
School leadership and management
Within-school variation
Context matters
Additive effects of home and school
Early years effect
Activity 1.3: A culture of school improvement
Reflect upon your school’s successes in bringing about school improvement. Has progress been sustained, or is it lumpy?
For this exercise choose a relevant performance indicator to focus on (e.g. % of pupils achieving level 4 at KS 2; % of pupils achieving 5+ A*-C grades; CVA data etc). Gather the last 6 year’s data for your school and record this in column two. In column three, indicate whether or not the school’s performance rose or declined whencompared to the previous year. Finally, in column four, write down the reasons why the school’s performance rose or fell.
Year / Score onPerformance
Indicator / Change
+ or – / Explanation for movement
Last year (YYYY)
(YYYY)
(YYYY)
(YYYY)
(YYYY)
(YYYY)
Activity 1.4: Self-evaluation – how rigorous are we?
Review your school’s self-evaluation processes against the 6 questions suggested by
the DfES. To do this most effectively will probably require access to your school SEF,
or it’s supporting documentation.
You can ‘grade’ your school using the following scale:
1 = Outstanding. The school is extremely rigorous, open and honest in this area.
2= Good. In general we are effective, but there are improvements we could make.
3 = Satisfactory. We carry out the processes, but our approach sometimes lacks
rigour and we are not open and honest with ourselves.
4 = Inadequate. Our approach is underdeveloped and the quality of systems,
processes and judgements is weak.
Self-evaluationquestions / Grade / Comment to support grade
1 / Does the self-evaluation identify how well our school serves its learners?
2 / How does our school compare with the best schools, and the best comparable schools?
3 / Is the self-evaluation integral
to our key management systems?
4 / Is our school’s self evaluation
Based on a good range of telling evidence?
5 / Does our self-evaluation and
planning involve key people in the
school and seek the views of
parents, learners and external
advisers and agencies?
6 / Does our self-evaluation lead to
action to achieve the school’s longer
term goals for development?
Activity1.5: School self-evaluation
What evidence can school business managers provide on the effectiveness of their school?
The new SEF (from September 2009) will mirror the judgements that will be made by Ofsted inspectors. Reprinted below are two extracts from the new ‘Inspection Judgement Form’ (Ofsted Evaluation of Judgements Schedule).
Reflect upon your school and consider:
a)The sources of internal evidence your school can draw upon to support its self-evaluation
for each item.
b)The evidence the school business manager and his/her team could provide to help inform the school’s judgements.
How effective are leadership and management?The effectiveness of leadership and management in embedding
ambition and driving improvement
Taking into account:
• The leadership and management of teaching and learning
The effectiveness of the governing body in challenging and supporting
the school so that weaknesses are tackled decisively and statutory
responsibilities met
The effectiveness of the school’s engagement with parents and carers
The effectiveness of partnerships in promoting learning and well-being
The effectiveness with which the school promotes equal opportunity
and tackles discrimination
The effectiveness of safeguarding procedures
The effectiveness with which the school promotes community
cohesion
The effectiveness with which the school deploys resources to achieve
value for money
Activity1.6: School improvement planning.
The diagnostic below has been adapted from the TDA’s School Improvement framework (2008). Complete the diagnostic for your school by indicating for each of the items where you think your school is now. For example, in responding to question (a) if only the headteacher is involved in developing the plan, you should place a tick on the extreme left of the scale.
When you have completed the diagnostic, reflect upon the outcomes, identifying aspects of the process you feel are positive features, and aspects that will benefit from further development.
a. Who is involved in the process of developing your school improvement plan?
Members of the SLT
A wide range of stakeholders, including the whole school workforce, governors, cluster partners, other agencies , parents and pupils actively contribute
to our planning
I ______I______I______I______I A wide range of stakeholders, including the
whole school workforce, governors, agencies , parents and pupils
actively contribute to our planning
b. Who takes the lead in your planning process?
Primarily the head teacher
Leadership is distributed at all levels of the school workforce throughout the process to create ownership, opportunities for developing leadership potential and capacity for continuous improvement
I______I______I______I______I
c. What is the scope of your school improvement plan?
Diploma of School
Business Management
Phase 4 Module 2: Leading and managing change
Reflections
Activity 2.1: PESTLE analysis
Carry out a PESTLE analysis for your school focussing, in part, on the schoolimprovement that you identified for the assessment task for module 1 of phase 3 – thisanalysis may help you to clarify where the pressures for this change originally camefrom.
PoliticalEconomical
Social
Technical
Legal
Environmental
Activity 2.2: SWOT analysis
Reflect upon a recent change or a change which is imminent in your school.
Use the enhanced SWOT grid below to identify:
- The focus of the change
- The areas of strength, weakness, opportunities and threats related to
the stated area of change
- How you will maximise your strengths and minimise the weaknesses
Focus of the change:
Translate into tasks for the
project plan / Strengths
(list strengths) / Weaknesses
(list weaknesses)
Opportunities
(list opportunities) / In this box identify howyou will use thesestrengths to takeadvantage of these
opportunities. / In this box identify howyou will overcome theweaknesses to take
advantage of theseopportunities.
