It is amazing to reflect on the last five years and to see just how much has been achieved by a group of thousands of educationalists who wish to ensure the very best possible start for all our children and young people.
If I reflect, there are some key pillars to what has been achieved over the last five years.
Recruiting and training the best teachers is the most powerful way in which we can ensure all children have the very best education possible, and Kyra schools have drawn upon their collective strengths to provide the highest standards of teacher training – not least through trainee placements, through mentoring, and through their input into the academic content of teacher training.
We’ve also seen how the alliance has come together to support school to school improvement when it is most needed. There are schools in Lincolnshire that have achieved fantastic progress through their partnership with the support of other Kyra schools. Every child in those schools is benefiting as a result. We’re also all learning from one another in the process, whether its through the fantastic work of the Kids Council (you can read more about this later in the journal) or the work of our Specialist Leaders of Education who are, themselves, honing their leadership skills all the time.
And we’ve seen how the profession can support itself through change. The culture of support that is evident when challenges crop up – most notably in areas such as recruitment, financial challenge, or changes to the curriculum or assessment system - has been a defining feature of Kyra’s work over the past five years. That culture of support is most evident through our networks and, now, through the work of the Research School which brings a deep commitment to using evidence to secure improvement and manage change.
Underpinning all of this, of course, is Kyra’s DNA and our collective commitment to being ambitious for all children in Lincolnshire. That will not waiver as we move forward.
The next few years will require us to be even bolder and more steadfast in how we work together with ambition for children. The world is changing and we have a generation of children and young people who need us to respond to a changing context. There are big questions to ask, not least: how do we secure children’s health and wellbeing in a world of change, uncertainty and complexity?, how do we help children to become masters rather than servants of technology?, and, how do we prepare them to thrive in the future – equipped with the skills and traits that will be at a premium in a rapidly changing economy and society? We cannot simply rely on yesterday’s approaches – but only together can we find the solutions to these very complex and important questions.
There has never been a more important time to work together in the interests of children and young people. If the last five years tell us anything, they tell us that – by working together – we can achieve so much. Let’s celebrate what is past, but more importantly, let’s work together over the next five years to do even more to meet the needs of this generation of pupils – driven, as we all are, by our ambition for children.
Warmest wishes,
Helen Barker
Looking back; Moving forwards; Always Ambitious for Children #KyraJournalNov.18
- Better Together Monks Abbey's perspective on partnership through Kyra
- Leader in Focus Featuring Monks Abbey's Deuty Headteacher Ben Carver
- Kyra Timeline 5 years of Kyra Landmarks from 2012- 2017
- Expert Voice Featuring Professor Toby Greany, UCL Institute of Education
- Kyra at 5 years What do you value?
- Modelling Collaboration Why teaching schools should work together
- Research & Resource Digest A selection of resources for teaching schools