1. Professional Development for School Leaders Technical Assistance Phase 1 Self-Assessment and Plan Design

2. Why We Are Doing What We Are Doing?
Changing Conditions
The work of schools has never been more complex and demanding and the challenges school leaders face to improve student achievement have never been greater.
Greater Expectations
As a result expectations for principals and superintendents have moved well beyond efficient management and administration.
Changing Conditions;
Schools are expected to do more than ever before in terms of the levels of proficiency that students are expected to reach.
The student population is becoming increasingly diverse making it more challenging to have every child reach these higher standards.
Resources are becoming increasingly limited and we need to look at alternative ways of improving the quality of education.
Greater expectation
As a result of the changing conditions the expectations for school leaders have increased and shifted from the demands of efficient management and administration to instructional leadership and improving student performance. From simply providing excellent educational opportunities to insuring that those opportunities are equal for all children.
Research on School Improvement
Recent research has drawn attention to the pivotal role that school leaders provide in the school improvement process when their focus is on improving the quality of teaching and learning and improving student achievement.
We can make a difference in student achievement if school leaders focus on teaching and learning and insure that what we are learning about learning informs our educational practices. If we do what we have always done we will continue to get what we always got. School leadership is about changing what we do to meet the new demands and challenges. Hence the emphasis on continuous professional learning for school leaders.
Research on School Improvement
The key function of school leadership, to improve teaching and learning and to significantly improve student achievement can result from effective school leadership.

3. How will you measure up?
These changing conditions, increased expectations and research on school improvement have led to a new measurement of effective school leadership based not on skills of efficient management but on the skills of effective instructional leadership.

4. The new professional standards for school leaders are designed to focus our attention on understanding the changing conditions and how, as school leaders we can bring about continuous school improvement through specific actions and our own professional learning.

5. Leaders should be doing, and should be seen doing, that which they expect or require others to do….
Likewise leaders should expect to have their own practice subjected to the same scrutiny others receive….
R. Elmore, Building a New Structure for School Leadership

6. What are we going to do today?
Deepen our understanding of the New Jersey Standards for School Leaders and how they can be used for self assessment and continuous professional learning.
Relate personal professional development goals to district, school or department improvement needs.
Provide alternative tools for conducting a self-assessment and developing a preliminary draft professional growth plan.

7. Think about a school leader with whom you have worked that you would consider a candidate for a school leader award. Discuss that persons qualities with a partner.
Now lets compare that individual against the New Jersey Standards for School Leaders.

8. The New Jersey Professional Standards for School Leaders
School Administrators shall be educational leaders who promote the success of all students by…
Standard One – Creating and Implementing a shared vision of learning.
Standard Two- Sustaining a school culture of student learning and professional growth.
Standard Three- Ensuring the management of the organization in a safe effective and efficient manner.
Standard Four- Collaborating with families and the community.
Standard Five- Acting with integrity, fairness and in an ethical manner.
Standard Six- Understanding and responding to the influences of the larger political, social, legal and cultural context.
The New Jersey Professional Standards for School Leaders

9. The Standards are defined by …
Knowledge- the theories, trends, principles, models and concepts a school leader should understand and be able to use.
Dispositions-what a school leader should value or believe in
Performances-what the school leader actually does.
A Framework for School Leaders: Linking the ISLLC Standards to Practice
K. Hessel and J. Holloway

10. Ongoing Professional Learning Three Phases
Contemplation
Collaboration
Implementation
Ongoing Professional learning involves
Contemplation- self-assessment and reflection, establishing linkages with the district needs to improve the quality of teaching and learning and student achievement, preparing a draft professional growth plan
Collaboration- collaboration between the superintendent and among colleagues in peer review process designed to support the creation, implementation and certification of the PGP.
Implementation- engagement in the plan activities, monitoring of progress, collection and organization of evidence that will provide the basis for the documentation and summary narrative required for certification.

11. Contemplation
Steps 1,2,3
Assessing your individual professional development needs, readiness and commitment.
Assessing district, school, or department needs and linking professional development to improvement objectives.
Proposing your Professional Growth Plan (PGP).
Assessing individual needs- involves comparing your assessment of your knowledge and skills against the state leadership standards
Assessing district needs- alignment of personal goals and needs with the needs of the district
Proposing your PGP- considering of the types of activities, anticipated outcomes and anticipated resources and supports that may be required.

12. STEP 1
Assessing your individual professional development needs, readiness and commitment.
In determining your individual professional development needs it will be useful to complete a self-assessment aligned with the New Jersey Standards for School Leaders, and to supplement the results of any self-assessment with feedback you may have received formally or informally from those with whom you work.
The first step in the preparation of a professional growth plan is the determination of individual professional development needs.
In determining those needs it is important to reflect on your current level of skills and knowledge and your capacity to perform the job of school leader based on New Jersey Standards for School Leaders.
In determining your individual professional development needs it will be useful to complete a self-assessment aligned with the New Jersey Standards for School Leaders, and to supplement the results of any self-assessment with feedback you may have received formally or informally from those with whom you work.
After analyzing your self-assessment you will need to select one or more professional development goals for yourself. These should be in areas that will have the greatest potential to improve the quality of teaching and learning and student achievement in your department, school or district.

