By YESSAR DAOU
THERE’S no ‘I’ in team, as the adage goes — and it’s one that the teachers at Dandenong North Primary School have wholeheartedly embraced.
The school’s teaching culture is unique, says principal Kevin Mackay, and something that certainly helped it last week when it was honoured with the state government’s School Leadership Team of the Year award.
Mr Mackay said believing in each other’s teaching and a strong culture of helping each other out was a big part of the school’s success — “it’s a team belief and a team feeling”.
The school’s 13-person leadership team helps guide pupils through specific, targeted and effective learning.
“We’ve had outcomes significantly higher for our cohort of students who come from low socio-economic backgrounds,” Mr McKay said.
“We are also very different, in that we have a peer-to-peer program which allows staff and teachers to provide general feedback to each other.”
The school’s programs cater for more than 120 pupils each day, with literacy intervention and the English as additional language curriculums most prominent. Mr Mackay believes the award reaffirms the school’s practice.
“Our leadership team is open to anyone who has leadership aspirations, you don’t have to have a certain number of stripes,” he said.
“It’s made up of people who have been at a school for a long time and know each other well. It engenders a huge amount of trust. This award belongs to everyone at the school.”
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