Derek’s blog

Derek’s Blog, launched in 2003, serves as a platform for sharing thoughts and reflections related to his work. It offers over 20 years of searchable posts, categorized by the tags below. Feel free to comment, as your feedback contributes to ongoing reflection and future posts.

Curriculum Education Leadership Educational Transformation Pedagogy

People at the Heart of Education

February 11, 2026

I recently had the privilege of sitting down with Philly Wintle, Deputy Principal at Albany Senior High School, for a conversation that reminded me why I love talking with educators who are still in the classroom, still working with students every day, still navigating the beautiful chaos of school life. Philly’s been teaching for nearly […]

Education Leadership Educational Transformation Learner Agency Open, Distance & Flexible Education

Flexibility Isn’t a Feature – It’s the Future

February 4, 2026

In my latest conversation on the future of education I spoke with Te Rina Leonard, CEO of Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu (the New Zealand Correspondence School), and what started as a conversation about online learning quickly became something much more profound. We ended up exploring what it really means to build an education […]

Curriculum Education Leadership Educational Transformation Learning Ecosystems New Measures of Success Pedagogy

Who should decide what?

February 2, 2026

In my previous two posts, I’ve argued that we need to rethink how we measure system success – expanding beyond test scores to include the capabilities young people actually need (Post 1) – and that this requires sustained investment in teacher professional learning, leadership development, learning support, and cultural responsiveness (Post 2). Many of you […]

Education Leadership Educational Transformation

Resourcing the system we need for measuring success

January 27, 2026

Last week I argued that we need to rethink how we measure system success in education. Rather than fixating on narrow metrics like test scores and school rankings, we should be tracking whether our young people are developing the capabilities they actually need: ecological thinking, cultural fluency, digital wisdom, creative problem-solving, collective leadership, and adaptive […]

Educational Transformation New Measures of Success

Rethinking System Success in Education

January 22, 2026

Leading up to and over the Christmas break, my social media feeds were inundated with short video messages from government politicians, including our Minister of Education, celebrating the ‘success’ of their policy implementations – with convincing data to support these claims. It’s an extremely effective strategy: short sound bites, convincing data, emphatic claims of success. […]

Education Leadership Educational Transformation New Measures of Success

Building trust, avoiding polarisation

January 15, 2026

A conversation with Bali Haque about keeping things simple and focusing on what’s important for the future of education. With NCEA results becoming available this week I thought it appropriate to that my first post for 2026 would be with the third of my series on ‘conversations on the future of education‘ where I had […]

Educational Transformation research and papers

Building System Coherence: Lessons from the Past, Hope for the Future

December 21, 2025

A conversation with Cathy Wylie on what New Zealand education needs to thrive In the latest episode of our “conversations about the future of education” series, I had the privilege of sitting down with Cathy Wylie, one of New Zealand’s most experienced educational researchers. Cathy has been tracking our education system since joining NZCER in […]

Educational Transformation research and papers

Making Sense of TALIS 2024: What It Means for NZ Education

December 11, 2025

The latest TALIS country report for New Zealand has just landed, and it’s given me a lot to think about. As someone who’s watched our education system evolve over the years, I find myself both encouraged and concerned by what the data reveals. Let me share what’s standing out to me – and why I […]

conference entry Education Leadership Educational Transformation

Finding Your People: The Power of Challenging Networks in Education

December 9, 2025

Earlier this year I had the privilege of being introduced to Jason McGrath who was a keynote speaker at a conference in New South Wales where I was also a keynote speaker. Jason had been a principal of an area school (K-12) in the Hunter Valley region, completing a PhD on futures studies in education […]

conference entry Education Leadership Educational Transformation

Preparing tomorrow for our mokopuna today

November 30, 2025

I recently wrote about an event I attended in Wellington hosted by the team at Pātaka Toa, the education arm of Ngati Toa. One of the key speakers at that event was Bianca Elkington, GM Education and Employment at Te Rūnanga o Toa Rangatira Incorporated. Her introduction provided an inspirational vision to get the day started, […]

conference entry Diary entry Education Leadership Educational Transformation Learner Agency

