S. Booker Educational Leadership Platform Statement
Educational Leadership Platform Statement
Samara Booker
Virginia Commonwealth University
ADMS 618 – June 19, 2013
S. Booker Educational Leadership Platform Statement
Educational Leadership Platform Statement
As I reflect on my education and experiences as a teacher-leader participating in the
Project ALL program, a recurring theme of accountability for student learning presents itself. I
believe that all stakeholders involved in the education process should be accountable to the
student populations we serve. It is also my belief that the educational leader is responsible for
ensuring that all interactions between stakeholders are focused on preparing students to be career
and college ready. As an aspiring school administrator, I have based my educational beliefs on
this principal of accountability.
Philosophy of Education
The purpose of education is to provide learners with the foundational knowledge on
which they can build, in order to sustain their lives, fulfill their potential and enhance the lives of
others. The school serves as the site for which this acquisition of knowledge takes place. It
should be safe and secure, free from bias and welcoming to students, their families and to the
community. It is important that students learn in an environment that will enhance their ability
to embrace diversity, adapt to change, and build academic and social skills that will empower
them as they continue on their educational journey.
To ensure that students are in an environment that is conducive to learning, several
factors need to be in place. Teaching staff needs to be highly qualified and skilled in effective
instructional strategies that aid students in meeting the demands of a rigorous curriculum, a
professional development plan needs to be in place, parental and community involvement must
be encouraged and nurtured and administration must be in tuned to the holistic needs of the
school community and supportive in meeting those needs. All of these factors are crucial in
S. Booker Educational Leadership Platform Statement
holding all stakeholders accountable for supporting students’ academic and social needs. With
specific accountability measures in place for each stakeholder, the groundwork is laid for
students to achieve. As an educational leader, developing an accountability plan and monitoring
its progress is essential to ensuring student achievement.
Philosophy of Leadership
According to Robinson (2004) leaders who are reflective practitioners can then act with a
degree of confidence in new situations as they make informed decisions about their actions.
Only by reflecting on decisions made on a daily basis can educational leaders continue to learn
and grow in their effectiveness. This practice of reflecting sets an example for staff, students,
and other stakeholders with the expectation that they too will reflect on their own decisionmaking. By providing ample opportunity to reflect on our individual practices and our practices
as a body, the school climate will be open to collaboration, honesty, purposeful and deliberate
change and accountability.
I will use the power of networking and professional learning communities to model the
importance of collaboration. Collaborating with staff, students and stakeholders will be crucial
to maintaining open lines of communication, so that I am not seen as one individual making
decisions for the total body. The goal is to create a system of checks and balances to build trust
among all stakeholders while solidifying that all are accountable for student learning. By
working to attain this goal, the leader creates more leaders. It is this task of figuring out how to
develop collective responsibility that Thomas Sergiovanni (2005; Mullen, 2009) suggested be the
goal for effective leadership.
S. Booker Educational Leadership Platform Statement
Forward-thinking and vision-inspired actions characterize my philosophy of leadership.
In an effort to be an effective leader, I will facilitator for my staff’s professional growth as they
grow in their abilities to facilitate our students’ growth. In this quick-paced society of today,
leaders must constantly be able to effectively lead and respond to change. As a transformational
leader, it will be my responsibility to nurture change while maintaining a safe and stable school
environment for students and staff.
Vision of Learners
Education serves to prepare students for their future by utilizing and enhancing the world
as it presents itself to them today. Children learn best by participating in worthwhile, meaningful
learning experiences that will develop their ability to communicate effectively, collaborate with
others and think critically and creatively about a variety of topics. Students also need to engage
in what Carol Dweck (2009) termed “growth mindset” instruction that holds students
accountable for their own learning process which research showed would result in better learning
outcomes. These learning experiences must be facilitated by a teaching staff that not only leads
the learning, but is navigating it alongside students. As both groups are learning, expectations
for both groups of learners will increase in its interdependency.
The ideals of expectation and accountability help to ensure that all students are learning.
Richard Dufour (2004 &2009) supported this belief with his opinion that the focus should not be
on the students who are learning, but the plan for those students who are not learning. Through
observational data and numerical data, instructional plans can be developed to meet the needs of
each individual learner or groups of learners. This is inclusive of English Language Learners,
exceptional education students, gifted students and teacher learners. Implementing an inclusion
S. Booker Educational Leadership Platform Statement
model will serve the dual purposes of embracing diversity and teaching to students’
individualities.
Guskey (1982) examined the instructional effectiveness of 44 teachers in a metropolitan
school system. He found that as teachers improve and adapt their own instructional practices
with respect to the individual needs of students, their expectations of and praise for student
achievement becomes less differential and more comparable. In other words, students’ academic
and social diversity must celebrated and planned for by adapting instructional programs to meet
each student’s unique needs. Developing a school culture that welcomingly acknowledges the
diversity among staff and students and uses this diversity to promote a climate of success and
accountability for all is the school leader’s role.
