In professional learning communities, administrators and teachers share a vision for learning and address the needs of all learners. They are “collaborative teams whose members work interdependently to achieve common goals linked to the purpose of student learning” (DuFour, 2006, p.3). Increasing student achievement is at the forefront of the purpose. A professional learning community possesses: (1) shared mission and vision, (2) collective inquiry, (3) shared leadership, (4) action orientation, (5) collective learning, and (6) a focus on results (DuFour & Eaker, 1998; Hord, 1997).
1) Shared Mission and Vision:
Shared values and vision – demands an unwavering commitment from the school leadership to student learning that is consistently articulated
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Effective organizations can be identified by a strong production emphasis, or commitment to results. They take risks in the service of attaining their goals and have clearly defined school-wide expectations. The principal must encourage risk taking and the response of leaders to failures sends a powerful message to staff about whether or not risks are really encouraged or not. Learning centered leaders integrate both internal and external accountability systems and hold their staffs accountable for aligning teaching and learning within the context of the broader achievement goals set by policy. They are relentless in the pursuit of continuous improvement, knowing that status quo is often linked with decline. Learning-centered leaders acquire and use resources in support of every student reaching ambitious performance targets. They are skilled in locating and securing additional resources for their schools. They link resource allocation to the mission and goals of the school, and they occupy their time with management and politics only to the extent that they strengthen the quality of school programs and student learning (Murphy et al., …show more content…
They spend considerable time supporting school staff in their efforts to strengthen teaching and learning. Learning-centered administrators give specific feedback about teacher performance. They hire and promote effective teachers, and they counsel poor teachers to leave the classroom. Learning-centered leaders make sure that a majority of the school day is devoted to instructional activities and non-instructional activities are kept to a minimum. They protect the instructional time from interruptions and coordinate time usage among teachers and across classes. They celebrate the instructional accomplishments of teachers and recognize individual achievements (Murphy, et al.,
Ms. Hall has had many years of public education experience and higher education training in which to hone her leadership style and framework. She started her career as a teacher in the Kirkwood School District. She then served as an assistant elementary principal at both Ritenour and Pattonville School Districts before being selected to serve as the assistant superintendent of the Maplewood Richmond Heights School District in 2008. Throughout her career she continued to pursue her education as a means o...
As a leader candidate, I can understand the challenges and multiplicity of complications that administrators must face each day. However, I will not accept any remote possibility that the students must be affected by some flaws of the school organization. We all as leaders, must be strategic with people, time, and money to guide our students towards an academic success.
Leading organizations of school administrators offer educators various opportunities to encourage educators to become leaders. No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) has mandated that leaders be better prepared for the task of providing quality education to all. NCLB “… is forcing all educational stakeholders to face the weakness of contemporary school leadership and is making it impossible to ignore the need for higher quality principals” (Hale & Moorman, 2003, p.1). It is believed that all educators can be and are leaders in their own right. A leader is a visionary and has the ability to inspire others to aspire to greatness. Of the numerous opportunities that are offered, those that are most beneficial include but are not limited to leadership training programs, professional development, and creating shared leadership opportunities for teachers to become leaders. The systems “…that produce our nation’s principals are complex and interrelated – and governed by the states. Each state establishes licensing, certification and re-certification” (Hale & Moorman, 2003, p.1). States use the ISLLC standards “…as the framework for preparation programs and in service professional development of school superintendents, principals, and other leaders” (Hale & Moorman, 2003, p.3).
Shortly after our session began, Dr. Hooper asked us to give a short “elevator speech” designed to provide others with a glimpse of the nature and work of the PLC groups we are leading in our schools and departments. As each of us shared our thoughts, one recurring theme emerged – time. Most students stated finding the time to meet with their PLC was difficult. Some said their PLCs were frequently cancelled. Others indicated they wanted to ensure the PLCs they were leading made the most of teachers’ time. A few shared their creative scheduling tips. As we progressed through the day, we learned that a strong learning organization has effective instructional leaders who develop school and teacher schedules that maximize instructional time and provide educators with job-embedded collaborative professional learning opportunities. Even though administrators are faced with competing initiatives, priorities and the day-to-day demands involved in teaching and leading schools, leaders should make professional learning communities a priority. Vescio’s (2006) review of the literature indicates when teachers participate in learning communities: (1) Student achievement scores improve over time as a result of the focus on student learning; (2) Teaching practice is impacted positively; and (3) Teaching and school culture improve because teachers become more collaborative and empowered. Learning communities can encompass multiple learning levels ranging from a classroom community of learners, to teachers, to parents, multiple schools, and district-level departments. Dr. Hooper shared an effective practice of a school administrator who formed a learning community with his cafeteria workers.