24 Hours for Change in Education

November 29, 2025

Last week I had the privilege of working with a team of amazing NZ educators and students to launch 24Hours of Change a unique, worldwide event dedicated to transforming education. The 24 Hours for Change in Education initiative unites teachers, students, families, educational leaders, and experts from across the globe in a continuous, 24 hours of presentations, […]

Education Leadership Educational Transformation Learner Agency News & current events

What goes on tour… Reflections from Our US Education Trip

November 27, 2025

This week I had the pleasure of hosting a webinar with two inspiring educators – Natasha Teinakore (Principal at Birkdale Primary School) and Lesley Pogai (Deputy Principal at Aberdeen Primary School) – to share our experiences from our recent trip to the US. We attended a FullScale Symposium and visited innovative schools in San Francisco, […]

Educational Transformation Learning Ecosystems News & current events

Education as an Investment in the Future – But What Future?

November 26, 2025

Amid competing reforms, Aotearoa must confront a deeper question: what kind of future are we preparing young people for? I recently had the privilege of attending an iwi-led education summit that took place at Te Papa, called Whiti Te Rā. The summit was organised by the team at Pātaka Toa, the education arm of Ngati Toa. I loved […]

Curriculum Education Leadership Educational Transformation Pedagogy

The corporatisation of education

November 20, 2025

Yesterday I had a conversation with a colleague at the Ministry of Education who has been working there for some time now. We discussed lots of the changes being made at present, and shared thoughts on how much has changed – and is changing – in terms of the internal processes and leadership demonstrated. As […]

Curriculum Pedagogy

Reading, meaning and motivation

November 12, 2025

When reading becomes a battleground, we risk forgetting why it matters in the first place. During my recent visit to the US to attend the FullScale Symposium I became increasingly aware of the parallels that exist in the US and NZ, in the debates occurring about the so-called science of reading. In the United States, […]

Educational Transformation Learner Agency Pedagogy

Creating FutureMakers

November 8, 2025

Over the past few months I’ve been thinking a lot about the future-focused pedagogical approaches we see being promoted and implemented in schools. I’ve heard some principals say “we’re an inquiry-based school”, or “we’re a project-based learning school” for example. While the value of such approaches lie in the research-informed frameworks and guidance provided, there […]

conference entry Educational Transformation News & current events

Why Our Schools Must Keep Their Commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi

November 4, 2025

After more than 50 years in education, I’ve learned that the most powerful learning happens when children see themselves reflected in their classroom – when their language, culture, and identity are recognised and valued. This isn’t ideology; it’s reality, proven time and again in schools and communities across Aotearoa. It’s also why I’m deeply concerned […]

Populism and Education Reform

November 1, 2025

While I was travelling in the US this week I’ve had the opportunity to think more deeply about the current state of our education system -both in NZ and globally. I’ve been reflecting a lot on my experiences at the FullScale Symposium I attended, my visits to schools in San Francisco, and from reading about […]

Curriculum Education Leadership Educational Transformation

The Rise of Positionalism

October 21, 2025

A few months ago, I wrote about the importance of balance in education reform. Since then, I’ve become increasingly troubled by what I’m seeing across Aotearoa and in other parts of the world. Not only are we struggling to sustain balance, but our current way of talking about education almost guarantees we’ll lose it. The […]

Education Leadership Educational Transformation New Measures of Success Pedagogy

Holding Fast to Our Why in a Time of Mandates

October 4, 2025

It’s difficult to ignore the increasing level of angst among many educators in New Zealand at present – some of which is about to spill over in forms of industrial action, such is the level of frustration being felt. Conversations in schools, staffrooms, and leadership circles are dominated by the latest set of mandates about […]

Please get in touch to discuss your plans. FutureMakers is an approved provider of Ministry-funded, regionally allocated professional development (RAPLD). Search for Derek Wenmoth on the MoE website’s provider list when making an application.

What others say

The Learning Environments Australasia Executive Committee has received a lot of positive feedback, which is greatly due to your wealth of knowledge and information you imparted on our large audience, your presentation has inspired a range of educators, architects and facility planners and for this we are grateful.

Daniel Smith Chair Learning Environments Australasia

Derek and Maurie complement each other well and have the same drive and passion for a future education system that is so worthwhile being part of. Their presentation and facilitation is at the same time friendly and personal while still incredibly professional. I am truly grateful to have had this experience alongside amazing passionate educators and am inspired to re visit all aspects of my leadership. I have a renewed passion for our work as educational leaders.

