It has been quite literally years since we have experienced a “traditional” results day in the UK - meaning there will be many teachers, and even new-to-the-role heads of department, who have never experienced it.
Whatever the results are, emotions will be running high. So what is the role of a head of department (Hod) in the run-up to, and on, that fateful day in August?
Supporting yourself
Firstly, it’s important for Hods to safeguard their own mental health. You may have spent a disproportionate amount of time thinking about results day and its implications.
In these final days before the results land - switch off from your other work. September will be here before we know it, and the summer break is a vital time for rest and recuperation. You will be a better leader for having switched off.
Supporting your staff
It’s important to model this for your team, too - while also recognising that they may need the occasional bit of reassurance.
In these days of email and WhatsApp groups, it is easier than ever for colleagues to get in touch with their own concerns.
As an anxious early career teacher, I remember texting my own first head of department from a sun lounger in Greece, worrying I had literally let the school down as I was convinced everyone in my class had failed. Her kind words, reminding me of the work that I and the pupils had put in, helped bring me down from the anxiety.
This is something to emulate: a gentle reminder that results are a team effort between individual teachers, pupils and the whole department can work wonders in calming spiralling thoughts.
Setting clear expectations
Although for senior and middle leaders, the expectations of who does what on results day are clear, classroom teachers may feel unsure about whether or not they’re needed in school.
It’s worth mentioning to all your team that unless it has been communicated otherwise in advance by the senior leadership team, it’s not an expectation for teachers to be at school on results day itself.
Supporting students
A similar message may need to be formulated for worried pupils or parents in the run-up to results day.
Here, however, I would have a “skeleton” email ready to go if you anticipate a flurry of communications, with a mix of reassurance that pupils have done all they can (even if they haven’t, it’s too late now and unhelpful to say so), and calm reminders that you don’t know any more than they do.
While it is tempting to get into an email dialogue, should you receive further responses - don’t. You can’t do more than reassure and point to the protocols for your school. If you need to refer a parent or a pupil to someone more senior and step back, then do.
Equally, a tetchy “I am on my holidays you know” email won’t paint you, or your school, in a good light, so ensure you have regulated yourself before replying - even if you feel you could scream with frustration.
On the day
On results day itself, regardless of whether you will be going into school or not, you may feel a mix of emotions, particularly after the chaos of the last few years.
If you are going to school, speak to SLT in advance, to ensure that you know what is expected of you, especially if you are new to the role.
Some Hods, particularly in core subjects, are paid on the L scale and can be required to work alongside senior leaders for this period. Other schools may (rightly or wrongly) have an “unspoken” expectation that Hods will be in school, whereas still more have no expectation for Hods to work at all until the start of term.
Whatever it is you do on that day, you will have results communicated to you in one way or another. My advice is to block out a few hours to process this in your own mind before analysing the nitty-gritty at the start of the school year.
There will be positives. There will likely be some disappointments, too. And there will undoubtedly be lessons to feed forward into your curriculum planning.
Laura May Rowlands is head of English in a secondary school in Hampshire
