Will Ryan has some advice for you. If your horse drops dead dismount. The way he sees it, we too often end up either on a journey that is rapidly going nowhere or on a course set by the 'powers that be' with a government-issue horse that just isn't up to the job.
(He also suggests that once you have dismounted, take a critical look around you and then choose the means and direction of travel most appropriate for you.)
This is one of the messages coming through from Will's inspiring, thought-provoking and controversial approach to primary education. He argues that for too long schools have been run by outside forces such as government agendas. Instead of school improvement coming from the outside in Schools need to turn themselves inside out.
Through his work on 'Inside Out Leadership' he urges school leaders to examine the 'moral purpose' that took them into the profession in the first place and then to consider the unique needs of the community then use their minds their hearts and their souls to create a truly personalised and superb learning community.
He further argues that if the approach is followed with rigour it will produce high standards in literacy, numeracy, science and ICT as well as create emotionally intelligent enterprising pupils. (Will has a track record of helping schools get into HMCI's list of most effective schools.)
Will Ryan has just published his first book, Leadership with a Moral Purpose which has has glowing reviews from the likes of Mick Waters, John West Burnham, David Hopkins, Michael Fullan, Paul Ginnis and Brin Best.
'This unique book is a complete primary school leadership manual for the immediate future. It has its head in the skies and its feet on the ground. A fantastic combination vision and pragmatism head and heart in equal measure'
Will is as passionate about education now as he was when he first entered the profession. He has worked in schools in South Yorkshire for over thirty years as a teacher, head teacher and Local Authority Adviser. As a head teacher he led a school that prized itself on genuine pupil creativity and was described by OFSTED as 'outstanding'.
Over the last 18 months he has engaged and entertained Independent Thinking audiences. He is quite definitely our most Yorkshire associate.
His work with schools in teaching and learning, often just prior to an OFSTED visit, carries with it the message that is loud and clear - Don't teach safe lessons in sterile environments! This is then followed with the powerful question, 'When did you last teach an inspirational lesson that led to inspirational learners?' Will then works with a school to provide frameworks and activities to help them deliver the goods, modelling the process of 'Excellence and Enjoyment' as he goes.
Will has expertise in school leadership, developing vision, pupil creativity and curriculum design, developing the professional learning community, enterprise education and promoting the social and emotional aspects of learning. He has also worked extensively within the Excellence in Cities programme and with learning mentors. He doesn’t want to tell you how to do it. That’s too easy. He wants to inspire you to do it and do it for yourself.
Recent comments from happy clients include;
- Brilliant presentation by Will Ryan - very inspirational, just what we need!
- An inspirational, child centred, speaker who spoke to us from the heart and with a philosophy that resonated
- Truly inspirational
- We were with him for three hours on a Saturday morning and the time flew
- The session was about vision, It worked - the cloud lifted and I could see clearly
- A marvellous blend of inspiration and practical tips
- A very inspiring, amusing speaker - loved the jokes!
- This inspirational day took us to new places in our thinking, my brain started to hurt with thinking and then he just got funnier and funnier
One of the critical questions in education today is how do you put an elephant into a refrigerator. Many are searching for a solution. The answer is to open the door and put the elephant in. To do anything else is over-complicating the issue. The challenge for school leaders is to keep it simple by turning their school inside out. Let Will Ryan show you how to lead with heart and soul and create a school that will make an Ofsted inspector tingle.
Will's CRB number is 001195011345 issued 25th April 2008.
For more information or to book Will for an Event you are organising please call us on 0844 589 0490 or e-mail us on admin@independentthinking.co.uk
Articles written by Will Ryan:
Books written by Will Ryan: