Humans do not like change; we are hardwired not to. Yet education is filled with change: new cohorts, new school inspection frameworks, new pedagogies, new governments. And now, thanks to a switch in focus from Ofsted, most of us are changing the way we see and develop curriculum.
While changing the curriculum can be wonderful, bringing renewed energy and passion, it can be terrifying and upsetting if forced upon staff unexpectedly and without forethought. In my school, I used the work of John Kotter and his eight-step process for leading change to effectively bring in two new curricula, one of which was for RE.
As the name suggests, there are eight specific stages to managing change:
1. Help others to see the need for the change
Firstly, I had to ensure that there was an authentic reason and need for change: would this change improve learning or was it just for Ofsted? If there is no clear reason for change, then the whole process will collapse upon its weak foundations. So I did my homework: I found the academic research and school case studies to support the need to think more carefully about curriculum and the changes I was going to propose.
2. Build a team to champion the change
In schools, this team will, in reality, need to be the majority of staff. They will need to understand and support the need for change.
In my school, this meant a staff meeting to explain the new pedagogy and the rationale for the changes. I was honest, highlighting areas I thought could be difficult, and I also emphasised to support staff what I planned to do. I predicted and highlighted concerns with new pedagogy, allowing time for questioning and frank discussion. I encouraged staff to share thoughts so I could plan CPD.
3. Form strategic visions and practical initiatives
This is the most important stage: make detailed plans so you have a clear idea of how the change could take place. The plan may well change over time, but a clear plan that changes is better than no plan at all.
I planned the roll-out of our new curriculum over three years: a six-month road test, running January to July; a full year of implementation, in which all monitoring was in the form of coaching and discussion; then a final year focused on refining to conclude. I planned time for staff to make mistakes and learn from them: if you give staff permission to fail, they will never really feel like they failed in the first place. I also planned the roll-out so staff were not overwhelmed: we looked at the new assessment methodology only after staff were experienced with the content and pedagogy.
Communication is key - so get writing. Write down exactly what staff need to do. Get into the fine details; use the writing to focus your thinking. Our new curriculum was a major change in pedagogy and content, so I wrote down how staff should approach learning and why - but not how to teach. Create a “How to…” guide so staff have a single, central reference.
4. Get people working on the change
This should not be a long process of theory and then implementation: teachers should be trying things out from the off. Get staff working on a small piece of the new curriculum in lessons straight away. New content and pedagogy? Let staff use the new content with their old pedagogy. I gave staff a sample unit to trial, so they could get a feel for the direction of travel.
5. Remove barriers to change
Do staff need training? I will deliver three continuing professional development events per year to keep our change moving. What resources do staff need? I invested in books to inform staff subject knowledge. Is there a naysayer who needs one-to-one support to change? Give them extra and private support. Fear of failure or a punctured ego can be as much of a barrier as lack of knowledge.
6. Generate short-term wins
Foster enthusiasm with pre-made sample units to teach and innovate on. Ask staff to share their experiences from those first lessons and what they thought went well. Share your own lessons and show what went not so well - your humility will inspire.
7. Sustaining change
Have termly staff meetings to revisit change and allow staff to give their input. Let staff be their own cheerleaders: your time leading the change is coming to an end - if this is to be sustainable, you need to stop being at the forefront of it.
8. Institutional change
The “new” should now be “the normal”. We teach RE weekly, so I estimated six months for the approach to be fully embedded. I planned termly CPD to support and embed the new normal. You will know when the new becomes habitual, and when that happens you need to shift your approach from implementation to maintenance.
Matthew Lane is the RE lead at Hethersett VC Primary School near Norwich. He tweets @MrMJLane
This article originally appeared in the 28 February 2020 issue under the headline “The eight stages of a curriculum revolution”
