school-to-school self-improvement
…in an increasingly interdependent world, school-to-school learning networks enlarge individual schools’ repertoire of choices, moving ideas and good practice around the system. (p.12)23
There is emerging evidence to suggest that rigorous, sustainable school improvement takes place when schools collaborate to support their shared improvement goals, such as that cited by Greatbatch & Tate, 2019.24
The idea of school-to-school development sits at the heart of much school improvement work in England, and is increasingly common with schools across Europe. Examples of programmes include the UK Government’s Teaching school hubs and the Teacher Development Trust in England.
This was a fundamental principle for our Erasmus+ partnership when the project was conceived. We wanted to collaborate to jointly improve our music and English language practice through an examination of each other’s approaches and the opportunities for self- and group-reflection that this project afforded. This idea sits at the centre of our project design and delivery.
Further reading:
Guidance: Teaching school hubs
Teacher Development Trust___________________________
23 Stoll, L. ‘Capacity building for school improvement or creating a capacity for learning? A changing landscape,’ Journal of Educational Change, 10:2, p.115-127. Dordrecht: SpringerNature, 2009. Visit this website. [Accessed 10 July 2021].
24 It is noted that there remain ‘evidence gaps’ in proving the impact of school-to-school collaboration (Greatbatch and Tate, 2019, p38).
