LeadershipdevelopmentSCHOOLS AND DISTRICTS SEEKING HIGH PERFORMANCE

NEED STRONG LEADERS

BY CHERYL GRAY

AND QUENTIN BISHOP

are Waldrop is on her

way to a graduate classoffered for teacher lead-ers by a local university

in partnership withher school district. As she leaves herschool, she exchanges greetings withher principal, who is just returningfrom a half-day of mentoring training.They briefly discuss the group ofaspiring leaders who are getting readyto begin a full-time, semester-long

CHERYL GRAY coordinates the development anddelivery of school leadership curriculum and training atthe Southern Regional Education Board in Atlanta. Youcan contact her at cherylgray@sreb.org.

QUENTIN BISHOP is an instructor with St. Francis DaySchool in the Atlanta area and interned with theSouthern Regional Education Board's Learning-CenteredLeadership Program. You can contact him atbisholql@uga.edu

28 JSD WINTER 2009 VOL. 30, NO. 1

principal internship. Her principalencourages Waldrop to think aboutjoining the next cohort of the dis-trict's principal preparation programonce she completes her teacher leader-ship endorsement. He mentions theincentives for becoming a principal ofone of the low-performing schools, ajob for which he knew she wouldexcel. As Waldrop pulls away from theschool, her professional home formore than 20 years, she ponders theopportunities that would use her skillsand experience to influence an entireschool. She believes that the district'ssupport for leadership development ismaking an impact on her career andthe quality of instruction available toall its students.

Karen Waldrop isn't the only onethinking about the value of leadershipdevelopment to learning in the class-room. Educators and policy makershave placed leadership development atthe top of the school reform agenda,

\V'X/WNSDC.ORG

believing that aspiring and new schoolleaders can learn the necessary skills toimprove the most challenging schools.Leadership development builds thecapacity of educators (teachers andadministrators) to be effective in lead-ership roles or processes, enablingleaders to work together in productiveand meaningful ways that benefit stu-dent learning. School leaders need toknow how to effect the changes neces-sary to "move the needle" on schoolperformance. To be effective requiresdeveloping skills in various arenas,including leading change, focusinginterventions, managing resources,improving instruction, and analyzingresults. This type of professionallearning must develop an individual'sskill set within the context of teachingand learning in a particular school ordistrict.

The Center for CreativeLeadership describes three key driversof leadership development: assess-

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ment, challenge, and support.

Leadership development is most effec-

tive when all three are present."° Assessment identifies an individ-

ual's strengths, weaknesses, and

development needs."* Challenge means taking people

out of their comfort zones by fac-

ing them with new experiences

and developing new capacities in

the process."* Support provides the individual

with the motivation and belief

that they can learn, grow, and

change.

Any experience, the center's staff

state, can be richer and more develop-

mental by making sure that the ele-

ments of assessment, challenge, and

support are present- even experi-

ences that are not

part of a formal -leadership devel-

opment program, such as a job assign-

ment (McCauley & Van Velsor,

2004).

Developing new leaders isn't limit-

ed to the ranks of administrators. To

build sustainable leadership in

schools, districts need to place a sig-

nificant emphasis on the leadership

capacities of teams and work groups.

Teachers in leadership teams can cre-

ate opportunities to engage a broader

constituency in the work of improv-

ing a school. Harris and Muijs (2003)

describe the teacher leader as a profes-

sional guide who models collegiality

as a mode of work, enhances teachers'

self-esteem, builds networks of human

expertise and resources, creates sup-

port groups for school members,

makes provisions for continuous

learning, and encourages others to

take on leadership roles.

Leadership development is closely

tied with succession planning in

school districts.

Anticipating leadership vacancies

and responding by preparing a pool of

highly qualified aspiring principals,

often in partnership with local univer-

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sities, can provide "bench strength" -

new leaders who are skilled and ready

for the specific challenges of improv-

ing student learning within the dis-

trict's schools.

What are the conditions that

contribute to the success

of leadership development

initiatives?

Role-embedded learning. High-

quality training, coupled with on-the-

job application of knowledge and

practices, are qualities of effective

leadership development practices.

Learning about leadership traditional-

ly takes place in school classrooms, on

university campuses, or even online

through distance learning opportuni-

ties. There is no comparable substi-

tute, though, for

the learning that

comes as a result

of acting in the role of a leader, con-

tending with the authentic situations

and real-world consequences that can

be garnered from a school-based field

experience, practicum, or internship.

