2013 Spring Meeting
Size-Alike Session
“Supporting Principals
as Leaders of Learning”
Overview
The focus of our Spring 2013
Size-Alike Session was a report by
the Wallace Foundation entitled,
“The School Principal as Leader:
Guiding Schools to Better Teaching
and Learning.”
This report examines the critical
leadership role played by principals
in improving student achievement
and highlights five key
responsibilities of principals if they
are to become "leaders of learning."
Overview
Each table of participants, separated
into size-alike groups of large,
medium, and small school districts,
were asked to look at one of the five
key responsibilities discussed in
the report.
The participants were asked to
discuss how, in each of their
districts, special education leaders
and other central office
administrators support principals in
meeting these responsibilities and
what more could be done to assist
principals in these areas. The
following are notes of these
conversations.
The Wallace Perspective
Five key practices that effective principals
perform well:
1.
Shaping a vision of academic success
for all students’
2.
Creating a climate hospitable to
education
3.
Cultivating leadership in others
4.
Improving instruction
5.
Managing people, data, and processes
to foster school improvement.
Shaping a Vision of Academic Success for
All Students
Current Supports
Needed Supports
• Data team to help principals ID • Ask staff in building
and define best practices
what principal’s focus
(instructional)
is and how they
• Ask about principals’ concerns
support it ongoing
instead of just asking them to
• PD and training for
state their vision. “What keeps
principals to
you up at night?
understand special ed,
• Collaborative evaluation of
link to Common
principals by panel
Core, PD that is
• PD and regular consultation
already provided to
to principals
staff
• Open communication
• Provide an
• Principal / asst. principal
understanding that
attends all IEP meetings and
building’s staffing
signs off on all evaluations
must also ensure all
services are being
met
• Provide more training
on how to evaluate
special ed teachers,
what those
classrooms look like
Shaping a Vision of Academic Success for
All Students
Current Supports
Needed Supports
• Meeting with
• Need time to
principals to discuss
meet, plan, and
special ed. law and
work with
compliance
principals to
• Education
create a stronger
• Changed the role of
support
staff members
mechanism for
• Funding
all buildings
• Support staff
• Develop
• Trainings
consultant
developed based on
groups with
staff questions and
strong principals
concerns
as facilitators
• PD needs to be
developed based
on current issues
and concerns
Shaping a Vision of Academic Success for
All Students
Current Supports
Needed Supports
• Consistently presenting data
to determine needs
• In-classroom coaches
• Determine / identify “bright
spots” to further develop
• Collaborate with other
departments to increase
support
• Principal types notes / offers
FAPE
• Schedule all IEP in
beginning of year to
coordinate principal
/ parent / related
service
• Connect vision to
belief system
• Provide data and
exemplars to
promote vision
• Celebrate small
successes
Shaping a Vision of Academic Success for
All Students
Current Supports
Needed Supports
• Professional
• Lead principals mentor
development with
for all principals
diverse learners to
• School improvement
ensure students with
plan includes a schooldisabilities are involved
wide vision
in vision
• Professional
• Increased support for
development
hiring individuals who
• Central office staff
believe in the vision
assigned to schools to
• Assist principals in
provide coaching,
developing a rubric for
consults, etc.
evaluating / identifying
• Supporting evaluation of
tightly effective
teachers
teachers, and how to
• Support with instruction,
assist teachers who
scheduling,
haven’t embraced
interventions, and data
inclusion.
Shaping a Vision of Academic Success for
All Students
Current Supports
Needed Supports
• Monthly communication
• Data, reports
• Provide training
(teachers, principals)
• Support special ed. staff
in a variety of ways
• Attend meetings
• Set standards of practice
for special ed.
• Staff special education
in the building
• Accountability
• Principal is part of IEP
process as district
representative
• Better allocation of
resources (per IEP
mandates)
• Better screening process
for support staff
• Professional
development
• Help with setting high
standards for special ed.
students
• Accountability
Creating a Climate Hospitable
to Education
Current Supports
Needed Supports
• Implement PBIS
• Facilitate
school-wide
problems with /
• Common goals
for principals
• Create shared vision • Advocate for
• Weighted student
upper
budget
management to
support culture
shift
Creating a Climate Hospitable
to Education
Current Supports
Needed Supports
• Communication regarding
special ed. students and
pre-school
• Identifying options to
suspension / expulsion
• Creating high
expectations that are the
same for special ed. as
general ed. and are
indicated by data
collection analysts
• Engage in collaborative
learning walks with
administrator and director
• Integrate a seamless
terminology between
special ed. and general ed.
• We are available for
support information and
collaboration modeling
• Professional
development for all, not
by category
• Empower general
education to serve all
students include special
ed.
• Creating partnerships in
safe environments
• Create value for
partnerships
• Create ground rules for
collaborative problem
solving
• Be responsive to admin.
• “Plant seeds. Don’t give
them the garden.”
• Systems thinkers –
focus groups
Creating a Climate Hospitable
to Education
Current Supports
Needed Supports
• Comprehensive
support plans
(individualized per
school)
• Data coaching,
action plans, and
tiered support
• District-wide PD,
data-driven support
plans
• Campus-wide
training and site
capacity-building
through behavior
support team
• Support around
more specialized
issues (i.e.
behavioral)
• Build and expect
accountability
for all students at
site level
Cultivating Leadership in Others
Current Supports
Needed Supports
• Whole-school
trainings
• Scheduled time
with principals
• Individual student
supports
• Principal
training /
principal buy-in
• Fielding parent
concerns –
mediating
disagreements
• Helping
principals really
understand
different levels
of service
• Escalation protocol
Cultivating Leadership in Others
Current Supports
Needed Supports
• PD for both gen. and
special ed. teachers to
support inclusive
learning environment
• Increase use of
structures (walkthroughs)
• Teacher / leadership
academy with special ed.
• Problem solving one at a
time
• Helping principals to
know what to look for
during walk-throughs
• Assisting principals with
the completion of TEM
evaluations for special
ed. teachers out in the
schools
• Embedded support to
principals through PD.
Walk through process
• Increase level and
frequency of support
• Collaborative develop
structures by faculty
• Teaching leadership
skills
• Evaluation tool / rubric
for special ed. Teachers
• Should offer more
guidance for principals
and training on various
areas of responsibility
for special ed. teachers
Improving Instruction
Current Supports
Needed Supports
• Instructional team
• IEPs set rigorous
review for any
goals and drive
school
instruction, not
• Monthly training /
just compliance
collaboration for
• ESE part of
autism coaches
review team and
• Respond quickly to
part of
site requests for
evaluation
support
• Integrated at
• Support in IEPs that
district level
are measureable
and high
expectations
• Graduation plans
with high
expectations for all
Improving Instruction
Current Supports
Needed Supports
• Offer professional
development on special
ed. Instruction – all staff
• Provide RtI assistance –
intervention
• Provide feedback and
data
• PBIS support
• Assist with evaluation of
staff
• Coaching, modeling for
staff and principal
• Give programming
recommendations
• Principal training for
expectations
• Work on increasing
collaboration between
special / general ed.
from central office
• Become “tighter,” more
effective in practices
• More training for
principals and staff
• More accountability
from principals for
success special ed.
Managing People, Data, and Processes
to Foster School Improvement
Current Supports
Needed Supports
• Data dashboard share:
compliance
• Inclusion ratio share by
campus
• Academic achievement
compare BOY and EOY
• SSA snapshot to schools
(IEP compliance,
growth)
• Walk through forms with
quality descriptors for
principals
• Model classroom set-up
• Videos of critical
element
• Supplemental guide for
special education
evaluation
• Additional walkthrough to broaden
understanding
• Embed special
education support to
instructional teams
• Individualized data
reports
• Combine ELL with
special education data
• Use current technology
to train administration
Managing People, Data, and Processes
to Foster School Improvement
Current Supports
• Goal-setting process is
focused (asking the right
questions)
• Delivery of service
• Delegating leadership
• Using data for decisionmaking
• Regular sharing of data
• Sharing solutions when
you’ve identified a
problem / concern
• Preventative
communication (e.g.
students’ BPs)
Needed Supports
•
•
•
•
•
•
Facilitate goal-setting
with data
Providing resources to
support strategic goals
Implementing a strong
hiring process
Sharing common
understandings
Clear evaluation
procedures
Protocols / processes
and expectations for
looking at data
Managing People, Data, and Processes
to Foster School Improvement
Current Supports
Needed Supports
• Limited PD – left to
fend for themselves
• Principal academy
general ed. and special
ed. share
• Info not always shared
• Universities are training
teachers to do walkthroughs and learning
walks
• Instructional rounds are
done by administration,
paperwork done by
principal
• PD
• Principal needs to
support AP more
• Need data related to
discussion
• More instructional leads
Managing People, Data, and Processes
to Foster School Improvement
Current Supports
Needed Supports
• Campus is first point of
contact to address
concerns
• Right people around
table for conversations
• Systematic plan to
principal
• Guiding with questions
• Match admin to campus
needs
• Give leadership what to
look for
• Be a part of the hiring
and evaluating process