“Professional Learning to Reflect the Realities of Today’s Educational Leaders”

Designing and delivering excellent professional development for our educational leaders will require that consideration is given to the realities our educational leaders face. The following are four considerations to inform the design and development of professional learning opportunities for educational leaders.

1.    Balance Content and Context: Educational author, Jim Knight, reminds us that “people are not motivated by other people’s goals.”  It is essential that educational leaders have the opportunity to transfer their learning to the unique context of their school district or building.  Effective professional learning must strike the right balance between building capacity in our leaders and supporting them to customize it to their unique situation.  While information and expanding knowledge is important, it is readily available.  However, the opportunity to apply that understanding to each person’s unique situation is essential to effective implementation.

2.    Differentiation Isn’t Just for Students: Professional learning offerings for our educational leaders must be differentiated in both design and delivery.  Dr. Phil Lewis, Executive Director of MASSP, recently described professional learning that supports leaders from “aspiring to retiring.”  In addition, differentiation must be integrated into the delivery of our professional learning, offering options aligning to individual needs.  Opportunities for leaders to receive individual feedback specific to their unique set of skills is essential to professional growth.

3.    The Importance of a Strong PLN:  Supporting educational leaders to expand their Professional Learning Network (PLN) allows leaders to access knowledge, perspectives, and feedback on an ongoing basis. Investing in building relationships and communicating with those in a PLN, provides the opportunity for just-in-time support when leaders need it most. Educational leaders with strong PLNs feel less isolated and more capable of addressing the challenges they face.

4.    Time is of the Essence:  The most valued currency to educational leaders is time.  Therefore, considering how best to leverage technology to support professional learning is essential.  This allows educational leaders to participate in spite of their busy schedules and without having to leave their district or school for long periods of time. Considering this reality when designing professional learning will increase participation and therefore enrich the quality and value of the opportunity.

These considerations should inform the design and development of the professional opportunities that are offered to educational leaders.  In addition, it is essential that educational leaders receive quality professional development, no matter where they work, or where they are in their career. 

A Little Less Conversation, A Little More Action!

“A Little Less Conversation, A Little More Action!”

Elvis Presley recorded the song, "A Little Less Conversation," for the 1968 movie Live a Little, Love a Little.  Almost 50 years later, management demands on educational leaders are greater than ever and the complexity of leading today’s schools is becoming too much for some. In the 2014 report, Churn, the High Cost of Principal Turnover, it was stated that only fifty percent of new principals remain in their position after three years.  Principals cite workload and long hours as negatively affecting their well-being and they feel left to lead in isolation.  Learning is of paramount importance in our profession, but a 2008 NAESP survey found only 2% of principal’s prioritized "continued learning” as among their job duties. 

In Kansas, there are growing concerns around the state’s ability to recruit, develop, and retain quality educational leaders.  While the job has never been more difficult, there is widespread agreement that quality leadership is essential to school improvement, teacher retention, and student learning. Current research is reinforcing the importance of educational leadership.  In the second part of this series, we will look at components of effective professional development for educational leaders. The Wallace Foundation reports that leadership has an estimated 25% effect on student learning tied to school-related factors. However our willingness to act by investing in meaningful professional development for principals seems to be an afterthought.

A 2015 article in "Education Week" reports that educational leaders only receive 9% of the $1 Billion the federal government sends to school districts for training.  While the statistic is startling, even more concerning is that there is no guarantee that the professional development being provided as part of that 9% meets the needs of today’s principals.  Most of the professional development provided to principals focuses on the “what” of the job, but very little focuses on providing the “how,” and gives little consideration to providing leaders with the skills necessary to execute effective strategies in the face of daily management responsibilities. 

An organized effort to meet the needs of our educational leaders is long overdue. I agree with the King, let’s have a little less talk and a little more action please!  

The Best of Intentions

I had big plans for our future, 

Said I'd give you the world somehow  

I tried makin' good on that promise, 

thought I'd be so much further by now.

These lyrics begin the song "The Best of Intentions", a song written by Travis Tritt in 2000. The message in the lyrics can also be applied to instructional leaders across the country as they prepare for another school year. Why do these lyrics apply to administrators? Principals recognize that instructional leadership is essential to the success of their school. Many administrators have spent time during the summer reflecting on the past school year and start the year determined to commit more time to instructional leadership and spending more time in classrooms. However, when asked during the year, if they have been successful in giving an appropriate amount of time to the important work of instructional leadership, frequently principals will answer "no". Therefore, principals acknowledge that instructional leadership is important to their success and that of their school, so why is it so difficult to translate that understanding into action?

I maintain that professional development in the area of instructional leadership is still focused on making the case for the importance of instructional leadership.  Principals don’t need to be convinced; they already realize and accept the importance of instructional leadership. At this point, principals know what to do and repetitive professional development on the subject is not what they need. In other words, we are preaching to the choir. What they need are on-target, on-time, and on-going strategies that will allow them to improve instruction in their school while still having time for the necessary day-to-day managerial tasks that they are required to perform.

For over a decade, I worked directly with principals trying to support their development as instructional leaders. At times I did a disservice to my principals because I underestimated the energy and time that it took to manage the day-to-day operations of the school.   Principals, at times, feel admonished as a false narrative is communicated suggesting it is possible to spend a majority of time in the role of instructional leader.  In the book, The 4 Disciplines of Execution, the authors remind us that managers (principals) are not stupid, lazy or defiant... they are busy! Instructional leadership is emphasized, while ignoring that principals are being asked to deal with more management responsibilities than ever before.  The principal’s reality is that at least 80% of their time is going to be focused on the daily responsibility of ensuring the building runs smoothly and that the students and teachers have what they need.  Those supporting principals must begin with the acceptance of this current reality.  Efforts then should be focused on how to develop principals who can, in the face of the urgent, protect and maximize the other 20%.  

The daily grind for a principal is filled with the urgent, it is constant and unyielding.   Implementing instructional leadership in spite of the urgent, is the challenge at hand. Principal support must focus more on execution and less on strategy, more on action and less on theory, and more on the actual and less on the hypothetical.  We are not lacking in effective strategies and quality content around instructional leadership, the question is whether our principals can manage the urgent, to allow themselves to execute the strategy.  Principal support must focus less on the What and more on the How.  If we don't provide support to principals in the area of execution, they will ultimately drown in the urgent and have nothing left but the best of intentions for another year.   

I am passionate about providing professional development and coaching to instructional leaders that can be translated into action.  My hope is to use this Blog to support the execution of instructional leadership.  As you embark on your journey remember that to execute instructional leadership requires relentless perseverance, it is difficult but attainable, and it is worth the effort.