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<p>This paper presents a case study of a rural Australian primary school that has defied the national teacher shortage by successfully attracting and retaining teaching staff. The school’s success is attributed to its leadership’s strong community connections and a nuanced understanding of formal and informal forms of staff support. These attributes are explored through the lens of ‘funds of knowledge’ (Gonzalez et al., 2005), referring to unique personal resources developed through life experience and applied to learning contexts. This concept has previously been applied to students, but rarely teachers or leaders. Key strategies deployed by the school include fostering an inclusive culture through collaborative teaching, social activities, and dedicated staff wellbeing spaces, as well as the development of strong relationships between staff, students and the local community. The school has also developed innovative ‘grow your own’ recruitment practices, utilising Education Support Officer (ESO) and Permission to Teach (PTT) roles to provide practical classroom experience and address the limitations of traditional university placements, particularly in classroom management. While some aspects of this school’s holistic approaches are context-specific, the case study offers a number of practical insights for other rural schools facing similar challenges.</p>

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How a rural school leader’s ‘funds of knowledge’ built a culture that helped to attract and retain teachers

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2025年12月16日

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  • Stefan Schutt,
  • Steve Murphy,
  • Rebecca Miles-Keogh,
  • Adam Staples,
  • Andrea O’Connor

摘要

This paper presents a case study of a rural Australian primary school that has defied the national teacher shortage by successfully attracting and retaining teaching staff. The school’s success is attributed to its leadership’s strong community connections and a nuanced understanding of formal and informal forms of staff support. These attributes are explored through the lens of ‘funds of knowledge’ (Gonzalez et al., 2005), referring to unique personal resources developed through life experience and applied to learning contexts. This concept has previously been applied to students, but rarely teachers or leaders. Key strategies deployed by the school include fostering an inclusive culture through collaborative teaching, social activities, and dedicated staff wellbeing spaces, as well as the development of strong relationships between staff, students and the local community. The school has also developed innovative ‘grow your own’ recruitment practices, utilising Education Support Officer (ESO) and Permission to Teach (PTT) roles to provide practical classroom experience and address the limitations of traditional university placements, particularly in classroom management. While some aspects of this school’s holistic approaches are context-specific, the case study offers a number of practical insights for other rural schools facing similar challenges.