by Ruth Nelson
This month I had the opportunity to chat with Margery Ginsberg, Ph.D., an associate professor at the University of Washington-Seattle. She has recently published a book with Corwin titled Transformative Professional Learning; A System to Enhance Teacher and Student Motivation. read more…
by Brenda Welburn
Over a twenty-seven year period I held several positions, including Executive Director, at the National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE). Those who know me well will attest that I could never have remained with an organization for that long unless I firmly believed in the purpose of the organization and the mission of its members. I would have been unable to effectively represent the voices of lay leaders all those years unless I believed those voices had merit. Thus it goes without saying that I am an unapologetic advocate for citizen leadership and engagement in education governance, especially at the state level where so much happens without the public’s interest or knowledge. read more…
WHAT EXACTLY ARE ESSENTIAL GUIDING QUESTIONS AND HOW DO THEY FRAME EFFECTIVE UNITS OF INSTRUCTION?
by Kathy Glass
In last month’s article about essential understandings, I mentioned that guiding questions should be clearly visible for students when teaching every unit. The essential understandings are written in more adult language, so some teachers might not post them, but students should have the essential questions at the center of their learning and see them regularly. read more…
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
LATHAM, NY—The School Administrators Association Of New York State named John McKenna, Principal of Fletcher Elementary School, as their Educator of the Year last Friday at a ceremony held at the Century House, Latham, NY. The award is given annually to a SAANYS member who has made outstanding contributions in New York State schools through public education, professional organizations, and research and/or writing in the field of education.
Education Leaders Call for Teacher and Student-Centered Approach to Implementing Common Core
—Renowned Author of Failure Is Not an Option® Opens Gathering with System for Scaling Student Success
COLUMBUS, OH—The second Ed Week Leadership Forum on Scaling Student Success began today with Award-winning author, and Founder and President of the HOPE Foundation, Alan Blankstein, with two propositions: “School culture trumps everything else when it comes to sustainable success,” and “There now is a system for scaling excellence in teaching and leadership, which is being applied to consistent implementation of Common Core.” Some 250 leaders in attendance included leaders from the Ohio State Department of Education, and their counterparts from five other states, as well as district leaders from throughout the country.
The cooperative teacher-driven approach to scaling excellence taken by the HOPE Foundation in 38 states, and described by Blankstein was in concert with how other state leaders conceive the ideal Common Core implementation. “The best way to implement Common Core will be as different as schools themselves,” said Mary Jane Tappen, Deputy Chancellor for Student Achievement, Florida Department of Education. According to Stan Heffner, State Commissioner of Education in Ohio, the challenge may be even more fundamental: “The number one thing teachers need is to actually believe they can teach again. The last ten years of NCLB has left many teachers lacking in that skill set because they were compelled to just go through the curriculum.”
Blankstein took to task the lack of trust in teachers that NCLB implies as well. “It is incongruent to ask teachers to assure students’ higher-order thinking skills while they themselves are confined to basic skills development.” The approach to building leadership and instructional capacity described in Blankstein’s latest book, The Answer is in the Room: How Effective Schools Scale Student Success, demonstrates how districts in the US and abroad are tapping the fundamental motivation of the entire learning community. This will help define, identify, and then scale the excellence that already exists within that school, district or region. “Every school has someone succeeding with the same students that others are sending to the principal’s office. We now have a method to make the practice of excellence the norm. And that method, called CREATE, is what scores of districts and hundreds of schools are using to develop leadership teams that can continue to innovate.”
For More information on HOPE’s professional development activities,
contact Carol Wander at cwander@HOPEfoundation.org, or 812-340-4393.
For more information on obtaining copies of The Answer is in the Room, or Failure Is Not an Option: Six Principles that Guide Student Achievement in High-Performing Schools, call 812-355-6000, or see www.hopefoundation.org
Al Blankstein is a fully energized speaker shown here dancing down the aisles to a tune prior to his speech at Pottstown HS. Mercury photo/Kevin Hoffman
UPDATE: This event also covered in Education Week Teacher Blog.
POTTSTOWN, PA (Friday, 23 March 2012) — More than 600 school principals, administrators, teachers and community leaders heard national education leader, expert and author Alan Blankstein, founder and president of the HOPE Foundation address the Pottstown School District on how to help students perform better in school Friday, March 23rd at 1 PM, “Pottstown Education Improvement Day” at Pottstown High School Auditorium, 750 North Washington Street, Pottstown, PA. read more…
JERSEY CITY, NJ– Drawing on lessons from his award-winning best-selling books, HOPE Foundation President Alan Blankstein told an audience comprising 200 area School Superintendents and district leaders, and the chief education officials from New Jersey, Delaware, Florida and Indiana that “one of the keys to helping school reforms succeed is having a program that recruits and trains leaders from the ranks of teachers.” read more…
Philadelphia, PA—Top US Educator and award-winning author Alan Blankstein challenged a packed room of over 250 educators at the ASCD Annual Conference to “create a culture of collaboration in the district, where teachers know and assess their own strengths and weaknesses, and seek help where they are weak and offer it where they are strong, without egos.”
ASCD is a 150,000-member organization comprising superintendents, principals, teachers and other education professionals and serves as global leader in developing and delivering innovative education programs, products, and services in 145 countries.
By Marian Kisch
When Luvelle Brown came to Ithaca City School District in January 2011 things were in disarray. There was a lack of trust, poor academic achievement, little consistency and a huge achievement gap. Negativity was rampant.
“I was asked to be a change agent by the board,” Brown says. “And that’s what I intend to do.”
His entry plan calls for “all students achieving their dream,” He stresses raising the academic bar and eliminating achievement gaps in its dozen schools with an enrollment of 6,140. This central New York school district is 68% Caucasian, 12% African American, 5% Hispanic and 12% Asian.
By Dennis Sparks
Excerpts from Chapter 2 of The Soul of Educational Leadership Series, Volume #2 Out-of-the-Box Leadership
Editors Alan M. Blankstein, Robert W. Cole and Paul D Houston
The development of district and school leaders – both administrators and teacher leaders – is one of a school system’s most important responsibilities. Such efforts cannot guarantee that all leaders will perform “outside the box,” however. (And because out-of-the-box leaders often push the boundaries of accepted thought and practice, I’m not certain that very many school systems would want too many such individuals.) But, when combined with clear standards and systems of accountability, such leaders can ensure continuous improvements in leadership practice.
