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Partnerships in Catholic Educational Leadership
Frequently asked questions:
Who is eligible for the programme?
Teachers working within Primary and Secondary schools within the Broken Bay diocese who meet the programme criteria can be reccomended for the programme by their principal.
What are the eligibility criteria for the programme?
Participation on the programme is on the basis of recommendation assuming that the criteria for entry are met:
- Anticipated career progression for which well developed leadership, skills, knowledge and understanding will be required.
- Personal and professional life reflects a Catholic understanding of the world, the human person and history.
- A commitment to their Catholic faith
- Appreciation of leadership as a Ministry of service within the parish, the community or one’s place of work.
- Highly developed classroom teaching skills.
- Has initiative and has already demonstrated leadership potential within the educational setting in which they work, the community or parish.
- Longer term leadership intentions in the context of the classroom, the school or other educational, religious or cultural contexts.
- Comfortable in the use of technology and if not very experienced in its applications, then a willingness to learn more.
NB There is no minimum teaching experience requirement for nomination onto this programme
Can more than one person from a school be recommended for inclusion in the programme?
Yes as long as the criteria are met. However, there are financial limitations re the
number of people who can be accepted onto the programme.
There were 20 places for the 2000 intake.
I am currently Assistant Principal in a school and I went along to the briefings you held in 1998. Should I consider going along to this course along to this?
If you
think you will benefit from participating. However, the programme has as its priority those recently appointed to leadership roles. eg Religious Education Co-ordinator or Co-ordinator 1 or 2 positions.
I work within the system but am not a Catholic. Could I still be considered?
The leadership openings within the diocese are very limited for those with a religious
background other than Catholic. The criteria for recommendation on to the programme has a very strong faith dimension.
I am a Teacher Librarian and have been for eight years. Am I eligible to be recommended?
Yes. All teachers within the diocese are eligible. This includes
staff in specialist positions as well as part time employees.
I am a mature age teacher who has only been teaching for two years. Have I got enough classroom experience for this programme?
There is no minimum requirement re
the length of time a person has been teaching. If your Principal thinks that you have potential and meet the criteria ask whether they would consider recommending you for the programme.
Do you need to be pretty academic to participate in this programme? I haven’t done any formal study as such for ages. Do you think I would cope with the demands of the programme?
Why not discuss it with your Principal. In fact, the programme might provide a supportive environment in which some renewal of knowledge and application of experience might be able to be applied with the
intention of seeking accreditation later on towards a Masters programme
My Principal is concerned about what the school will get out of my possible participation on this programme .
Opportunities available to staff internally to allow
leadership potential to be developed. If your principal considers that what is provided in house is sufficient then perhaps the programme is not for you. However, it might be that this programme could be a
supplement to what happens at the school internally. It is hoped that participation on the programme will result in energised staff, improved networking, exchange of ideas and improvements in the areas of
knowledge, skills and understanding within leadership.
As a result of successfully completing the course will participants be fast tracked into promotional positions?
No, not necessarily. Of course, it is hoped that the
course will be beneficial for those participating on it. However, promotional positions cannot be guaranteed. The accepted practice of candidates placing applications and then being interviewed will prevail
for all positions within the diocese.
Is it possible to have your participation in the programme accredited towards a higher degree?
Yes. This is possible and will have to be negotiated with each tertiary institution.
Accreditation has already been granted by the Australian Catholic University for advanced standing towards their Masters
programme.
When do the research teams get finalised?
Some preliminary discussion will take place at our initial introductory seminar but the research areas and the membership of the teams will remain pretty fluid until we have our first two day seminar. Hopefully
people accepted on to the programme will begin to consider possible areas of research which interest them. There will be time during the two day seminar to explore the dimensions of the research project including
issues associated with methodology, data collection, analysis and synthesis of findings.
Should the project have a practical focus [school-based] or would it better
to pursue the realisation of an ideal [generic]?
Might it be possible to do both? Are the two mutually exclusive? It is hoped that the research undertaken is meaningful for the participants undertaking it both from a personal perspective but also in relation to
their current area of work. The research project is hopefully embedded within what is defined in the literature as authentic contexts. In effect, the decision is your’s. Where do you want to put your energies and commitment? There is little doubt that the research component of the course will require of participants both commitment and time. It is a matter of using that time to its maximum.
Will we be provided with some research models?
The second booklet in the course materials entitled Research Project addresses the research project, the expected protocols and possible processes which might be undertaken by the research team.
Will it be more beneficial to do a research question based purely on
leadership, rather than an individual area of interest?
The selection of a research area is really an individual one. All that is asked is that it in some way relates to the strategic plan of the Broken Bay Diocese entitled Shaping our Future. However, the
Partnerships in Catholic Educational Leadership programme has as its focus leadership in Catholic Schools. A research topic which address leadership in some way may well be of personal benefit to those within the
research team as well as the diocese possibly. However, leadership is also enhanced through participation in a research team, allocating tasks, sharing knowledge, understanding and expertise. The research area
selected should be an area in which the participants are interested, able to demonstrate commitment and capable of delivering on.
Could we have some clarification about structure of the research project. I have only carried out one formal research project before and procedures were rather strict with
literature reviews, testing the results and making sure results were validated. Does the research process have to be this rigorous?
To a certain extent, the answer is yes. There does need to be care taken with the protocols of the research undertaken. As far as possible the research should follow accepted practice.
The literature search should be taken preferably prior to the research period. Otherwise, how do you know which questions to ask? Are you sure you are asking the right questions? Are there questions already
asked in other contexts which you would like to check out with your target group? If so, what are they? Are the questions ethical? Have they been validated? How? Has the survey been trialled for bias? Is itclearly
understood? Who is your target group? What will data tell you? Is the sample big enough from which to draw valid conclusions?
The questions are many and if the research is to have any value at all, these questions should be asked initially. It is hard work. However, if these issues are addressed rigorously now it will be easier for you
later on.
Please refer to the Research section of your folder and address the stages of the research methodically. In effect, this is part of the leadership process - how are tasks allocated, critiquing each other’s
perceptions, developing consensus, asking yourself the hard questions in effect.
We are currently working on finalising our research methodology and would like some advice on its relevance and appropriateness.
The following questions might provide a useful checklist to help you critique your methodology before you begin the actual data collection phase. Time spent at this stage will be time well spent
and may save you time later so I would encourage you to take a good hard look at your research methodology.
- Will the data collected give you a comprehensive picture of what is being researched?
- What has your literature search told you?
- Does your data management plan make effective use of existing data? eg school statistics on certain relevant issues
- Will the information you are collecting be reliable? How do you know?
- Can the data collection take place without unduly disrupting people or taking too much of their and your own time?
- Are your data collection procedures legal and ethical?
- Can the data be collected and analysed within the time constraints of the research period?
We have completed a draft of our survey. Should we trial it?
Yes, a small trial of the survey is recommended. You need to be sure that before going to the trouble of issuing a survey that the information you elicit is going to help you answer the focus questions you set
yourself originally.
It may be that there is some unintended bias in some of the questions. Also, think of whether all the questions to be asked will be of the tick a box variety or will there be some open questions too?
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