Threats
(list threats) / In this box identify howyou will use thesestrengths to reduce thelikelihood and impact ofthese threats / In this box identify howyou will overcome theweaknesses that will makethese threats a reality.
Activity 2.3: The ‘7S’ model
Reflect upon a change which you would like to introduce in your school. Use the 7S model to analyse your current situation. Each box has prompts as to the sort of question you might ask – you do not need to answer them all, you may think of others.
If you wish, you can then use the model to describe your future ‘desired’ situation for each of the 7 S’s
Focus of the change:Strategy:
What is our strategy?
How do we intend to achieve our objectives (what is our plan, do we have one?)
Structure:
How is the school/support staff organised?
How do the various parts link together?
How do teams work?
Do they connect with each other?
How are decisions made? ‘Top down’, ‘bottom up’, shared’?
What formal and informal communication systems exist?
Systems:
What are the main systems that are in place to run the school/support staff functions?
How are these systems monitored and evaluated for theireffectiveness?
Shared Values:
What are the school’s stated values?
What are the values of the support staff team?
Style:
Is the leadership style democratic, affiliative, coaching etc?
Is the leadershipstyle(s) effective orappropriate?
Do team members workcollaboratively?
Staff:
Do any positions needto be filled?
Are there any missing ?
Skills:
Which skills do we havein the school/team?
Are there any skills weneed?
What is the school/teamgood at doing?
Do the team membershave the right skills forthe tasks that will berequired in the future?
Activity 2.4: Change culture audit
How would you describe your school’s (or your section of the school) approach or attitude tochange?
a) Consider the 4 approaches described in fig 5.1 and indicate in column two if thisapproach is used:
(i) very often (ii) sometimes (iii) very infrequently (iv) rarely.
b) In column three, comment upon whether you feel your school should use this approachmore or less often, explaining your reasons.
Approach/culture / Frequency / Use more? Use less?
Super tankers
Space explorers
Fire-fighters
Bandwagons
Activity 2.5: Using Force Field Analysis
a)Use the template below to conduct a force field analysis of the changes you proposed to make as part of your work on Managing School Improvement in module 1.
b)When you have completed your analysis, write brief comments on what might be done to weaken the key inhibiters and strengthen the key facilitating forces?
c)How helpful was this tool in helping to clarify your thinking about the key drivers and key restrainers to change?
Force Field AnalysisFocus of Change:
Drivers / Restrainers
1.
2.
3.
4.
Activity 2.6: Managing concerns
Consider both the individuals and the team that will be most affected by the change(s) you are proposing as part of your Managing School Improvement study.
Using tables 6.1 and 6.2 identify some of the fear types that might be present – this will be best achieved by thinking about the actual people involved.
Then complete the remainder of the table and reflect upon its implications for the introduction of this change.
Fear type / Nagging question / Response / Priority / Coping strategyDiploma of School
Business Management
Phase 4 Module 3:Improving efficiency and strategic management
Reflections
Activity 3.1: Measuring Value for Money
a) Calculate your school’s ‘VfM ratio’ by inserting your data into the ‘my school’ column in the table below.
b) Ask a colleague to exchange their data with you and insert this in the ‘colleague’s school’ column.
c) Compare the results between of the two schools. What are the strengths of using this model to compare the VfM of the two schools? What are the limitations of using this model to compare the VfM of the two schools?
My School / Colleague’sSchool
Secondary school - Value added betweenKey Stages 2 and 4 [A]
Primary school – Value added
between Key Stages 1 and 2
Per Pupil Formula funding (£’000) [B]
‘VfM’ ratio = [A/B]
Activity 3.2: Accountability for VfM
In the table below are some of the regulatory mechanisms schools are potentially subject to. Reflect upon your school’s experience of each of them over the last 2/3 years commenting upon:
a) The judgements made (if any) on your school’s VfM (i.e. did you agree with them, were they helpful)?
b) The importance attached to achieving VfM e.g. was the school asked to provide evidence of its activities?
Regulatory Mechanism / CommentOfsted Inspection
FMSiS application
Local Authority Audit
External Audit
Governor Monitoring
Local Authority ‘clawback’
Activity 3.3: How effective are your school’s procurement processes?
Listed below are the ‘Top 10 procurement tips for schools’ which can be accessed at
For each tip, comment on your school’s practice. For example, is this something you do regularly or is this something you could improve upon?
Tip / CommentDevelop procurement expertise —
nominate and train someone to coordinate
everything centrally.
Plan ahead — identify your requirements
early to get the best deal.
Know your own power — how much can
you spend, are there limits
Don't buy unless you need to — does
anyone have a spare?
Don't spend hours saving a pound —
consider the total cost of procurement.
Look for alternatives — branded products may not always be the best.
Improve your buying power — work with
your local consortia or authority to get a
better deal
Negotiate, negotiate, negotiate – get the best deal for your money
Get it in writing — read and understand the
small print.
Share best practice — if you've got a good
deal, share it!
Activity 3.4: Measuring the value for money of staff?
In the preceding section we raised the question of how schools ensure that their expenditure on staffing represents VfM. The model provided by the Audit Commission (fig 6.3) suggests four questions a school business manager might ask: