You're the voice, try and understand it, make a noise and make it clear (John Farnham)

Photo by kyle smith on Unsplash

Student voice. That was the answer.

My question was: what's the one thing you would like me to address if I become your new Head Teacher?

This came during my (successful) epic interview for a new job in the UK.

It was the student interview. They asked some searching questions and when they were done they asked me if I had a question for them.

I did.

Was I surprised by their answer? Not really.

My current senior students at my current school would probably have said the same thing if they'd had the chance to interview me before I became the Kaipara Principal.

Student voice.

This can be interpreted in different ways.

It may mean 'more choice', or 'getting what we want', or 'asking for our opinions', or 'our preferences'.

The simple fact is, I liked how they asked if I had question for them. It made me feel included somehow. 

Now, the reciprocal question needs to be asked of the students. Everyone likes to be listened to, don't they?

What do you want to say? (Go ahead; I'm all ears).