13. NJ PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS FOR SCHOOL LEADERS
Self-Reflection Worksheet: Training Sample
Directions: Carefully read each indicator listed. Decide your level of agreement with each proficiency statement. Enter a brief description of your understanding of each indicator in the box you selected. Enter additional reflective comments relating to standard #1 at the end of this section.
Definition of Rating Levels:
1. Only minimal, if any, understanding or experience with the indicator.
2. A moderate understanding and experience with the indicator.
3. An excellent working knowledge and successful experiences with the indicator.
EXAMPLE:
Standard #1
Indicator Rating Notes/Evidence
I understand what is I know a little bit about systems
meant by systems theory and I have heard of
theory Peter Senge and his book
but I have not read it. I am not sure how systems thinking can
help me be a better school leader

14. 3 3 1 Standard #1 I am committed to the inclusion of
A school administrator is an educational leader who promotes the success of all students by facilitating the development, articulation, implementation and stewardship of a vision of learning that is shared and supported by the school community
Indicator Rating Notes/Evidence
I am committed to the inclusion of
a school vision that incorporates
high standards of learning and
continuous school improvement .
I understand what is meant by
systems theory and data-analysis
strategies.
I am aware of the various
components of consensus building
and negotiation.
I have worked with continuous school Improvement process used by MSA and trained in the Cambridge model 3
I teach courses for Rutgers GSE
In educational administration including systems theory, DDDM. 3
I am generally uncomfortable with and have limited skills in consensus building and negotiation. 1

15. 1 2 Standard #1 I am able to facilitate the
A school administrator is an educational leader who promotes the success of all students by facilitating the development, articulation, implementation and stewardship of a vision of learning that is shared and supported by the school community
Indicator Rating Notes/Evidence
I am able to facilitate the
development of a shared vision
through effective communication
with stakeholders of the school
community.
implementation and monitoring of
a shared school vision using
appropriate strategies and
evaluative resources.
It has been consistently difficult to involve community stakeholders in the school improvement process. 1
I have had some experience in implementing and monitoring a strategic plan based on a shared vision. 2

16. STEP 2
Assessing district, school, or department Needs and linking professional development to improvement objectives.

17. Possible Resources
Program/school/district goals in Board-adopted strategic plans;
Annual state-mandated goals required in district reports (i.e. QAAR, Multi-Year Equity plan, Five Year Facility plan, audit reports);
Annual federally mandated goal setting required as part of federal funding applications (i.e. NCLB, IDEA);
State or federally mandated review processes, monitoring or audits resulting in recommendations or corrective actions;
Elective accreditation processes resulting in specific recommendations for improvement (i.e. Middle State, NSSE Study Evaluations, award applications)

18. STEP 3 Proposing your Professional Growth Plan (PGP).
Create a draft of your plan using one of the recommended templates.
Explain how your goal was selected and how your goals relate to program/school or district needs.
Specify activities you are proposing to be engaged in, how your goals will ultimately be measured and what benchmarks, if any, might be used to measure progress.
Include a tentative timeline and the anticipated resources that might be required to accomplish your goals.
The next step in developing your professional growth plan is to create a draft of your plan using one of the recommended templates, one selected or developed by your district or a format you design to accommodate your plan.
For each of your professional development goals, you should prepare a brief explanation regarding how your goals were selected, how your goals relate to program/school or district needs, what activities you are proposing to be engaged in, how your goals will ultimately be measured and what benchmarks, if any, might be used to measure progress. Your plans should also include a tentative timeline showing your proposed activities for each of the 3-5 years of the professional development cycle and the anticipated resources that might be required to accomplish your goals.

19. 2 2 1 Standard #2 I value and I am committed to the
A school administrator is an educational leader who promotes the success of all students by advocating, nurturing and sustaining a school culture and instructional program conducive to student learning and staff professional growth
Indicator Rating Notes/Evidence
I value and I am committed to the
premise that all children can learn
and be contributing members of
our society.
I have a clear understanding of the
principles of curriculum development,
assessment and effective instruction.
I am able to facilitate a well
articulated professional
development program that is
meaningful, job-embedded and
includes multiple opportunities.
Homogeneous grouping and
ability based pullouts reflect an underlying belief that students have different potentials. 2
I am unsure as to how best to provide effective instruction to diverse students 2
We have only 2 in-service days with single “drive-by’ workshops. workshops are not embedded. I need information on how to do this. 1

