IPPN

Published: 19 November 2020

More than 500 deputy principals participated in IPPN’s first virtual conference on Thursday 12 November. The aim was to make the event as interactive as possible, including Q&A sessions with each of the speakers, which were hosted by facilitator IPPN Deputy President Brian O’Doherty.

There was also plenty of engagement among deputy principals in a dedicated networking session, which was organised by geographical area.

The speakers brought a wealth of knowledge, thought-provoking ideas and challenges to the event:
Prof Finn Ó Murchú, Mary Immaculate College – Conversations on middle leadership in primary schools
Ombudsman for Children, Dr Niall Muldoon and Dr Naomi Masheti, Co-ordinator of the Cork Migrant Centre - Inclusion & diversity in Irish primary schools
Prof Pádraig Ó Duibhir, DCU Institute of Education – Irish language education & exemptions
Mary McGrath, Head of Operations, NCSE, and Camilla Marks, Specialist Lead (Behaviour), NCSE - The SEN allocation model and practical guidance for school leaders on managing SEN and behaviours of concern.

The feedback received was very positive. IPPN will review the participant feedback in detail, to ensure that we learn as much as possible to make any future virtual events even better.

Click here to view materials and recordings

Published: 12 November 2020

I am no longer receiving networking@ emails. What do I do?

• Log in to your www.ippn.ie member account
• Go to ‘Supports, Mailing Lists, Manage My Mailing Lists’ on the menu tool bar
• The email address associated with your membership is listed in the ‘Email Address’ field
• Select mailing lists to which you wish to subscribe
• Scroll to bottom of page and select ‘Submit Changes’ button.

I want to receive networking@ to another email address. How can I do this?

Step 1

• Log in to your www.ippn.ie member account
• Go to ‘Supports, Mailing Lists, Manage My Mailing Lists’ on the menu tool bar
• The email address is listed in the ‘Email Address’ field
• Select the ‘Unsubscribe’ field
• Scroll to bottom of page and select ‘Submit Changes’ button.

Step 2

• Update the email address listed in the ‘Email Address’ field
• Select the mailing lists to which you wish to be ‘Subscribed’
• Scroll to bottom of page and select ‘Submit Changes’ button.

Published: 12 November 2020

Example of Deputy Principal Support Group Meeting
On Tuesday, November 5th, Clare Education Centre was delighted to host a meeting of 28 Primary Deputy Principals. Orla Brady, Deputy Principal of Crusheen NS facilitated the meeting.

Pairic Clerkin, CEO of IPPN, attended and outlined how IPPN are currently supporting and want to continue to develop support for Deputy Principals. Martin Moloney, Chairperson of the IPPN Clare County Committee, outlined the role of Clare IPPN in supporting deputies and explained the benefits of small support groups. He highlighted the importance of strong leadership in schools. Ger Ruane, IPPN Treasurer and IPPN Clare County Committee CPD organiser, explained how IPPN’s local Professional Development events are open to Principals and Deputies. IPPN welcomes opportunities to organise bespoke events for Deputy Principals. He also highlighted the importance of Deputy Principals being fully familiar with the running of the school, as they may have to take on the role of Acting Principal in the absence of the Principal.

Participants availed of the opportunity to explore common issues in ‘Breakout Rooms’. Feedback in the plenary session focused on building and sustaining staff morale (Pizza parties, gift lunches, mindfulness speakers etc), sharing good practice and exploring common issues such as Parent Teacher Meetings, wellbeing, meeting the needs of high-risk pupils and substitute cover.

Future themed meetings are planned for the IPPN Deputy Principal Support Group. Possible topics for discussion include leading meetings, leading SEN and running the school when the Principal is absent.

It was suggested that consideration could be given to the creation of a support group for Deputy Principals of larger schools (where the Principal is Administrative) and Deputy Principals of smaller schools (where the Principal is teaching).

Published: 12 November 2020

Schools are currently making preparations for Parent/Teacher meetings, as well as deciding when to schedule them into the 2020/21 school year. Most parents look forward to the meeting, even if it is only for 10mins to discuss their child’s progress. The majority of meetings proceed smoothly and with good humour and teachers and parents generally feel appreciated and affirmed by the experience.

In last week’s e-scéal, we included Guidance issued by the DES for the facilitation of parent/teacher meetings for 2020/2021 school year.

The following are some issues/suggestions that may need to be considered:

• What is the school’s preferred option for facilitating parent/teacher meetings?
• What if a parent becomes upset and/or aggressive during a parent/teacher meeting?
• What if a parent wants to record the meeting? If online, confirm to the parent that the session is not being recorded and that there is no one else with you in the room. Ask the parent to confirm the same.
• What if more than the allocated time is required? Discuss and agree the procedure to be followed in these cases. There may be instances where a teacher does not feel comfortable meeting a particular parent(s) on their own. In such cases it would be advisable to support that teacher by sitting in on the meeting or by having a Support teacher present during the meeting. If online, specific permission will need to be obtained from the parent(s) attending. Be aware that some parents may surreptitiously record a parent/teacher meeting. This is illegal and can only be done with the consent of the parties involved. Many schools now post prominent notices to this effect. (See above)
• Normally parents of children availing of additional support, will want to meet those teachers. These can be arranged as a follow-up to meeting the class teacher or involve both teachers at the same time. These arrangements will depend on the school context and procedures, especially in the context of Covid-19 protocols.