Middle leader educators – who are they and what do they do? The latest Spotlight Middle leadership in Australian schools, released today by the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL), finds that middle leaders are highly experienced educators, often promoted to their role because of their high-quality teaching skills and experience.
Sometimes known as head teachers, assistant principals, directors of curriculum, or a plethora of other titles, middle leadership roles in Australian schools can be loosely divided into three categories: pedagogical leadership, student-based leadership, and program leadership.
AITSL CEO Mark Grant states, “Middle leaders are integral to their schools and school communities. They skilfully use a combination of collaboration, communication, management, and facilitation skills to share their expertise, thereby shaping teaching practices and learning outcomes.
“Currently, there’s no shared definition of middle leadership in Australia. Middle leadership roles and responsibilities are defined and assigned differently across Australian schools.
“AITSL has just begun a partnership with the Queensland Department of Education to develop and trial professional standards for middle Leaders. By drawing on the expertise of all systems and sectors during development, we will achieve standards that will support the development and expertise of this vital cohort of leaders – tomorrow’s school principals and heads. This is great news for our middle leaders, their colleagues, and the students they support,” Mr Grant said.
You can read the November Spotlight here.
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Note for Editors - The Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) provides national leadership for the Australian, state and territory governments in promoting excellence in the profession of teaching and school leadership.