Who Put “Instructional Monitoring” On My To Do List? Suggestions for Principals M. Ann Levett, Ed.D.

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Management and Leadership Management means doing things right Leadership means doing the right things well

Leadership Challenges Recruiting and maintaining quality staff Establishing curriculum and instructional priorities Applying best practices Building a positive school culture

Leadership Challenges Monitoring what matters Modeling what matters Establishing positive relations with staff, parents, and community Knowing when to delegate

What Are Your Management Challenges? People Time Structures Planning Programs Physical plant Crises

How Do I Find Time? Create a plan that forces you into classrooms and around the building, i.e. If you have to give a student medication, go to the room rather than administering it in the office. If a teacher wants to see you, go to his or her room rather than having him/her meet you in your office.

How Do I Find the Time? If a teacher calls and asks for help with a discipline problem in his or her room, go to the room, sit and observe briefly, then remove the student. Schedule a percentage of time each day for classroom visits.

Do the 5X5 Do a 5x5 if you do not enough time for a walkthrough or full observation Each day, visit five classrooms for at least 5 minutes each. Build it into your schedule so everyone knows that during this time you are not available. Keep a chart, 3x5 cards, or an electronic file and record daily which rooms you have visited.

Do the 5 X 5 Use a simple checklist that states what the teacher was doing and what the students were doing. Be sure to leave notes in the mailboxes of those teachers you visited indicating something positive you saw in their instruction, their teaching techniques, or rapport with the students.

Focus on Learning Read random samples of student work; i.e work posted in the halls, dropped in the halls, and on the bulletin boards Request copies of a recent test/assignment the teacher has given and review the students’ work submitted for the same. Conduct grade audits regularly and give feedback on what you see.

Lesson Plans Lesson Plans – Create a checklist to show teachers what you are expecting to see (content and behaviors). Check lesson plans against required learning objectives Check them against pacing guides Check them for relevance, rigor, and for resources being used. Check for developmental appropriateness and engagement. 

Lesson Plans Use the SCAN, FEEDBACK – STUDY, OBSERVE, FEEDBACK strategy For a percentage, scan and provide feedback on lesson plans For a percentage, study the lesson plan (match it against all previously cited criteria), observe during the week, and provide feedback

Use of Meeting Time 1.Use faculty meetings to talk about data, action research, teaching, and learning. 2. Share what you learned (in general) from your monitoring. 3. Ensure that the instructional teams and appropriate subcommittees report on teaching and learning issues. 4. Put all administrivia into memos.

Use of Time Establish set times when grade levels or departments meet (other than faculty time). Ensure that the agenda focuses on data, teaching and learning Attend these meetings. If you cannot attend, review the agenda and the notes. Meet with the meeting leaders before and after! Review and file minutes of ALL meetings.

Use of Time Make it a priority to attend and participate fully in team meetings. The meeting agendas should focus on the instruction and students. Ensure that all major committees and subcommittees focus on appropriate issues.

Is Your Hair On Fire? When you are scheduled to visit classrooms or conduct observations: Have the gatekeepers behave as if you are off campus Only respond if the building or someone’s hair is on fire! Use the same plan that you use when you ARE away from the building

Other Tips Create several back up plans for yourself for handling crises Tell everyone who pulls on you that instructional monitoring MUST be your priority. And, mean it! Multitask – Handle paperwork while you do other things Dedicate specific times of the day for certain tasks Rotate observations with administrators.

Other Tips Use your committee structures to assist you in charting an instructional course for your school. They can help with collecting and analyzing the data which should drive decisions on curriculum, learning activities, policies/procedures and program Provide feedback immediately on what you see school wide and individually. Document! Use PDP and PRP processes accordingly.

Other Tips Use central office personnel to give you feedback on what they see in classrooms Use instructional teams/subcommittees to create test preparation materials/procedures and universal lesson plans Share data regularly for staff analysis and problem-solving

Final Words What gets measured gets done. If you want to improve student achievement, the teachers, families, and students must know what you expect and that you will inspect for it. Get into classrooms EVERYDAY and respond to what you see and hear !