In a time where standards and accountability override trust in teachers and
principals, mandated versions of pedagogy have recently appeared in the
Australian landscape. This article critiques one pedagogical reform
initiative and suggests that in performative times, it may be preferable for
principals and teachers to speak ‘over’ reform than to speak ‘back’ to it.
While reference to competency standards increasingly replaces discussion
about professionalism, the argument is developed here that key elements
of professionalism include trust, agency, identity and judgement, which
are excluded from the standards discourse. The article proposes that the
tenuous hold teachers have on professionalism might be strengthened by
critical school leaders adept at navigating their way around performative
demands and who encourage teachers to speak ‘over’ codes about
appropriate behaviour to instead explore what it means to be a teacher
professional.