Leverage : using PLCs to promote lasting improvement in schools / Thomas W. Many, Susan K. Sparks-Many, foreword by Richard DuFour.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Many, Thomas W.

Contributor:

Dufour, Richard.

James Hosmer Penniman Book Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Professional learning communities--United States.

Professional learning communities.

Educational leadership--United States.

Educational leadership.

United States.

Educational change--United States.

Educational change.

Physical Description:

xiv, 151 pages : illustrations ; 26 cm

Place of Publication:

Thousand Oaks, California : Corwin, [2014]

Summary:

Discover high-impact leadership strategies for a thriving learning community! Faced with the growing demands of leadership in today's schools, how can principals and teacher leaders ensure that their actions will impact teaching and learning in positive ways? This compelling new book by Thomas W. Many and Susan K. Sparks-Many provides straightforward solutions for the complex challenges school leaders face. Discover how implementing a few specific high-leverage strategies, grounded in the core beliefs of Professional Learning Communities (PLCs), can promote lasting improvement in schools. This book's concrete examples of high-leverage, evidence-based practices help you Understand the essential role principals and teacher leaders play in leading PLCs, Foster an understanding of how PLCs can support implementation of major instructional shifts such as the Common Core State Standards, Apply high-leverage strategies across your own school and district to improve instruction and better serve the needs of all students You'll find invaluable self-assessment forms, templates, case studies, planning examples, and more. Use Leverage as your essential leadership tool to transform your school into a thriving learning community! Book jacket.

Contents:

Section I The Principal 5

Chapter 1 Leadership Matters 7

Evidence of the Principal's Impact on Student Learning 7

How Do Principals Impact Student Learning? 9

Different Forms of Leadership Impact Learning Differently 10 Leadership Matters, but the Right Kind of

Leadership Matters More 11

Chapter 2 Examining the Complex Role of the Principal 12

The Sheer Pandemonium of the Principalship 13

Trends Shaping the Current Reality of the Principalship 14

Creating a New Normal for Principals 18

Chapter 3 Move the World: The Essence of Leverage 19

Creating an Operational Definition of Leverage 23

Where Can We Look for the Leverage Point? 24

Chapter 4 Professional Learning Communities: The High-Leverage Strategy 32

An Overview of the PLC Model 33

Reflection Promotes Progress Toward Becoming a PLC: A Case Study 36

Identifying Leverage Points in a PLC 48

Section II Practical Applications

Chapter 5 The Secret to Success: Leverage a Focus on Learning 53

What Matters Most 54

Creating an Operational Definition of What Is Essential 56

The Balanced and Coherent System of Assessment: Providing a Steady Stream of Information 62

The Need for SPEED: Criteria for Designing Effective Pyramids of Intervention 69

The Secret to Success 79

Chapter 6 Take Away the Training Wheels: Leverage a Collaborative Culture 83

A Rose by Any Other Name: What Is Important About Collaborative Teams? 85

The Elephant in the Room: Making Time for Collaboration 87

The Turning Point: Building Collective Capacity 91

Package Couriers, Meter Readers, and Copier Repairmen: Leveraging Opportunities to Share Best Practices 94

Take Away the Training Wheels: The Difference Between Monitoring and Micromanaging Teams 97

Chapter 7 Reports From the Precinct Captains: Leverage a Results Orientation 104

The Right Interpretation of a Results Orientation 106

Three Rules for Using Data 106

Protocols: A Powerful Prescription for Professional Learning 109

It's Not Pixie Dust; It's Protocol 112

SOAP Notes: A Tool to Promote Reflective Dialogue About Student Learning 114

Reports From the Precinct Captains 117

Applying a Results Orientation in Schools 118

Tangible Benefits of Data Meetings 118

A Results-Oriented Practice Transforms School Culture 120

Section III PLc Strategies 121

Chapter 8 What's on Your Refrigerator Door? Clear Away the Clutter to Clarify What's Important in Your School 123

A Thousand Conversations: The Power of Consistent, Clear Messages About What Matters 125

Flying Kites: Understanding the Concept of Loose/Tight Leadership 127

Chapter 9 Reboot the Principalship: Strategies to Rekindle, Reignite, Reenegize Your School 131

Get Off Your "Buts": Responding to Resistors in Your School 132

Making Diamonds: Top-Down Pressure and Bottom-Up Support 137

Reboot the Principalship: Strategies to Rekindle, Reignite, Reenergize Your School 140.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the James Hosmer Penniman Book Fund.

ISBN:

9781452259574

1452259577

OCLC:

868038358

Publisher Number:

99960792135