Courageous, Collaborative Leadership Patti Kinney National Center for Middle Level Leadership National Association of Secondary School Principals

This presentation will… provide you with quotes, stories, resources, and tools to provoke your thinking and to use with your staff. challenge and inspire you to think of leadership through different frameworks and perspectives. give you time to reflect, respond, and set goals for how to move yourself, your school, and your staff forward in your school improvement efforts.

Courage derived from the French word coeur meaning heart The ability to face danger, difficulty, uncertainty, or pain without being overcome by fear or being deflected from a chosen course of action

Seeing the obvious course of action Stuck!

Coming along side and giving support The National Anthem

Doing what’s right in spite of opposition RADIORADIO

Standing up for what you believe in B I L L Y E L L I O T T

Group Task … As a group discuss … What is your definition of courage? How does your definition of courage apply to your position as a leader? What are some personal examples of courageous leadership?

Collaboration “The prescriptions for improving schools must not come primarily from outside of schools. The most lasting and important changes will come from within and will draw on the great resources within schools.” Roland Barth

Collaboration “Improving schools requires the creation of collaborative cultures. Without the collaborative skills and relationships, it is not possible to learn and continue to learn as much as you need to know to improve.” Michael Fullan

Collaboration “Indeed, virtually every other profession in modern life has transitioned to various forms of teamwork, yet most educators still work alone.” Change Leadership: A Practical Guide to Transforming our Schools

Collaboration “Schools with strong professional learning communities were four times more likely to be improving academically than schools with weaker professional communities. We can no longer afford to be innocent of the fact that collaboration improves performance.” Anne C. Lewis

Collaborate! Choose one of the preceding quotes Share with a colleague what you do as a leader to: raise the awareness of the issue embedded in the quote and encourage those in your school to take action to address the issue in their day to day work.

“The prescriptions for improving schools must not come primarily from outside of schools. The most lasting and important changes will come from within and will draw on the great resources within schools.” “Improving schools requires the creation of collaborative cultures. Without the collaborative skills and relationships, it is not possible to learn and continue to learn as much as you need to know to improve.” “Indeed, virtually every other profession in modern life has transitioned to various forms of teamwork, yet most educators still work alone.” “Schools with strong professional learning communities were four times more likely to be improving academically than schools with weaker professional communities. We can no longer afford to be innocent of the fact that collaboration improves performance.”

A Framework for Leadership Structural rules policies and processes roles technology goals environment “Division of Labor” Human Resources needs skills relationships “Meeting Individual Needs” Political power scarce resources conflict competition “Bargaining, Negotiating, Coalition- Building” Symbolic cultural symbols ritual metaphors heroes/villians ceremonies myths “Attaching and Creating Meaning”

The Recipe for Change “A vision of what might be plus a dissatisfaction with what is must be greater than the cost of change.” Garmston and Costa

It begins with a vision “Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.” Warren G. Bennis

The pig who knew what he wanted to do!

Vision begins in the mind and heart of the school leader be developed, nurtured, and shared with others before it can become a full-fledged reality be based on a set of sound educational beliefs that speak to the dignity, equality, and uniqueness of the students served by the school. be able to clearly articulate these beliefs and demonstrate by both actions and words that he or she holds firm to them. requires courage to challenge practices that are detrimental to students or to deal with issues or situations that are out of alignment with the school’s vision.

“If you don’t know where you are going, you will end up somewhere else.” Yogi Berra

Group Task: Vision What are three words that capture the essence of your vision for your school? What evidence of your vision would a visitor see at your school? What area of your vision needs to be given additional attention?

Focusing leadership on… Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment Developing School Culture Developing and Nurturing Leaders

Leadership for Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment

An acceptance of responsibility for student achievement

Leadership Map Lucky High Results, Low Understanding of Antecedents Replication of Success Unlikely Leading High Results, High Understanding of Antecedents Replication of Success Likely Losing Low Results, Low Understanding of Antecedents Do the same thing over and over and expecting different results Learning Low Results, High Understanding of Antecedents Replication of Mistakes Unlikely Causes: The Antecedents of Excellence Achievement of Results Doug Reeves,

Most Effective Strategies Alignment of standards, curriculum, instruction AND assessment Assignment of teachers based on student need Modeling and Mentoring of instructional strategies Engaging classroom environments

Most Effective Strategies Deep content analysis, including big ideas and essential questions Monitoring that is frequent and visible Interdisciplinary assessment Teaching strategies that focus on differentiated instruction and student engagement

Pause to reflect and share In the area of curriculum, instruction, and assessment, what do you most want to accomplish at your school that will take courage and/or collaborative leadership? What "frame" do you need to move into to accomplish this?

Leadership for Developing School Culture

A culture of collaboration and shared decision-making

“If you want to change and improve the climate and outcomes of schooling -- both for students and teachers, there are features of the school culture that have to be changed and if they are not changed, your well- intended efforts will be defeated.” “If you attempt to implement reforms but fail to engage the culture of a school, nothing will change.” Seymore Sarason

Healthy School Climates Honest, open communication High expectations Trust and confidence Recognition and appreciation Teacher involvement in decision making Collegiality Caring and humor Traditions that strengthen school culture

To sustain change, the principal must nurture a culture that … Promotes teamwork Encourages debate on effective practices Values input from all members of the school community Cultivates leadership skills in others Empowers others to make decisions and enact changes

Today’s principal must… Ask questions rather than provide all answers Facilitate the process of school improvement rather than prescribe how it should be done Suggest alternatives to former policies and practices rather than mandate the ones that will be used

Today’s teacher must … Participate in discussions regarding their professional practices Be involved members of the school, seeking ways to make curriculum integrative, relevant, and challenging for ALL students Collectively share expertise to help the school solve problems, make decisions, and set policy

Pause to reflect and share To improve your school culture, what do you most need to focus on that will take courage and/or collaborative leadership? What "frame" do you need to move into to accomplish this?