20. 3 2 Standard #2 I am able to access, analyze and
A school administrator is an educational leader who promotes the success of all students by advocating, nurturing and sustaining a school culture and instructional program conducive to student learning and staff professional growth
Indicator Rating Notes/Evidence
I am able to access, analyze and
use data from a variety of sources
to make informed decisions
pertaining to instruction, assessment
and both teacher and student
performance.
I am able to nurture and sustain an
environment that is fair, maintains
high expectations and fosters life
long learning among the entire
learning community.
I have had extensive training in this area along with years of experience with using data sources. The staff is deeply engaged in examining student work and test data. 3
The school has a supportive culture for our students; however, I need to learn how to more effectively encourage life long learning in the community. 2

21. New Jersey Professional Learning
for School Leaders
Part 1 Selecting a Standard or Standards
Based on a self-assessment against the New Jersey Standards for School Leaders and other sources the following standard(s) or specific areas within the following standard(s) have been selected as the focus of my PGP:
Based on my self-assessment and reflection, I have chosen to work on Standard 2: A school administrator is an educational leader who promotes the success of all students by advocating, nurturing and sustaining a school culture and instructional program conducive to student learning and staff professional growth. In particular, I want to focus on professional development in the school (or district or department).

22. -Attendance at parent workshops is minimal.
Part 2 District/ School/ Department Linkages
Enhancing my knowledge and skills, dispositions and performance relative to these standards relates to district/ school/ departmental improvement needs in the following ways:
Based on the professional development needs assessment survey, there are not enough professional development opportunities in our school and virtually no job embedded learning experiences..
-Classroom observations do not reflect effective implementation of what professional development already exists nor best practices research.
-School leaders have not had ample opportunity to participate in their own learning.
-Attendance at parent workshops is minimal.

23. Part 3 Specific Goals and Intended Outcomes
The specific goals of my PGP and intended outcomes can be summarized briefly as follows:
I will acquire the knowledge and skills and engage in activities that will facilitate a well articulated professional development program that is meaningful, job embedded, and includes multiple opportunities for learning.

24. Part 3 Specific Goals and Intended Outcomes
The specific goals of my PGP and intended outcomes can be summarized briefly as follows:
A. Activities
I will engage in the following activities and detail how each activity enhanced the achievement of my goal.
In order to meet my goal I will:
1. Learn and study the NJ Professional Development Standards
2. Join and participate in National Staff Development Council (NSDC) activities.
3. Research and read about exemplary professional development practices (books, internet, videos, etc.).
4. Identify and visit schools with exemplary professional development programs.
5. Identify and interview experts in the field.
6. Keep a journal of experiences and learning.
7. Share my experiences and learning with the staff and work with them to develop a vision and action plan for a new professional development program that meets the requirements of my goal.
8. Develop an assessment tool that includes attitudinal, observational, and performance data.
9. Provide for the resources necessary to meet the goal.
10. Facilitate implementation of the goal.
11. Measure/observe impact of the project.

25. -Listing of research sources and notes from my reading and viewing
Part 3 Specific Goals and Intended Outcomes
B. Evidence
I will document my progress in enhancing my skills and knowledge, dispositions and performance with the following artifacts and/or outcomes:
-My notes about the NJ Professional Development Standards
-Records of my membership and participation in National Staff Development Council (NSDC) events
-Listing of research sources and notes from my reading and viewing
-List of and notes from visited schools and workshops
-Record of interviews
-My learning/reflection journal
-Agenda and minutes from faculty, team, and committee meetings where we discussed embedded professional development and worked on plans.
-The actual plan and notes/reflections on implementation.
-Our assessment of the project impact.

26. Full implementation and evaluation of the new program.
Part 3 Specific Goals and Intended Outcomes
C. Timeline and Benchmarks
Implementation of my PGP will be in accordance with the following 3-5 year activity plan and applicable benchmarks:
Year 1:
Activities related to the research and development of the new PD program.
Year 2:
Working with staff on the planning of and initial implementation of the new program
Year 3:
Full implementation and evaluation of the new program.

27. The NJ Professional Development Standards (No cost)
Part 3 Specific Goals and Intended Outcomes
D. Resources
The following resources may be necessary for the full implementation of my PGP:
The NJ Professional Development Standards (No cost)
-Funds for joining and participating in NSDC events ($500)
-Time to attend NSDC events (3 days)
-Time for visitations to exemplary schools (5 days)
-Funds for purchasing PD books, videos ($200)
-Duplication of materials for staff (No additional cost)
-Consultant services to assist with plan and assessment ($500)
-Materials for communications ($50)

28. Ticket Out the Door
Using your responses to the New Jersey Professional Standards for School Leaders Self-Reflection Worksheet for Standard 1 draft a PGP based on your responses.

29. Next Steps
Walk through the self-assessment and draft PGP process yourself.
If practical, work with a small group with the model or models suggested today or one customized for your district’s needs.
Present the information you received today to those administrators in your district who will be involved in preparing their own professional growth plans.

30. The Department’s Website will feature useful resources and links including:
Introductory Guide
Implementation Guide to School Leader Professional Learning Initiative
The New Jersey Professional Standards for School Leaders
FAQ’s
Alternative self-assessment tools
Draft PGP Template
Links to Useful Websites Or
the NJASA and NJPSA websites

31. Answers!
Questions?