Reflective Entry 6 - Issues of law, regulations and policy related to a digital and collaborative innovation

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Up-Journey (2019) describes the difference between policy, law and regulation as like growing a tree.

  1. Policy is the seed. An idea planted to improve our surroundings.
  2. Out of that seed grows the trunk of the tree, a law with a firm foundation.
  3. From the law, we get branches of regulations that reach out into the community and assist with community improvements.
Like all professionals, teachers and leaders in New Zealand schools are guided by key policy, law and regulations. In particular we are bound by Our Code, Our Standards - Code of Professional Responsibility and Standards for the Teaching Profession.

Policy:


Policy: "a course or principle of action adopted or proposed by an organization or individual' (Lexico, 2021)


Teacher Registration, Practising Certificates and Limited Authority to Teach Policy (Registration Policy)

The Requirements for Teacher Registration, Practising Certificates and Limited Authority to Teach Policy (Registration Policy) supports quality teaching, learning and leadership. (Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand, 2021). It stipulates that as teachers, in New Zealand education, we are charged with reflecting the Code of Professional Responsibility and Standards for the Teaching Profession in our practice.

This connects to my digital and collaborative innovation in that the Kanban Communication Board reflects the Code of Professional Responsibility aspect - Commitment to the Teaching Profession (Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand, 2020). The Kanban Communication Board was introduced to improve cohesion and consistency in communication amongst the Senior Leadership Team. A key intention of this was to engage and further develop professional, respectful and collaborative relationships with colleagues. The initial focus was on working with the Senior Leadership Team with the view to spread the innovation across the school for all teachers and leaders. The innovation has the potential to be long-reaching in building further collaborative practices throughout the school.


Digital Technology and Cybersafety Policy


Another key policy that connects to my Kanban innovation is our own school policy - Digital Technology and Cybersafety Policy - developed in SchoolDocs. This policy includes reference to allowing for professional development and training for staff. This was an issue for my innovation in that there were varying degrees of digital capability within the Team Leaders which restricted the impact on more cohesive and collaborative communication. 2 of the 4 Team Leaders had to be heavily supported in a kanohi ki te kanohi setting - this in some ways defeated the purpose of the online collaboration and will continue to be an area of focus.

Law:

Law: "the system of rules which a particular country or community recognizes as regulating the actions of its members and which it may enforce by imposition of penalties" (Lexico, 2021).

Education and Training Act 2020.

The Education and Training Act 2020 is the key guiding legislation for schools and education in Aotearoa New Zealand. In particular, as pertaining to my Kanban innovation, the refresh of the Act has instigated improvements to the oversight and leadership of schools. The intention of the Kanban Communication Board was to improve communication and collaboration within the Senior Leadership Team. The long reach of the innovation is to improve communication and collaboration throughout the school to achieve a more streamlined education system (school curriculum in particular) that provides our students with consistent and collaborative lifelong learning opportunities.


Regulations:

Regulations: "a rule or directive made and maintained by an authority" (Lexico, 2021).

Our Code, Our Standards - Code of Professional Responsibility and Standards for the Teaching Profession.

The Code of Professional Responsibility and Standards for the Teaching Profession has been crafted by teachers, leaders and teaching experts to articulate the expectations and aspirations of our profession (Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand, 2020). As previously discussed, in Reflective Entry 5, the key standard and indicators that connect to my innovation are:

Professional Relationships.
Engage in reciprocal, collaborative learning-focused relationships with: teaching colleagues, support staff and other professionals, and communicate effectively with others. The Kanban Board has started to enhance the professional relationship within the Senior Leadership Team by creating a more effective digital and collaborative communication practice.

Our Code Our Standards is also underpinned by 4 key values:

  • WHAKAMANA,
  • MANAAKITANGA,
  • PONO, and
  • WHANAUNGATANGA.
Two of these connect directly to my innovation:

WHAKAMANA: empowering all learners to reach their highest potential by providing high-quality teaching and leadership. By improving communication and collaboration within the Senior Leadership Team, through the Kanban innovation, the quality of teaching and leadership will improve.


WHANAUNGATANGA: engaging in positive and collaborative relationships with our learners, their families and whānau, our colleagues and the wider community. The innovation has improved collaborative relationships and communication within the Senior Leadership Team which, if extended, could have the potential to do so schoolwide.


References:

Lexico. (2021). Definition. In Oxford online dictionary. Retrieved from https://www.lexico.com/definition

Ministry of Education. (2020). Education and Training Act 2020. https://www.education.govt.nz/our-work/legislation/education-and-training-act-2020/

Ministry of Education. (2014). Digital Technology: Safe and responsible use in schools. Wellington, New Zealand: Ministry of Education. https://www.education.govt.nz/assets/Documents/School/Managing-and-supporting-students/DigitalTechnologySafeAndResponsibleUseInSchs.pdf

School Docs. (2020). Digital Technology and Cybersafety Policy. https://www.schooldocs.co.nz/

Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand. (2021). Teacher Registration, Practising Certificates and Limited Authority to Teach Policy https://teachingcouncil.nz/getting-certificated/getting-started/what-is-registration-and-certification/registration-policy/


Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand. (2020). Our Code Our Standards - Code of Professional Responsibility and Standards for the Teaching Profession. https://renew.teachingcouncil.nz/sites/default/files/Our%20Code%20Our%20Standards%20web%20booklet%20FINAL.pdf


UpJourney. (2019). What Is the Difference Between Law, Policy, and Regulation, According to 7 Experts. https://upjourney.com/what-is-the-difference-between-law-policy-and-regulation

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