Leadership in Developing and Nurturing Leaders

Mr. Peabody’s Apples by Madonna

Creating Great Schools Every Teacher a Leader Every Leader a Teacher Every Child a Success by Phil Schlechty

A passion for young adolescents Is it best for the students? 8th Grade Montpelier, Vermont th Grade Essex, Vermont 2007

Advocacy is no longer an option advocacy - local level Superintendent, board members, key community members, parents Advocacy - state level Policy makers, state legislators, Department of Education ADVOCACY - national level Federal officials, congressmen, senators

A role model for risk-taking and reflective learning Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing. Albert Schweitzer

Do our students and staff see us … trying new things? admitting we don’t have the solution for every problem? making mistakes and learning from them? sending the message it’s okay not to know something, but it’s NOT okay to refuse to seek out the answer?

Risk Taking … It’s the very action of taking a risk, rather than the result, that creates the opportunity for personal growth. The very definition of taking a risk implies a chance of loss or harm, be prepared to model how best to handle the consequences of an unsuccessful endeavor.

Reflective learners are risk takers who… try new things to learn new things re-examine and challenge their professional practices take charge of their own learning build a culture of learning - for both students and staff

Risk Taking and Reflection: Key Elements in School Improvement School improvement is about people improvement Challenging, changing, refining, strengthening the pedagogy, beliefs, and values of those who work together in the school. Professional development is infused into the school routine Sharing/discussion of professional articles, existence of study groups, exchange of new ideas, action research, formal/informal discussions regarding best practices, commitment to student success.

We need leaders committed to… hiring teachers that are highly qualified AND highly effective Those who understand developmental needs, competent in content, skilled in delivering instruction, knowledgeable of appropriate assessment practices… ensuring new teachers are effectively inducted into school culture through mentoring and professional development helping teachers develop the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to make effective learning-based decisions

Encourage effective teaching by… providing feedback that promotes effective instruction analyzing and using data to drive school achievement keeping the school focused on maintaining high expectations for every student

Pause to reflect and share To develop the leadership skills of others in your school, what must you accomplish that will take courage and/or collaborative leadership? What "frame" do you need to move into to accomplish this?

Putting it all together School Leadership that Works Marzano, Waters, McNulty (ASCD) Research Project 21 Leadership responsibilities and their correlation to student achievement

Affirmation - recognize and celebrate school accomplishments Change Agent - actively challenge the status quo Contingent Rewards - recognize and reward individual accomplishments Communication - establish strong lines with and between teachers and students

Culture - foster shared beliefs and a sense of community/cooperation Discipline - protect teachers from issues and influences that detract from teaching time or focus Flexibility - adapt behavior to the needs of the current situation, comfortable with dissent Focus - establish clear goals and keeps them in the forefront of school’s attention

Ideals/Beliefs - well-articulated and shared Input - involve teachers in design and implementation of decisions and policies Intellectual Stimulation - ensure staff is aware of most current theories and practices, regularly discussed Involvement in Curriculum Instruction, and Assessment - directly involved in design/implementation of curriculum, instruction, and assessment activities at the classroom level

Knowledge of C, I, and A - knowledgeable of current/best practices in these areas Monitoring/Evaluating - monitor the effectiveness of school practices and their impact on student achievement Optimizer - inspire and lead new and challenging innovations Order - establish a set of standard operating principles and routines

Outreach - advocate for and speak about the school to all stakeholders Relationships - demonstrate an awareness of the personal lives of teachers and staff Resources - provide teachers with necessary materials and professional development Situational Awareness - aware of the details and undercurrents in the school and use the information to address current and potential problems Visibility - quality contact and interactions with teachers, students, parents

Group Task … Read through the list of 21 leadership responsibilities and choose your top five in rank order in terms of their impact on student achievement.

Leadership Responsibilities Affirmation Change Agent Contingent Rewards Communication Culture Discipline Flexibility Focus Ideals/Beliefs Input Intellectual Stimulation Involvement in C, I, A Knowledge of C, I, A Monitoring/Evaluation Optimizer Order Outreach Relationships Resources Situational Awareness Visibility

Research Results… 1.Situational Awareness 2.Flexibility 3.Discipline 4.Outreach 5.Monitoring/Evaluating 6.Culture 7.Order 8.Resources 9.Knowledge of C, I, and A 10.Input 11.Change Agent 12. Focus 13. Contingent Rewards 14. Intellectual Stimulation 15. Communication 16. Ideals/Beliefs 17. Involvement in C, I and A 18. Visibility 19. Optimizer 20. Affirmation 21. Relationships

Resources This We Believe in Action, NMSA 2005 Editor, Tom Erb School Leadership that Works, ASCD 2005 Robert Marzano, Timothy Waters, Brian McNulty Change Leadership: A Practical Guide to Transforming our Schools, Jossey-Bass 2006 Tony Wagner, et.al Reframing Organizations: Artistry, Choice, and Leadership, Jossey-Bass 2003 Lee Bolman, Terrence Deal

Read Alouds with a Leadership Message! Through the Cracks Carolyn Sollman, Barbara Emmons, Judith Paolini Dumpy La Rue Elizabeth Winthrop Mr. Peabody’s Apples Madonna Hooray for Diffendoofer Day! Dr. Seuss I Hope You Dance Tia Sillers, Mark Sanders I Can Make A Difference Marian Wright Edelman