Dr Kenneth Taylor is headteacher at St Mary’s Music School in Edinburgh, one of five government-supported specialist music schools in the UK and the only one of its kind in Scotland.
1. The most important qualities a school leader needs are...
Empathy, integrity, energy and kindness.
2. What I’ve learned from doing this job is...
Staff and pupils have almost unlimited abilities to develop and excel, but only when given appropriate opportunities and, ideally, optimal resources and facilities. Every space we have at St Mary’s Music School is utilised to provide the best environment for a specialist music education. Our move to the new National Centre for Music at the former Royal High School will provide even better facilities.
3. The best change I ever made in my school was...
Opening up our school’s Masterclass Series to teachers and young musicians from all over Scotland. The series, which features musicians with international profiles, has tripled in scope and last year our pupils were introduced to and worked with 17 world-class musicians, through Zoom videoconferencing. I am pleased to say that we were able to open the series to pupils and teachers from other schools, too.
4. My top priority for my school is...
Giving pupils an environment in which the only limit to their learning is the number of hours in each day. As one of only a handful of specialist music schools in the UK, we work to ensure that each pupil has the opportunity to maximise their musical and creative abilities.
5. My most memorable moment as a school leader was...
Listening one morning to a pupil performance of the Smetana Piano Trio given to visitors to the school. Quite often I will hear a pupil group performing a piece for the first time in such a public setting. At the time I wasn’t familiar with the music, but it was a very emotional few minutes and made a lasting impression on everyone there.
6. The worst mistake I ever made was...
It was some years ago and I learned my lesson - I started to describe the progress of a child to the wrong parent. Happily, they let me know fairly quickly.
7. My top tip for aspiring school leaders is...
It’s about getting the tension right between leadership and management - doing the right thing rather than doing things “right”. That approach often takes more time and sometimes courage, but in my experience, it always leads to better outcomes.
8. When dealing with challenging pupils my go-to strategy is...
You must know the pupils. Know their circumstances and establish some common ground with each of them - even some non-threatening topic of conversation you can return to - which helps them to appreciate that you are interested in them as an individual. From there, find out what their ambitions are and try to get them to understand that the school is there to help them achieve these.
9. The best CPD I ever did was...
By some way, it was a series of sessions on Thinking Science led by Carolyn Yates and City of Edinburgh Council back in 1999. The approaches used in the programme apply theories of learning to the classroom, challenging youngsters’ misconceptions and promoting sophisticated thinking patterns in very practical and engaging ways. I am still using the lessons today at St Mary’s Music School.
10. If I could change something about Scottish education it would be...
I would love to know that singing was happening every day in every primary school classroom in Scotland. Singing is a powerful force for good, promoting teamwork, confidence and general wellbeing and, of course, it’s the perfect introduction to a life enriched by music.
Interview by Tes Scotland reporter Emma Seith