Karyn Gray Principal, Raphael House Rudolf Steiner

I was in desperate need of a programme like this. This gave me the opportunity to participate in a transformative journey of professional learning and wellbeing, where I rediscovered my passion, reignited my purpose, and reconnected with my vision for leading in education. Together, we got to nurture not just academic excellence, but also the holistic wellbeing of our school communities. Because when we thrive, so does the entire educational ecosystem.

Tara Quinney Principal, St Peter's College, Gore

Refresh, Reconnect, Refocus is the perfect title for this professional development. It does just that. A fantastic retreat, space to think, relax and start to reconnect. Derek and Maurie deliver a balance of knowledge and questioning that gives you time to think about your leadership and where to next. Both facilitators have the experience, understanding, connection and passion for education, this has inspired me to really look at the why for me!

Jan McDonald Principal, Birkdale North School

Engaged, passionate, well informed facilitators who seamlessly worked together to deliver and outstanding programme of thought provoking leadership learning.

Dyane Stokes Principal, Paparoa Street School

A useful and timely call to action. A great chance to slow down, reflect on what really drives you, and refocus on how to get there. Wonderful conversations, great connections, positive pathways forward.

Ursula Cunningham Principal, Amesbury School

RRR is a standout for quality professional learning for Principals. Having been an education PLD junkie for 40 years I have never before attended a programme that has challenged me as much because of its rigor, has satisfied me as much because of its depth or excited me as much because of realising my capacity to lead change. Derek and Maurie are truly inspiring pedagogical, authentic leadership experts who generously and expertly share their passion, wisdom and skills to help Principal's to focus on what is important in schools and be the best leader they can be.

Cindy Sullivan Principal, Kaipara College

Derek Wenmoth is brilliant. Derek connects powerful ideas forecasting the future of learning to re-imagine education and create resources for future-focused practices and policies to drive change. His work provides guidance and tools for shifting to new learning ecosystems through innovations with a focus on purpose, equity, learner agency, and lifelong learning. His work is comprehensive and brings together research and best practices to advance the future of teaching and learning. His passion, commitment to innovation for equity and the range of practical, policy and strategic advice are exceptional.

Susan Patrick, CEO, Aurora Institute

I asked Derek to work with our teachers to reenergise our team back into our journey towards our vision after the two years of being in and out of 'Covid-ness'. Teachers reported positively about the day with Derek, commenting on how affirmed they felt that our vision is future focused. Teachers expressed excitement with their new learning towards the vision, and I've noticed a palpable energy since the day. Derek also started preparing our thinking for hybrid learning, helping us all to feel a sense of creativity rather than uncertainty. The leadership team is keen to see him return!

Kate Christie | Principal | Cashmere Ave School

Derek has supported, informed and inspired a core group of our teachers to be effective leads in our college for NPDL. Derek’s PLD is expertly targeted to our needs.

Marion Lumley | Deputy Principal |Ōtaki College

What a task we set Derek - to facilitate a shared vision and strategy with our Board and the professional and admin teams (14 of us), during a Covid lockdown, using online technology. Derek’s expertise, skilled questioning, strategic facilitation and humour enabled us to work with creative energy for 6 hours using a range of well-timed online activities. He kept us focussed on creating and achieving a shared understanding of our future strategic plan. Derek’s future focussed skills combined with an understanding of strategy and the education sector made our follow up conversations invaluable. Furthermore, we will definitely look to engage Derek for future strategic planning work.

Sue Vaealiki, Chair of Stonefields Collaborative Trust

Our Principal PLG has worked with Derek several times now, and will continue to do so. Derek is essentially a master facilitator/mentor...bringing the right level of challenge, new ideas & research to deepen your thinking, but it comes with the level of support needed to feel engaged, enriched and empowered after working with him.

Gareth Sinton, Principal, Douglas Park School

Derek is a highly knowledgeable and inspirational professional learning provider that has been guiding our staff in the development of New Pedagogies’ for Deep Learning. His ability to gauge where staff are at and use this to guide next steps has been critical in seeing staff buy into this processes and have a strong desire to build in their professional practice.

Andy Fraser, Principal, Otaki College