This book shows principals how to successfully balance the needs and priorities of their schools while continuously developing and refining their leadership skills.
Alarmed by mounting evidence of a national shortage of qualified and willing principals, the authors surveyed or interviewed over 200 school principals from across the country to find out why so many are leaving the profession and how those who stay manage their work. They discovered that regardless of a principal's race, gender, school level, geographic region, or tenure, there was a remarkable consistency in the challenges identified and suggestions given for revamping the role of the American principal. Featuring stories shared by practicing principals, this timely volume: offers fresh insights on ways to both attract and retain good principals; shows how successful principals reconcile their expectations and hopes with the realities and disappointments encountered in their work; examines issues common to all principals, such as time management, staff evaluations, keeping the focus on instruction, community expectations, and pursuing a balanced life; presents strategies that principals have used to make their role more effective and more attractive; and provides practical ideas for coping with the present and envisioning the future, including alternative principal models.
Build a positive school climate to impact students, teachers, and the community! Is improving school climate on your to-do list? Do you think about it as a top-down directive or as a dialogue to build equity within the school? A healthy school environment should never be seen as an option, but instead supported as a must-have. Peter DeWitt offers leaders practical high impact strategies to improve school climate, deepen involvement in student learning, and engage a broader family network. In addition to international vignettes focused on community stakeholders and research-based practices, this book features tools such as · a leadership growth cycle to help leaders build their self-efficacy · a teacher observation cycle centered on building collective efficacy · an early warning system to identify potential at-risk students · action steps following each chapter to apply to your own setting · discussion questions for use in team environments Establishing a supportive and inclusive school climate where professionals can take risks to improve the lives of students is vital to maximize learning in any school community.
Children in today's world are inundated with information about who to be, what to do and how to live. But what if there was a way to teach children how to manage priorities, focus on goals and be a positive influence on the world around them? The Leader in Meis that programme. It's based on a hugely successful initiative carried out at the A.B. Combs Elementary School in North Carolina. To hear the parents of A. B Combs talk about the school is to be amazed. In 1999, the school debuted a programme that taught The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Peopleto a pilot group of students. The parents reported an incredible change in their children, who blossomed under the programme. By the end of the following year the average end-of-grade scores had leapt from 84 to 94. This book will launch the message onto a much larger platform. Stephen R. Covey takes the 7 Habits, that have already changed the lives of millions of people, and shows how children can use them as they develop. Those habits -- be proactive, begin with the end in mind, put first things first, think win-win, seek to understand and then to be understood, synergize, and sharpen the saw -- are critical skills to learn at a young age and bring incredible results, proving that it's never too early to teach someone how to live well.
Continue Your Leadership Journey With a Deep Dive into Inspire a Shared Vision Over the last twenty-five years, The Leadership Challenge established a reputation as a research-driven, evidence-based leadership development model with a simple, yet profound, principle at its core: leadership is a measurable and learnable set of behaviors. The Challenge Continues program offers you the opportunity to take a deeper dive into the Inspire a Shared Vision leadership practice. Designed for leaders familiar with The Leadership Challenge principles and its Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership foundational model, this new program addresses the important question: "What's Next?" The second of bestselling authors Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner's Five Practices, Inspire a Shared Vision is about: Envisioning the future by imagining exciting and ennobling possibilities Enlisting others in a common vision by appealing to shared aspirations Your Participant Workbook is a hands-on tool, designed to accompany you on the next phase of your personal leadership development journey. Beginning with a focus on what you have already accomplished and what has gone well with this Practice, the pages then guide you through several interactive exercises and a practical process for expanding and refining your Inspire a Shared Vision skills. You will also explore ways in which can develop your team members and influence the broader spheres of you work unit or organization. Finishing up the module with a detailed action plan, you will leave the session with a detailed map for continuing your journey toward exceptional leadership.
Leadership in America’s Best Urban Schools describes and demystifies the qualities that successful leaders rely on to make a difference at all levels of urban school leadership. Grounded in research, this volume reveals the multiple challenges that real urban elementary, middle, and high schools face as well as the catalysts for improvement. This insightful resource explores the critical leadership characteristics found in high-performing urban schools and gives leaders the tools to move their schools to higher levels of achievement for all students—but especially for those who are low-income, English-language learners, and from various racial and ethnic backgrounds. In shining a light on the essential qualities for exceptional leadership at all levels of urban schools, this book is a valuable guide for all educators and administrators to nurture, influence, support, and sustain excellence and equity at their schools.
"A seminal collection of work from the foremost scholar of educational leadership of the last half century." -Joseph Murphy, Professor Peabody College at Vanderbilt University "A powerful collection of articles by North America's foremost authority on moral leadership. A comprehensive, coherent and definitive treatment of all aspects of moral leadership: What it is, how to develop it, how to lead in the learning community, and about value-added leadership for the future!" -Michael Fullan, Professor of Policy Studies University of Toronto "With Sergiovanni's customary clarity and focus, he reminds us of the vital role that morality, relationships, purpose, and artistic action play in making schools serve kids and community. A great resource for every principal, teacher leader, and system administrator." -Gordon A. Donaldson, Jr., Professor of Education University of Maine "When you open Rethinking Leadership, you will enter a treasure trove of revolutionary ideas that will stir your soul-and change your concept of leadership forever." -Stephen P. Gordon, Professor and Co-Director National Center for School Improvement, Texas State University Explore the moral craft of school leadership! In the second edition of this revolutionary collection, school leaders are introduced to the craft of moral leadership. Thomas J. Sergiovanni, the leading authority on moral leadership, uncovers how successful leadership practices are often based in values and ideas rather than formal processes. Readers will learn an innovative approach to reframing leadership, while discovering how to build effective learning communities. Written by the best of the best, this groundbreaking work truly redefines school leadership!