Implementing Improvement in Victorian Schools
See how BCG created a strategy to improve the performance and development culture in the Victoria schools system.
The Victorian Department of Education and Training is responsible for setting this Australian state’s education policies, targets, and standards. It oversees 1,600 public schools and employs more than 40,000 teachers.
This client was developing a policy blueprint covering all of the schools, with a goal to further improve the results of its already high-performing, highly evolved public education system.
BCG was asked to create a strategy to bring about cultural change and improve the performance and development (P&D) culture across the Victorian government school system.
BCG designed a program that combined a consistent credible-change framework with local flexibility on design and delivery by:
Listening to all parties—such as teachers, principals and head teachers, students, unions, peak bodies, central and regional staff, and local and international opinion leaders—to get a clear understanding of existing issues from all perspectives
Undertaking rigorous data analysis to learn about existing performance issues in Victorian government schools
Ensuring that the recommended framework had sufficient local ownership (in areas such as data collection and validation) to achieve trust and buy-in
Developing a robust, shared framework for change
Developing detailed case studies to test and better understand the implications of recommendations
As a result of BCG’s efforts over a five-year period, a P&D culture was successfully introduced across the Victorian government school system—with 90 percent of its schools achieving P&D culture accreditation.
The Victorian government is now working on its second "horizon" of reform, developing a differentiated rewards model to be piloted in 2009-2010.
Following the introduction of P&D culture, there has been a significant uplift in employee engagement, with schools moving from below-average staff engagement scores to significantly above-average scores.
P&D culture has also been a catalyst for important teaching practice discussions within schools, putting an emphasis on understanding, assessing, and improving teaching performance.
Additionally, it has fostered increased collaboration between both staff and schools.
And it has led to improved use of performance feedback and data, providing a platform for greater innovation.
Data explanation: Average scores from staff-engagement survey from questions relating to school morale, supportive leadership, professional interaction, goal congruence, and professional growth.