Alaska Summer Leadership Institute 2012

Measured Progress ©2012

Alaska Summer Leadership Institute 2012

Initiating and Sustaining Instructional Change

Julia Payne-Lewis and Scott MacManus

Your Role

“Research tells us that there are virtually no documented instances of troubled schools being turned around without the intervention of a strong leader.”

The Principal Story Field Guide (Learning Forward 2010)

Measured Progress ©2012

Brian Kernighan GS ’69

Wisdom

1 a : learning acquired over a period of time b : ability to see beneath the surface of things c : good sense

2 a wise attitude, belief, or course of action

Specific Topics to Be Addressed:

Sharing/Developing new initiatives with teachers

Creating teacher buy-in Working toward short-term gains Guiding instructional change at the

classroom level Keeping staff focused on the vision Dealing with mid-course modifications and

adjustments

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Today’s Work

1Sharing/Developing New Initiatives with Teachers

Creating teacher buy-in

Use of teacher leaders/mentors

Effective collection and use of teacher input and feedback

Obstacles and barriers- not allowing these to become excuses

APK

Think back to a time when you were teaching and a new initiative was put into place and you thought it was ridiculous. Or, think of a time since you have been an administrator and your district asked you to go back to your school and implement an initiative that you thought was ridiculous.

Tools and Protocols

Teacher Surveys + Feedback

When and why should teacher feedback be asked for and used?

How can this be done well?

Teacher Input in AGSD

Teacher Surveys Video Clip

What’s Happening Elsewhere?

Boston Public Schools:

Formative Assessment Initiative

Lexington, Kentucky:Creating a Timeline

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Today’s Work

Setting Expectations

Working toward short-term gains/wins

Guiding instructional change at the classroom level   2

APK: Which of These Questions Resonates With You?

How do we recognize and support teachers who are working towards implementation?

How do I support teachers who are moving forward without

causing issues with teachers who are not?

How do you give good descriptive feedback to teachers that are putting theory into action?

How do I help teachers move forward who seem stuck, or resentful?

Tools and Protocols

We will use the Commit and Toss Protocol to explore ways that school leaders can provide positive feedback to teachers that get on board quickly, and see benefits for themselves and their students that support the initiative.

Working With Teachers in AGSD

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Today’s Work

Follow Through

Keeping staff focused on the vision

Dealing with mid-course modifications and adjustments

3

Scenario Warm-up :

Work with a partner to put the list of scenarios into the order of most disruptive to the initiative, (we better deal with this today) to least disruptive, (we need more discussion and we can deal with this over time.)

Scenarios

1. The teachers (and students) realize that the

materials are at least a grade level above the current standards.

2. The district comes to the conclusion that the purchased program does not really align to the standards.

3. The technology is not working properly.4. The data reports generated from the new

assessment system are impossible to understand.

5. One member of the staff is going from room to room before and after school to discourage others from implementation.

Table Discussion

Often times the day-to-day issues with an initiative have long lasting, negative impacts on whether implementation takes hold.

What happens when issues related to implementation come up that are legitimate and need school leader attention and re-direction?

Looking Back at the Electronic Lesson Planning Initiative

What was done in AGSD to foster teacher involvement and encourage growth?

Each sustained program moves through

four stages of development called: Establishment Maturation Evolution

Initiatives Go Through Stages as They Move Toward Sustainability

Establishment

The establishment phase focuses on introducing the program and then making sure that its core elements (e.g., curriculum, leadership structures, professional development) are well established and working efficiently and predictably.

Maturation

The maturation phase focuses on making sure that the program is widely accepted and that implementation is habitual, even after the “newness” has worn off.

Evolution

The evolution phase focuses on growth and

improvement. Leaders concentrate on

understanding what is currently going on with the initiative and addressing the challenges of

resources, materials, and professional

development.

At the same time, they work on

helping teachers develop a deeper understanding

of the philosophy of the initiative and how it

plays out in the classroom.

Measured Progress ©2012

“Research tells us that there are virtually no documented instances of troubled schools being turned around without the intervention of a strong leader.”

Remember…

Measured Progress ©2012

Thank YOU