Instructional Leadership for School Improvement

This Book Explores The Principal's Role In Meeting High Expectations For Student Achievement. It Provides Detailed Tips And Strategies To Show You What Principals Need To Do To: Assess And Promote A Culture And Climate For School Improvement, Build Teams And Support The Work Their Work, Create The Conditions So That Teacher Leaders Can Emerge, And Monitor School Improvement Efforts. Cover -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Dedication -- About The Author -- Acknowledgments -- Table Of Contents -- 1 Thinking About School Improvement -- Introducing School Improvement -- Accountability -- A Brief History Leading To The Present Call For High-stakes Accountability -- No Child Left Behind -- School Improvement Broadly Defined -- The Work Of The Principal In School Improvement -- The Power Of Relationships -- Effective Leaders Promote Learning Communities -- The Process Of School Improvement -- Suggested Readings -- 2 Principals Promote A Healthy Culture And Climate -- Introduction -- Defining School Culture In A Context Of School Improvement -- Cultures Are Built On Values, Assumptions, And Norms -- Framing Assumptions, Values, And Norms In The Context Of School Improvement -- Putting Culture Into Context-using Metaphor To Express Culture -- Formal And Informal Cultures And Subcultures -- Markers Of School Culture -- Mission Statement And Other Documents -- Policy Statements -- Programs For Students -- Programs For Teachers -- The Learning Environment -- The Health Of The School Culture -- School Climate -- Two Dimensions Of Climate-academic And Social Climate -- Leadership-building Culture And Climate -- Key Norms: Collaboration And Trust -- Characteristics Of Collaborative Cultures -- Building Collaborative School Cultures -- Norms -- Collegiality And Collaboration -- Trust -- Caring Builds Trust -- Suggested Readings -- 3 Principals Support Teacher Leadership -- Introducing Teacher Leadership -- The Need For Teacher Leadership -- Teachers As Leaders Develop The Instructional Program -- Teachers As Leaders Make Positive Changes In The School -- Teachers As Leaders Share Their Expertise With Others -- Teachers As Leaders Shape The Culture Of The School -- A Starting Point For Teacher Leadership-scanning The Environment. Knowledge And Skills For Teacher Leaders -- Motivation For Teacher Leaders -- Organizational Barriers To The Emergence Of Teacher Leadership -- Cultivating Teacher Leadership -- Provide Professional Development And Mentoring For Teacher Leaders -- Assuming Leadership Can Be Risky Business For The Newcomer To Leadership -- Suggested Readings -- 4 Principals Build Strong Teams To Sustain School Improvement -- Introducing School Improvement Teams -- The Work Of Creating School Improvement Teams -- Characteristics Of Effective Teams -- What's Next? -- Up-front Work Needed To Develop Teams -- Establishing Purposes And A Vision For The End Results -- Setting Goals -- Selection Of Team Members -- Ongoing Work Needed To Maintain The Work Of Teams -- Leading Teams Through Group Development Stages -- Providing Support Structures For Teamwork -- Assessing Teams And Their Work -- Suggested Readings -- 5 The Work Of The Principal In Planning For School Improvement -- Introducing Planning For School Improvement -- The Broad Base Of Involvement Needed For Planning For School Improvement -- Communication And School Improvement -- Communication That Informs -- Communication That Helps Plan -- Communication That Asks -- Communication That Evaluates -- Getting Started -- Consult The School Mission -- Assemble The School Improvement Team -- Assess The Current Situation Of The School And Students To Target Gaps -- Environmental Scanning -- Gap Analysis -- Analyze Data -- Making Data User-friendly -- Data Overload -- Develop Improvement Goals And Objectives To Narrow Gaps -- Goals -- Objectives -- Linking Goals And Objectives -- Develop Strategies To Meet Goals And Objectives -- The Action Plan Is The School Improvement Plan -- Action Plans Bring Life To Goals, Objectives, And Strategies -- Pulling It All Together-a Case From The Field -- Understanding The Context. Academic Support Programs And Personnel -- The Faculty Of Lindsey Elementary -- The Reality Of A School In Trouble -- Scanning The Environment -- Where To Start? -- Teamwork-time, Opportunity, And Training Needed -- Mission -- Beliefs = Values Forms The Basis Of The Mission -- Committing The Beliefs Of Faculty, Staff, Administration, And Parents To Writing -- Gap Analysis-the Current Reality Versus The Desired State -- Test Data Analysis And Discussion In And Across Grade Levels -- An Overall Reform Strategy -- Databased Decision Making And Planning For Change -- Academic Goals-something To Strive For -- Ongoing Assessment -- The Research Base Needed To Press Forward -- Strategies To Implement The Research -- Strategies To Increase Parental Involvement -- Data Say It All -- Suggested Readings -- 6 The Work Of The Principal In Implementing And Monitoring School Improvement -- Implementing School Improvement -- Implementing School Improvement Plans -- Implementing The Plan -- Professional Development Needed For Successful Implementation -- Characteristics Of Effective Professional Development -- Job-embedded Learning -- Peer Coaching -- Differentiated And Developmental Supervisory Practices -- Monitoring The School Improvement Plan -- Documenting Results -- Understanding Data-a Precursor To Reviewing Efforts And Modifying Goals, Objectives, And Strategies -- Data Analysis-a Case From The Field -- Involving Teachers In Data Collection And Analysis -- Requesting Help From Within And Beyond The School -- Reviewing Efforts And Results Of Achieving Goals -- Providing Staff Development To Assist Teachers In Understanding The Results Of Data -- Assessing What Works -- Sustaining The Momentum For School Improvement -- Understanding Change -- Facing Implementation Dips -- Exploring What Is Blocking Progress Toward Meeting Goals -- Shining The Light. Suggested Readings -- References.