What is Forbairt?
Forbairt is a one-year programme that offers an opportunity for participant schools to enrich and enhance their knowledge and understanding of the implementation and development of school improvement.
Over the course of the academic year school based forbairt teams are supported through a comprehensive programme of supports. Schools are assisted in investigating and identifying an area of focus with a view to putting into practise initiatives to bring about school improvement in the area of Learning and Teaching.
This project is in the form of an Action Learning Project. This Action Learning Project aligns itself closely with the framework of “Looking at our Schools 2016” and the 6-step School Self-Evaluation model and it may become part of participating schools SSE Report and School Improvement Plan (SIP).
Each schools Action Learning Project is a school-specific, focused, evidence-based school improvement initiative and is a key component of the Programme. The professional learning opportunities provided form a framework for school leaders to plan for and to enhance learning in their school. This also provides the stimulus for ongoing school improvement.
Each Action Learning Project is finally presented as a Report which is published in the annual Forbairt Booklet Publication as well as each school presenting at the Annual National Forbairt showcase event.
Why do Forbairt “Rationale”
Forbairt uses as its methodological basis the SSE guidelines and the Looking At Our Schools 2016 (LAOS) document. The Forbairt Programme, in line with these documents supports each school to carry out a self-tailored Action Learning Project focusing on developing Learning and Teaching in each individual school context. The Forbairt Programme aligns itself very closely with that of the SSE process requirements to contribute to the overall School Improvement Plan.
Participation in the Forbairt Programme promotes the building and sustaining of a Distributed Leadership Development environment that underpins the highest quality in student care and wellbeing, learning and teaching and overall school improvement.
The programme also aims to promote a culture of Improvement, Collaboration, Innovation and Creativity among Teachers, Students, Parents as well as the the wider school community.
As part of the sustainable process of educational change and the delivery of best practice throughout the school, the Programme allows for the engagement of Networking Opportunities. Schools come together over the course of the programme to share best practice, experiences and resources. This process is intended to stimulate further educational change and in-school development initiatives.
Who is it for?
Post- primary ‘Forbairt’ is a professional development programme for school Leadership Teams comprising of
- An experienced School Principal (not on the Misneach Programme or eligible to do Misneach).
- Deputy Principal
- Two Teacher Leaders (open to all teaching staff),
Forbairt is designed to strengthen the collaborative approach to school improvement at a senior management level as well as developing leadership capacity at a Teacher Leader level in line with the distributed leadership approach school development.
If numbers exceed available places further shortlisting may apply.
All schools will be contacted after shortlisting has taken place. The schools that have been successful in their applications will be contacted directly by a PDST advisor with further information.
The RCS Forbairt theme is ‘Visible Learning with a focus on the impact of feedback’
