Changing public expectations means schools - along with other public services - need to rethink what it means to be a listening organisation.
Schools, along with other public services, are operating in a rapidly changing civic landscape. Parents – and children – are increasingly ready to challenge public institutions. With access to myriad sources of information, they no longer accept once authoritative organisations and individuals as the arbiters of truth.
Encouraged by seemingly authentic online voices, they expect new levels of accountability and justification from public services, with increased tendencies to demand their ‘entitlements’ - even where, in the case of AI generated advice, it may be based on incorrect information.
To become flourishing organisations, schools and trusts need to move beyond passive or transactional feedback-gathering and truly embed listening in their leadership. In this discussion paper, published in partnership with Edurio, we explore the idea that organisational listening is not simply hearing stakeholder views; in the context of education, it means treating pupils, staff, and parents as legitimate partners in shaping the school community, rather than as mere data points in a survey.