These experiences challenge novice

leaders to translate theory into every-

al responsibilities of a school leader. ft

Mentors to coach performance.Good mentors provide the day-to-day

feedback and coaching to help with (D

transitioning from the role of class-

room teacher (or other roles) to that

of a school leader. Mentoring helps

novice leaders shape beliefs - beliefs

about whole-school change, students' 0

capacities to learn, relationships withstaff and community members, and

ethical leadership practices. Results

from a Southern Regional Education

Board mentoring study indicate that

the haphazard strategies and struc-

tures of the mentoring process - and

the absence of organizational invest-

ment and accountability - return

results by chance and not by design

and commitment (Gray, Fry,

Bottoms, & O'Neill, 2007).Resources for mentor training, time

for mentors to meet with novices,

substitute teachers during class and

field-based learning experiences, and

financial incentives are investments to

ensure high-quality mentoring for all

novice leaders.

Focused learning experiences.

Leadership development includes

day practice by experiencing the acru- opportunities for emerging leaders to

VOL. 30, NO. 1 WINTER 2009 JSD 29800-727-7288

solve a range of school problems, firstthrough observing and participatingand then by actually leading teams inidentifying, implementing, and evalu-ating improvement interventions.These experiences should includeworking with teachers on what repre-sents good teaching practice and whatevidence indicates a student has metor exceeded a standard. A written plancan focus experiences on instructionalleadership such as working withteachers and parents to build supportfor improvement efforts and with thefaculty to manage and evaluate animprovement initiative.

Competencies or standards toguide performance. Many districtsand universities create or adopt a setof competencies to guide the perform-ance of new leaders before becoming aschool or district leader. These com-petencies usually cluster the essentialskills of school leaders into categories,such as understanding the school andclassroom practices that contribute tostudent achievement, working withteachers and others to design andimplement continuous studentimprovement, or providing the neces-sary support for staff to carry outsound school, curriculum and instruc-

Researchers

found that

effects of

successfulleadership are

considerably

greater inschools that arein more difficult

circumstances.

tional practices (Fry,Bottoms, & O'Neill,

2005). Focusing on the

key processes or roles of

leaders are another way to

guide performance, such

as the Vanderbilt

Assessment of Leadership

in Education, whichassesses how well a schoolleader ensures that six

core components of

schools related to studentachievement are in place (Goldring,Porter, Murphy, Elliott, & Cravens,

2007).

Reflection on practice.Leadership development is most effec-tive when new leaders understand andpractice leadership behaviors and then

LEARN MORE

Are You Sure You're the Principal? A Guide for New and Aspiring Leaders, 2ndedition, by Susan Villani. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press, 2008.

Developing Teacher Leaders: How Teacher Leadership Enhances SchoolSuccess, 2nd edition, by Frank Crowther, Margaret Ferguson, and LeonneHann. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press, 2008.

"Inside the journal of an administrator," by Michelle Contich. (2006, Summer).JSD, 27(3), 43-46.

"Keep the leadership pipeline flowing," by Bill Hall. (2008, Summer). JSD,29(3), 33-36.

Leadership Coaching for Educators: Bringing Out the Best in SchoolAdministrators, by Karla Reiss. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press, 2006.

Preparing School Leaders for a Changing World: Lessons from ExemplaryLeadership Development Programs, by Linda Darling-Hammond, MichelleLaPointe, Debra Meyerson, Margaret Terry Orr, and Carol Cohen. Stanford,CA: Stanford University, Stanford Educational Leadership Institute, 2007.

Reframing Teacher Leadership to Improve Your School, by Douglas B. Reeves.Alexandria, VA: ASCD, 2008.

Teacher Leadership, by Ann Lieberman and Lynn Miller. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2004.

reflect on their

decisions and M INIMIZE"

actions. Many

leadership development programsrequire reflection journals or logs tohelp track the experiences contribut-ing to proficiency on leadership stan-dards. Capturing personal thoughts ina journal to share with cohort mem-

bers or the mentor is a great start tobecoming a reflective practitioner.

What insights does researchprovide for school district leadersto support leadershipdevelopment?