A school’s lifeblood is its students however, a school’s lifeline stems from the community partnerships that it forms and retains over the years of its existence in the community. Just as times change, so does the list of potential partners within the community. One of the most valuable resources a school can use in its quest to form community partnerships is the faces, voices, and support of its leadership staff. Schools typically have an internal chain of command; however, the quest for partnerships requires that the chain of command, littered with bureaucratic red tape, be abandoned in exchange for one where those in decision-making positions are more easily accessible to members of the community. The following is a
...e have to lead teachers, but we must also lead students, parents, and community members. Part of exercising the firs practice will be constantly bringing back to my teachers, students, parents, and community members our shared value of educating students. The last practice, encouraging the heart, is also something that I apply in my setting daily. Most stakeholders in the educational process contribute so much to the process and it is imparitive to continue to recognize the work that they do. With continued reflection, it is clear that great educational leaders do, in fact, model the way, inspire a shared vision, challenge the process, enable others to act, and encourage the heart.
Principals must provide instructional leadership to facilitate and promote active learning experiences for all students because effective instructional leadership is not something principals achieve by following a checklist or tasks or a step by step program. It can be taught and be learned. (David M.Quinn 2002)
School administrators are important in setting the path for a successful school (Glickman, et al., 2014). The principals could play a dynamic leadership depending on how they exercise their beliefs of the organizational and social environment (McNair, 2011). The principals are the primary facilitators for developing the foundations in learning that will last, to manage the student’s performance at schools, and seeking the improvement at school that will cause great impacts in school‘s education (Gordon,1989). In the recent years in the U.S., education has change in a more cultural diversity population, it is imperative that school supervisors, are trained to encounter this cultural issues, but also assisting others with the opportunities to develop appropriate abilities to deal with different cultures (Glickman, et al., 2014).
1 - What is a professional learning community? Provide a brief description on how you can create, and/or engage in, a PLC.
Although there are a few set ways in which a school can ‘officially’ communicate their ethos, mission, aims and values to parents, pupils and staff, in reality everything that the school participates in should demonstrate these things. Communicating ethos and values can be done through leading by example – where staff is all kind to each other and the children, the school children are then also more likely to be kind. It can also be done through reward schemes, where more than just academic achievement is celebrated.
Assuring faculty and staff will work collaboratively in a singular focus is extremely important to the success of the PLC and student achievement. The following strategies are used to support faculty and staff to improve student learning: shared purpose and vision, shared decision making, supportive environment, common staff schedule, common norms and processes. The school principal is crucial in the success of the PLCs and enhancing the schools culture. Roberts & Pruitt state, “Principals promote trust in their schools by first fostering trust between themselves and their teachers. The process starts when a principal initiates shared leadership” (2009. p.51).
The shared vision must be followed up with collective commitments that align with the vision and describe individual behaviors that staff agree to follow to make a contribution to achieve the shared vision (p. 11). Once the foundation of the PLC is in place school leadership must move staff from status quo to a whatever it takes attitude for student achievement. This occurs by organizing people into meaningful teams focus on learning, providing time to collaborate, and ensuring that the campus layout supports ongoing collaboration and shared responsibility for student learning (p. 15). Student and staff growth cannot happen unless teams have time to meet and collaborate.
Shared Leadership for School and Community Relations The Educational Leadership Constituent Council (ELCC) standards serve to provide a skillset that administrators can employ in order to work towards obtaining continuous, fundamental change. It is clear that its primary goal is to identify standards and dispensations that, when implemented by a visionary leader, initiate a transformational process in schools whereby the core beliefs, norms, and values of the organization are analyzed and restructured in an effort to produce more effective schools (Pitre & Smith, 2004). This paper assesses Standard Elements 2.1, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, and 4.4 2.1 Candidates understand and can sustain a school culture and instructional program conducive to student learning
Principal Pettis has to come to the realization that it is not possible to “have all the competence, all the time, and all the information needed at any one time to get the job done.” (Sergiovanni, 2015, p. 12). She will have to empower and cultivate leadership skills in teacher-leaders to give her an equitable perspective on the needs of her school. In this way, learning is ongoing for all, making the important connection between leadership and learning that is so powerful in successful schools. With these few changes, the heartbeat of the school is
Public school systems are constantly undergoing change, as they continue to face numerous reform movements and society-driven value fluctuations. Whether the arguments center on the idea of the Common Core State Standards or to teacher evaluation reform efforts or perhaps even to the validity of school vouchers, there has been an increasing amount of pressure placed on district administrators to provide leadership, vision, support, and action within the scope of their job’s roles and responsibilities. Ultimately, school districts operate with the intention of increasing student learning and academic achievement. District-level administrators facilitate this process by providing the overseeing and overarching leadership needed to take on such a tall challenge.