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The notion of vulnerability underlies relationships of trust. Trust between leaders and staff is needed to solve concerns that hinder equity and excellence in teaching and learning. The purpose of this paper is to examine whether and how leaders show vulnerability by disclosing own possible contributions to concerns they try to resolve.

Data included transcripts of conversations held by 27 educational leaders about a concern with another staff and a questionnaire about the nature, causes and history of the concern. Questionnaire analysis identified if and how leaders described their own possible contribution prior to the conversation. Transcript analysis identified instances of leaders’ contribution disclosure.

Results indicate that while two-thirds of leaders identified an own contribution, when prompted prior to the conversation, one-third saw no own contribution. Leaders indicated contributing by not acting on the concern, by acting in ways inappropriate or insufficient to resolve the concern, or by not clearly communicating their concern in the past. Eight of the 27 leaders publicly disclosed their contribution in the actual conversation. In some conversations this disclosure prompted reciprocal disclosure of information about the concern and its causes by the other person, aiding a more effective concern resolution.

Through examining leaders’ interpersonal behavior in difficult conversations, the importance of leaders’ acknowledgments of own mistakes and communication of their own vulnerability is highlighted. A positive view of vulnerability is argued for, epistemic vulnerability, which manifests itself in the willingness to be honest and open to learning by accepting one’s own fallibility.

The purpose of this paper is to explore how perceptions of risk influenced teachers’ sensemaking and actions during a professional learning and development (PLD) initiative where teachers were expected to change their practices.

A risk perception lens, focussed on uncertainty, was used to capture the on-going experiences of teachers as they participated in PLD. The PLD, delivered by one organisation, focussed on developing teacher use and understanding of formative assessment practices. Data for this three-school qualitative exploratory case study of teachers’ perceptions of risk primarily utilised qualitative interviews.

Findings identified that teachers perceived risk and experienced feelings of vulnerability as a result of their on-going assessment and evaluation of the uncertainty in the professional learning context. The perceived risk informed teachers’ responses and actions, ultimately impacting on teachers’ learning.

The risk perception process model developed from the findings and conceptual framework provides a tool for educators to navigate and reduce perceived risk and enhance learning in change.

This research advances the conceptualisation of perceived risk in PLD. It challenges the current concept of teachers’ resistance and instead considers the role of their perceptions of risk, broadening the understanding of responses to educational change.

The purpose of this paper is to examine how the actions of leaders influence teachers’ perceptions of risk and sensemaking during professional learning (PL).

A qualitative case study primarily involving semi-structured interviews was utilized to collect teacher-perception data. In total, 21 teachers across three New Zealand schools were interviewed as they participated in the first year of a school-wide PL initiative. Data were analyzed using a risk perception lens focused on uncertainty.

Teachers’ perceptions of risk were influenced by leaders’ actions. Leaders built supportive relationships by knowing the teacher as a learner; showing empathy and respect; providing support; and engendering trust. Teachers reported that the quality of relationships combined with their own state of knowledge influenced their perceptions of risk and learning.

Leaders are reminded that learning is inherently uncertain and uncomfortable and that they have an important role to ensure an environment that is safe and supportive for teacher risk taking and change. A risk lens enables leaders and PL facilitators to consider their influence on teachers’ uncertainty and feelings of vulnerability and take action to reduce these where possible so that both teacher and student learning may be maximized.

This research advances the conceptualization of perceived risk in professional learning, emphasizing the importance of leadership in supporting teacher learning. It adds further detail to our understanding of trust, vulnerability, identity and risk in the development of professional capital and community and their connection to the professional and emotional lives of teachers.

The challenges of engaging in leadership practices that promote equity and empower students who have traditionally been underserved in schooling continue throughout educational contexts. Complex challenges like this require complex solutions because they have multiple causes and interdependencies. This requires leaders focus on systemic and sustainable change for improvement rather than taking a “fixing parts” approach. This chapter focusses on promising approaches to leadership which can support capability in responding to such complex challenges. The chapter addresses four key areas for focus: (1). being comfortable with uncertainty, (2). understanding the role of emotion in leadership and change, (3). knowing how to interrupt problematic narratives, and (4). successfully engaging the views of young people. Implications for reimagining leadership include how to engage with diverse perspectives in decision-making, ways to support people struggling with the uncertainty of change, and how to lead sustainable responses to complex challenges.

The purpose of this research is to use a collective responsibility theoretical lens to examine the work of three school principals as they focussed on school-wide goal-setting processes to achieve valued student achievement goals. The tensions principals face in creating collective responsibility are examined so that these might be intentionally navigated.

Qualitative case studies of three New Zealand schools include data from interviews with principals, middle leaders and teachers. An inductive and deductive thematic analysis approach was employed.

