Course summary
This course is designed for school leaders who want to embed sustainable connection into their leadership practice, decision-making, and whole-school culture.
Grounded in The Connection Curriculum, it explores how connection, trust, empathy, boundaries, and feedback contribute to stronger teams and safer school environments. Each short video lesson delivers practical, actionable leadership strategies – supported by a concise reflection and activity.
This is not a feel-good wellbeing course. It’s a strategic framework for building a relational culture that improves performance, staff retention, and student outcomes.
Because connection isn’t a bonus – it’s how great leadership works.
More courses with Matt Pitman:
- Connecting with Students: Sustainable Connection for Engagement and Meaningful Learning
- Connecting with Parents: Sustainable Connection for Stronger Family-school Partnerships
Video transcript
Strong school leadership isn’t just strategic – it’s human.
Hi I’m Matt Pitman and I’ve teamed up with Cool+ for this course, Leading with Connection, which is designed to help school leaders create cultures where staff thrive, students grow, and trust runs deep.
Each lesson gives you clear, practical tools to build connection across your team – not as a nice extra, but as the foundation for sustainable, effective leadership.
We cover boundaries, feedback, empathy, communication, and culture-building. All in short, punchy lessons with real actions to try right away.
Because when connection is built into how you lead, everything else becomes possible.
You will learn:
- the role of connection, trust, and emotional safety in building sustainable leadership practice
- relational strategies for communication, feedback, boundaries, and leading through change
- how to embed connection into whole-school culture through consistent modelling, systems, and shared ownership.
Course time:
This course is expected to take between 30 to 45 minutes. Perfect for after work or during a spare period. You will have ongoing access via your user dashboard.
Accreditation:
This course is mapped to the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers.
- 7.1 Meet professional ethics and responsibilities
Save
Course Content
Leading with connection: Creating a positive school culture through sustainable connection
Course instructor
Matt Pitman is an experienced educational leader, a doctoral candidate researching connections across school communities, and the author of The Connection Curriculum published by Amba Press. Matt’s experience is varied, from the leadership of curriculum teams and programs to student wellbeing, student improvement and community engagement portfolios. He has led Positive Education and student support programs and has a passion for working with students, parents, and staff to develop new understandings of the needs of young people in the 21st century.
Frequently asked questions
Can I log this PD with my states teaching authority?
Yes! Our courses are mapped to the Australian Professional Teacher Standards (AITSL), and your completion can be logged as elective PD hours with your state's teaching regulatory authority. To do this, grab your certificate of completion from your personal dashboard once the course is complete.
How long will this take to complete?
This course is expected to take between 30 to 45 minutes. Perfect for after work or during a spare period. You will have ongoing access via your user dashboard.
Will I get proof of completion?
Is this course accredited?
All of our courses are mapped to the Australian Professional Teacher Standards (AITSL), and your completion can be logged as relevant, teacher-identified professional development activity with all Australian state teaching regulatory authorities. To do this, grab your certificate of completion from your personal dashboard once the course is complete.
- 7.1 Meet professional ethics and responsibilities
Who are the instructors?
This course is designed in consultation with teachers, principals, psychologists, counsellors, scientists, and all manner of experts in the education field.
Cool.org's curriculum team continually reviews and refines our resources to be in line with changes to the Australian Curriculum and best educational practice, so you can be sure your learning is at the cutting edge of education theory.
Welcome back!
Don't have an account yet?
Log in with:
Create your free Cool.org account.
Many of our resources are free, with an option to upgrade to Cool+ for premium content.
Already have an account?
Sign up with:
By signing up you accept Cool.org's Terms and Conditions(Opens in new tab) and Privacy Policy(Opens in new tab).