Building Strategic Leadership and Management Capacity to Improve School Effectiveness

Abstract

The building of leadership and management capacity with a focus on teaching and learning effectiveness has been a defining characteristic of the Catholic schools in Sydney, Australia, during the past decade. During the 1990s, the leaders of the 150 parish primary and regional secondary schools in the Archdiocese of Sydney adopted a common leadership and management framework that incorporates long-term strategic planning with an annual implementation cycle characterized by a sharp focus on teaching and learning outcomes. Principals and senior staff are involved in an ongoing performance management plan that is linked to the schools’ annual curriculum goals and targets. This case study provides evidence of a culture of high level managerial leadership that utilizes recent developments in Europe to give validity to “the Sydney cycle.”