Understanding the Science of Learning and Leading

You will be equipped with a deep understanding of the brain’s learning processes and how application of this knowledge can be used to enhance your school’s learning environments, instructional models, and your leadership capability.

Explore evidence-based teaching and learning strategies, 8 steps to learner engagement, and the power of storytelling.

Discover change management skills to transform your school and strengthen your influence skills to redefine your leadership through trust, rapport and growth.

Audience

Designed for Victorian government school principals who have the option to participate with their assistant principals, learning specialists and leading teachers. 

Facilitator

Dr. Judi Newman, PhD, is the Director of The Academy of Organisational Neuroscience Australia and is an expert in applied neuroscience: a field of study that takes the latest in social cognitive neuroscience research and applies it to leadership, motivation, learning and influence.

Dr Newman’s mission is to boost influence through strengthening leadership capacity and learning impact, through a neuroscience lens and sharing evidence-based practice. Specifically, she focuses on working with school principals and corporate leaders to establish ‘Brainwise’ schools or companies to build high-performance teams who view themselves as leaders.

Dr Newman is a former secondary school principal with over 30 years’ experience in education. She has worked as an executive leadership coach and written 4 books with a fifth (on leadership) on the way.

Structure of program

Over 3 weeks, you will engage with and contribute to:

• 3 online workshops (6 hours)
• self-directed learning tasks and an application in practice (2 hours)

Workshops

Workshops are delivered online across three 2-hour sessions and explore the following topics:

Workshop 1: An overview of neuroscience

Explore the principles of neuroscience and neuromyths. Learn the essential conditions that make learning stick, how to normalise the learning dip and how we think, learn and remember at neural level.

Workshop 2: 8 steps to engage the learner

Discover learning readiness techniques and how we change brain states to allow for clear thinking. Learn powerful memory techniques and how to build trust, rapport, motivation and confidence.

Workshop 3: Leadership influence

Learn the 12 attributes that strengthen influence, and how to utilise change management skills to transform your school.

Self-directed learning and application in practice

Self-paced learning involves up to 2 hours in pre- and post-workshop activities. This includes an application in practice designed to support you in transitioning your learning into the workplace, while not creating additional work.

Learning outcomes

On completion of this program you will be able to:

• understand neuroscience as a pedagogical framework
• identify high-yield teaching strategies that build student engagement
• implement effective leadership behaviours that can influence change
• reflect on your own leadership behaviours and their impact on others.

Fees and financial support

Fully subsidised by the Department of Education for Victorian government school participants.