Vision for Teachers
In my work as a classroom teacher and a mathematics specialist, one of the most
important factors in the success of a school is effective collaboration between teachers. While
parental and community involvement, strong leadership, teacher content knowledge and an
aligned curriculum are all important, none of these takes precedents over effective collaboration
between teachers. In fact, the effectiveness of each of the other factors is dependent upon
teacher collaboration.
As a school leader, I will provide adequate and uninterrupted time for teachers to plan
and collaborate. I will make sure that detailed expectations are clearly communicated in
reference to how data is to be used to drive the work of the professional learning communities
that are in place. The PLCs will focus on a few major initiatives: nurturing teachers’ abilities to
use data, understand curriculum demands, acquire knowledge of best practice instructional
S. Booker Educational Leadership Platform Statement
strategies, and collaborate to maximize their work with students. Douglas Reeves (2002) wrote
about the compelling evidence that suggests that school leaders, school staff and students are
better served when professional learning is centered on the deep and consistent implementation
of a few things. I believe that the PLCs will develop teachers as reflective practitioners. As my
teachers grow professionally, their strengths and talents will be highlighted allowing me to hone
in on their capacity to be teacher-leaders. Their areas of concern will also be highlighted
allowing me to make informed decisions about professional development needs. Ultimately, my
vision for teachers is one that holds them accountable not only to their students but to themselves
and their peers as well.
Vision for School
I envision leading a school that serves as a safe haven for all students and staff to
collaborate and think critically, to be reflective in our teaching and learning practices, and to
produce high-functioning 21st century citizens. This vision strongly connects with Jamie
Vollmer (2010) who suggested that if we are serious about preparing children to succeed in the
21st century, then our schools must change. She went on to share her opinion that the time has
come to replace the rigid selecting and sorting process with a flexible approach to teaching and
learning that is designed to produce greater learning outcomes. As a school leader, my role
would be to put programs in place and monitor them for continuous alignment with my vision for
the school. Only research-based programs that target and address the needs of the school will be
utilized. The programs will include measures to track accountability and monitor growth will be
utilized.
S. Booker Educational Leadership Platform Statement
I envision leading a staff and student population that embraces the individuality of its
members by implementing a fully inclusive school setting. I know that embracing the things that
make is individuals will strengthen us as a school community. I believe that if we educate our
students in ways that will enhance their ability to embrace diversity, adapt to change and build
academic and social skills that we will empower them as they continue on their education
journey. I will put every effort into cultivating a positive school culture that is grounded in
respect, collaboration, and accountability that will run through the fiber of all interactions
between all stakeholders. As suggested by McEwan’s (2003) work, the most desirable trait in an
educational leader is to foster a climate of positivity and success. I will strive to be the type of
leader who creates this type of school climate.
Vision Attainment
As a school leader, I am the captain who is charged with navigating the seas of seeing
that the school’s vision is realized. Ensuring that the vision is realized encompasses making
research-based, data-informed decisions that are reflected upon and modified accordingly. I am
accountable for holding all stakeholders to obtaining a measure of success that directly relates to
student achievement. Utilizing collaborative efforts to bring differing and unique ideas together
to meet the needs of students will be a primary focus. Examining parallels between teachers’
instructional practices, academic and social programs and student achievement will help to
determine their effectiveness. Ineffective programs and practices will be reformed or eliminated.
I will continue to find ways to sustain effective programs whether the need be with financial or
human resources. Acknowledging good work, encouraging good effort, and helping
stakeholders to equate changes being made to success being gained will help the vision for the
school to be realized.
S. Booker Educational Leadership Platform Statement
S. Booker Educational Leadership Platform Statement
References
Dweck, C. (2009). Who will the 21st-century learners be? Knowledge Quest, 38(2), 8-9.
DuFour, R. (2004). Whatever it takes: How professional learning communities respond when
kids don't learn. Bloomington, Ind: National Educational Service.
Dufour, R. (2007). Professional learning communities: A bandwagon, an idea worth considering,
or our best hope for high levels of learning? Middle School Journal, 39(1), 4-8.
Guskey, T. R. (1982). The effects of change in instructional effectiveness of the relationship of
teacher expectations and student achievement. Journal of Educational Research, 75(6).
McEwan, E. K. (2003). Ten traits of highly effective principals: From good to great
performance. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Mullen, C. (2009). Exceptional scholarship and democratic agendas: Interviews with john
goodlad, john hoyle, joseph murphy, and thomas sergiovanni. Interchange, 40(2), 165-203.
doi:10.1007/s10780-009-9089-0
Reeves, D. B. (2002). The leader's guide to standards: A blueprint for educational equity and
excellence. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Robinson, J. M. (2004). Coaching leaders: the path to improvement. The Biennial Conference of
the New Zealand Educational Administration and Leadership Society, Dunedin, New
Zealand.
S. Booker Educational Leadership Platform Statement
Vollmer, J. (2010). Schools can't do it alone: building public support for america's public
schools (1st ed.). Fairfield, IA 52556: Enlightment Press.
Sergiovanni, T. J. (2005). The Principalship: A reflective practice perspective (4th ed.). Boston,
MA: Allyn and Bacon.