Building Capital

The French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu identifies cultural capital as the assets an individual possesses in terms of financial and social resources, in conjunction with an individual’s knowledge, status and formal qualifications.

Professional capital is defined by Hargreaves and Fullan as a function of human capital (the talent of individuals); social capital (the collaborative power of the group); and decisional capital (the wisdom and expertise to make sound judgments about learners).

Professional capital is essentially about the growth and development of the people within a school. In The Principal: Three Keys to Maximizing Impact, Fullan suggests we need to “reposition the role of the principal as overall instructional leader.” I argue that it cannot just be the principal; it needs to be all leaders across a school – a united team focused on leading learning for teachers and students.

The question “how do you ensure accountability?” then becomes “how do we create the right conditions for all staff to grow and develop?” This necessitates a shift away from measuring, supervising and evaluating teachers to a more trusting and collaborative approach focused on growth and development.

Call it naïve optimism but I firmly believe that if you invest in capacity building or in the growing of capital, people will automatically become more accountable. Firstly to themselves and their own learning, but also to their peers, their students and their workplace.