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The roles and responsibilities of educators grow more complex every year. School leaders and teachers are tasked with creating high-performing schools that foster a culture of trust, collaboration and enquiry for students, parents and staff – all while working within prescribed protocols of safety, equity, transparency and fiscal responsibility. How do they do it? There’s no simple solution, but balance is the key.
Andrew Oberthur draws on his rich experience as a principal and teacher to unpack a range of scenarios where a balance must be struck between following the rules and building relationships. His insights on ethical and courageous leadership – including when to follow and when to flex – offer new and experienced educators a proven framework for difficult decision-making.
Exploring real-life dilemmas of communication, enrolment, staffing, budgeting, behaviour management, parent-teacher relationships, managing through uncertainty and more, Balance provides tested strategies for navigating the system’s myriad rules and regulations while building positive relationships and improving outcomes for all students.
"Andrew Oberthur has done it again. He has taken on one of the world’s most complex and challenging human dynamics: how do we manage the relationships of teachers, parents and primary school students to produce a significant improvement in our educational outcomes?"
- Allan Parker, OAM, behavioural scientist and international negotiator
"This book puts all the everyday decisions of a school leader into a real and raw perspective we can all relate to. I wish I had the book when I first became a principal."
- Gabrielle Hansen, Head of Department – Curriculum