Leadership matters. Research byLeithwood, Louis, Anderson, andWahlstrom (2004) found that not onlydoes leadership matter, but that "lead-

ership is second only to classroominstruction among all school-relatedfactors that contribute to what stu-dents learn at school." They also foundthat effects of successful leadership are

30 JSD WINTER 2009 VOL. 30, NO. I WWWNSDC.ORG

considerably

greater in schools

that are in moredifficult circumstances.

Effective leadership development,then, can hold tremendous promisefor improving schools and increasing

student achievement. Like any results-driven work, it requires significant

investments of energy, time, andresources to create the conditions andenact the behaviors that fulfill thispromise.

Two decades of research onteacher leadership provides the follow-ing conditions that school districtscan promote in order to foster teacherleaders (York-Barr & Duke, 2004)."* A schoolwide focus on learning,

inquiry, and reflective practice;"* Encouragement for taking initia-

tive;"* An expectation of teamwork and

shared responsibility, decision

making, and leadership;

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DEimN VEL OPMENT• • i -

. Teaching professionals who arevalued as role models;

SColleagues who recognize andF respect teacher leaders with sub-

ject-area and instructional expert-ise;

• High trust and positive workingE relationships among teacher peers0D and administrators;

,-• • Teacher leadership work that iscentral to the teaching and learn-ing processes (as opposed toadministrative or managerial

tasks);"* Teacher-leader and administrator-

leader domains clearly defined,including their shared leadershipresponsibilities; and

"• Positive interpersonal relationshipsbetween teacher leaders and the

principal.LEADERHI P I -- The

SouthernRegional Education Board's researchhas provided school districts withthese actions to ensure leadershipdevelopment initiatives result in ahigh-quality pool of school leaders(Fry, Bottoms, & O'Neill, 2005; Gray,Fry, Bottoms, & O'Neill, 2007):

"• Design leadership development toalign with state leadership stan-dards and district leadershipneeds.

"• Integrate leadership developmentwith succession planning, hiring,induction, and evaluation.

"• Partner with universities and otherproviders to develop school lead-ers.

"• Select experienced, highly skilledprincipals as mentors; providereleased time, training, resources,remuneration, and recognition fortheir work.

"* Require and provide training formentors, including using observa-tion protocols and providing feed-back on performance.

REFERENCES:

Fry, B., Bottoms, G., & O'Neill,K. (2005). The principal internship:How can we get it right? Atlanta, GA:Southern Regional Education Board.

Goldring, E., Porter, A.C.,Murphy, J., Elliott, S.N., &Cravens, X. (2007, March). Assessinglearning-centered leadership:Connections to research, professional

standards, and current practice. NewYork: The Wallace Foundation.

Gray, C., Fry, B., Bottoms, G.,& O'Neill, K. (2007). Goodprinci-pals aren't born - they're mentored:

Are we investing enough to get theschool leaders we need? Atlanta, GA:Southern Regional Education Board.

Harris, A. & Muijs, D. (2003).Teacher leadership: A review of theresearch. Nottingham, UnitedKingdom: National College forSchool Leadership.

Leithwood, K., Louis, K.S.,Anderson, S., & Wahlstrom, K.(2004). How leadership influences stu-

dent learning. New York: The WallaceFoundation.

McCauley, C.D. & Van Velsor,E. (Eds.) (2004). The Center for

Creative Leadership handbook of lead-ership development (2nd ed.). SanFrancisco: Jossey-Bass.

York-Barr, J., & Duke, K.(2004, January). What do we knowabout teacher leadership? Findingsfrom two decades of scholarship.

Review of Educational Research 74(3),255-316. U

Making the case for building, supporting

and maintaining high quality beginning

teacher induction programs.

32 JSD WINTER 2009 VOL. 30, NO, I

New Teaeher C,enterUniversi[y1 of CaliforI1ia. Sanla CrItzVisit the NTC information booth 5oo to view our full range of professionaldevelopment offerings and for complimentary copies of:

New NTC Policy Briefs"* Making the Case for High Quality Induction"* The State of State Induction Policyand the new Research Brief* The Costs and Benefits of a Comprehensive Induction Program

NATIONAL STAFF DEVELOPMENT COUNCILWWW.NSDC.0RG

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TITLE: Leadership developmentSOURCE: J Staff Dev 30 no1 Wint 2009

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