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Context as opportunity: how do leaders view the context around them?

Author: Levin, Ben; MacBeath, John; Wong, KC
Subject: Schools, families and communities
Audience: Headteachers, Middle leaders and aspiring headteachers
Date of publication: June 2006   |   File format and size: PDF, 233 Kb

'Context' is about more than a school's catchment area or its socio-economic setting. In its widest meaning, the context of a school embraces not only place but people, policy and politics. And, as this report explores, it's vitally important that leaders understand how these elements - separately and interlinked - can shape their school's chances of success.

Understanding the context

School leaders need to understand their context in order to:

  • rebut claims or assumptions about their school that could lead to bad decisions
  • be able to evaluate impact in ways that go beyond test scores
  • be confident in choosing their own priorities

Beyond the school

The report also looks at how leaders can further hone their context-reading skills with visits to other schools and settings suggests how they can gain more benefit from these visits.

This is part of a set of booklets called Positive Leadership - a selection of articles written by expert researchers for headteachers and aspiring heads to promote postitive reflection and dialogue about their leadership practice.