Editorial: Running tomorrow's schools today

OPINION: The sky is blue – mostly – the sea is warm, the berries are ripening. To many of us, summer is the best time of the year and Nelson one of the best places anywhere to spend it.

The lucky ones among us, it would seem, are those who are engaged in the education system – at either end of the piece of white chalk, or whatever they use in the classroom these days.

Both teachers and pupils typically this weekend will be feeling back-to-school ambivalence: excitement at the prospect of a new school year beginning next week; resignation tinged with resentment that another summer of relaxation, freedom and fun has ended.

For the rest of us, it is hard to resist a flash of envy about the seven weeks of summer teachers have just enjoyed – especially knowing in a few short weeks they'll get to enjoy another fortnight off.

Though formal, classroom, teaching comprises only part of an often incredibly demanding job, the prospect of a six to, maybe, seven-hour day with an hour off for lunch and shorter breaks periodically must seem only a half step short of utopia to many who are trudging away on the employment treadmill.

However, things are not always as they seem. Witness Nelson College headmaster Gary O'Shea, who spoke candidly this week about the stresses, strains and consequences of running a large secondary school. The picture he paints of a modern school principal is of an over-worked, under-appreciated chief executive of a multi million-dollar enterprise with huge social responsibilities, insufficient funding and little autonomy to get creative around problem-solving.

The stress Mr O'Shea faced last year affected his health significantly. His body was producing so much stress hormone cortisol that his kidneys, pancreas and liver were taking a hiding, he says, and he was forced to take a month's leave of absence. That time off, which fed into the extended summer break, has him back on his feet and ready for another challenging year.

Stress, so valuable in small and appropriate fight-or-flight-type settings, is a contemporary curse. School boards everywhere should listen and learn from his story, for he is far from alone, and employers have a clear responsibility under employment law to mitigate the effects of undue stress. According to the Secondary Principals' Association, four or five college heads a year either take stress leave, or the ultimate step and quit.

Most principals would have joined the profession in order to teach – surely one of the most important occupations. Excel, and the most brilliant of them might be picked to take the big step up, leaving the classroom in order to manage a school. This task has become hugely more demanding since the Tomorrow's Schools initiatives introduced two decades ago.

Whether the average principal receives sufficient training, mentoring and peer support, especially in their early years, is arguable.

However, one point Mr O'Shea makes in discussing his year of stress is the impact that constant negative feedback can have. Hug an Aussie Day was a Nelson initiative that had an impact on a national level last year. Principals might not necessarily appreciate being smothered in bear-hugs from exuberant parents each day, but a few flashes of empathy and appreciation for the big task they face and a general lightening up from the school community would go a long way.

Happy principals might just mean healthy learning experiences, and the wider community benefits from that.

- © Fairfax NZ News