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Filtering by Tag: TXTS4Leaders
Between now and next Wednesday, track and reflect on the feedback you give to teachers, how you give the feedback, and what changes you see based on the feedback you give.
We’ll check in with you next week to help you systematically improve the effectiveness of your feedback to teachers.
Are you intentionally training your school’s future leaders to take over for you?
At some point, you will not be in this role. You will move on. At every opportunity, are you sharing your knowledge with those who have the potential and desire to be an instructional leader?
Are you providing smaller leadership experiences with support and feedback so that you aren’t just delegating, but adequately preparing others to do what you are currently doing?
What about your irreplaceable staff members? These are the people who, if they quit, might lead you to consider changing jobs. It is important to explicitly, purposefully share expertise and systems for doing things with those who have the potential to also become irreplaceable.
Imagine feeling like you could walk away and things would continue to function. Work toward that end. Even if you stay, you’ll have more support and a network of talent.
If you have a couple of potential leaders in mind, see if the Aspiring Principals Program is something you would like them to pursue. The application deadline has been extended to Monday, April 17th
How do you ensure that a change process on your campus is successful? For example, say you want to introduce STEM initiatives on your campus. First, know your culture and create strategies that work for your current culture. Do most teachers value “I do, We do, You do” gradual release models of teaching rather than inquiry? Do you have a strong union who wants a voice or a few teachers who will try something if it’s for the kids or if you ask personally? Do you have a culture of teachers who work collaboratively or work on their own?
You may have heard the quote attributed to Peter Drucker, “Culture Eats Strategy for Breakfast.” Create or tweak strategies and structures that play into your current culture while providing opportunities to shift the culture by highlighting where you want to go. Have some key players work to teach a lesson as a gradual release while some teach it as inquiry and investigate the differences. Use scientific method to study STEM. What are structures or systems that can also act as symbols for the culture you want to create? Build, highlight, retain, and make decisions based on the people and systems that embody the culture and vision you want to create.
Put another way, “The quality of an education system cannot exceed the quality of its teachers” (Barber and Mourshed quoted in DuFour & Marzano’s Leaders of Learning, 2011, p. 16). One way to improve teacher quality is to increase educators’ capacity to keep growing based on student learning evidence. Models such as Professional Learning Communities or Data Wise support collective inquiry around student learning, but we often stop with how teachers are using these models. Do you use collective inquiry to inform your learning and the learning of your leadership team?
What student and teacher learning evidence drives your instructional leadership team’s learning?
Does your instructional leadership team regularly ask, “Who on our team is getting the best results? How can we learn from each other? What can we learn as a team to address this need?”
How might you use leadership team meetings to provide professional learning, modeling, and practice for your instructional leaders and coaches?
When you consider your job as the main people-improver on campus, is there support you need to help others grow? If you are not sure where to start, consider having your team work on its own effectiveness. Check out the Leading: High Functioning Teams Workshop.
Talk in person. Emails are too easily misread.
Meet in private and with time. Schedule more time than you think you will need to ensure you have the time and space to have an honest conversation.
Address the issue quickly. It may feel more comfortable to a day or so to prepare what you’ll say, but the quicker the feedback the more likely you’ll be able to address the issue and gain useful feedback in the process.