Principals face four key tensions: (1) whether to promote self or centrally directed and voluntary or mandatory professional learning; (2) how to balance a top-down versus a middle-up process for accountability; (3) ways to integrate both educator and student voice and (4) the complexity of both challenging teachers' beliefs and providing support. These challenges seemed inherent in the work of developing collective responsibility and leaders tended to move along response continuum.

This research highlights the importance of being intentional and transparent with staff members about both the nature of these tensions and their navigation, and opens up further questions in relation to leader, and teacher perceptions of tensions in creating collective responsibility for achieving school-improvement goals.

An understanding of the tensions that need to be navigated can help leaders and other educators to take effective action, scrutinize the reasoning behind decisions, and understand the inherent challenges faced.

Leadership tensions in creating collective responsibility are explored and implications for leadership practice and learning considered.

This paper aims to convey and analyze participants’ experience of an online mindfulness-based workplace wellness program, The Wellbeing Protocol, during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, with the aim of understanding the underlying mechanisms of how the program impacted stress, burnout and mental wellbeing.

New Zealand teachers participated in an online mindfulness-based wellness program in 2020. Participants’ experience was captured via focus groups and open-ended survey questions collected before, immediately after and three months following the intervention. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis.

Three themes emerged: self-awareness and nonreactivity may facilitate a reduction in stress levels, the purposeful cultivation of self-care and positive emotions may be a precursor to enhanced wellbeing and positive relationships with others and evidence of effectiveness at work may mitigate burnout symptoms. Findings depicted effective strategies to improve wellbeing as well as promising areas for further research.

For school settings: participants’ positive appraisals of the program suggest The Wellbeing Protocol might be a suitable option to support teacher wellbeing. For workplaces: the positive outcomes related to improved effectiveness and relationships at work, as well as the program’s flexibility related to its short length and online delivery, might make it a potential option to support employee wellbeing.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to investigate the impact of a mindfulness-based intervention on New Zealand teachers, the first to explore the impact of the Wellbeing Protocol and one of few studies that have investigated an online mindfulness-based intervention. It has multiple qualitative data sources and a follow-up of three months.

This study sets out to investigate the elements of the collaborative culture required for the successful implementation and sustainability of programs in schools. It draws on a case study of a student peer-led physical activity (PA) program implemented within the complex and dynamic environment of school communities in New Zealand. The article outlines four key components needed to effectively implement and impact long term sustainability of a program within the school context.

This qualitative case study examines the implementation of a new peer-led PA program introduced across eight New Zealand schools. Data were collected from semi-structured interviews with senior leaders, teachers and parents and analyzed through a complexity theory lens.

Effective and sustainable program implementation requires a strategic, collaborative approach through actively engaging with and resourcing four key interacting components: student choice, voice and agency; collective responsibility; shared understanding of purpose; and curriculum coherence.

This research offers a pragmatic approach to developing collaborative school communities that can effectively implement change by highlighting key areas of focus that policymaker, school leaders and program designers can plan for.

Positively engaging parents who have concerns about their children's schooling is a key part of effective educational leadership. The purpose of this paper is to use empirical research on complaint interactions and interpersonal effectiveness to develop and trial an assessment of principals' interpersonal effectiveness in challenging conversations with parents. The paper presents descriptive data about principals' level of skill in one such type of conversation.

A complaint scenario was written and an actor trained to play the role of the parent during a videotaped conversation with each of 30 newly appointed principals. The tapes were transcribed and assessed on six dimensions of interpersonal effectiveness. A code book was written which included definitions of each dimension, a five‐step progression on each dimension, coding rules and examples. The actor also provided ratings of the effectiveness of each principal.

The findings indicated that the principals were, on average, more skilled in advocating their own position than in deeply inquiring into and checking their understanding of the views of the parent. Many had difficulty respectfully challenging the parent's assumptions about the situation and reaching a shared understanding of what to do next.

The paper provides rarely obtained behavioural data about the interpersonal skills of school leaders and provides a strongly grounded theoretical framework for analysing these skills. Detailed suggestions are made about how further research can contribute to both the evaluation and development of the interpersonal skills required to achieve positive outcomes from challenging conversations.

Much enthusiasm exists for using video in teacher education and professional development. As this volume attests to, video-based resources are being used in a variety of teacher-learning contexts. Many educators are discussing their use of video; however, a problem receiving less attention is what it takes to design usable video-based curriculum for teacher learning. This chapter addresses a specific problem faced in using video as a tool for teacher professional development. The problem that is often overlooked is that video in of itself is not a curriculum. We cannot consider video a curriculum perhaps anymore than we can consider a whiteboard and markers a curriculum. Video is rather a medium which can be developed into a resource and used in specific ways to enhance learning. Video can become a part of a curriculum for learning if it is designed to be used in intentional ways towards intentional learning goals. The question then is – what does it take to actually assemble a usable video-based curriculum for teacher learning? Answering this question demands consideration of what and how teachers are intended to learn with this curriculum, and what opportunities the medium of video affords.