EDUC 741Group 4

Percent of 15-year olds falling below international benchmarks 1.South Korea1.411.New Zealand Japan2.212.France Finland4.413.Switzerland Canada5.014.Belgium Australia6.215.Iceland Austria8.216.Hungary Britain9.417.Norway Ireland10.2 * 18.USA Sweden Germany Czech Republic Denmark17.0 HSTW, Dr. Karolyn J. Snyder, President International School Connection, Inc

Resistance to change Low SES population Program isolation A few connections exist Connection strategies at work Principal as leader Focus: student success in school Patterns in Low-Involvement Schools HSTW, Dr. Karolyn J. Snyder, President International School Connection, Inc

High energy for change Mixture of SES Program Integration Connections everywhere Manage energy explosion Staff/principal leadership Focus: student readiness for the 21st century Patterns in High-Involvement Schools HSTW, Dr. Karolyn J. Snyder, President International School Connection, Inc

PLANNING CHALLENGES

Search for Opportunities Great leaders are NEVER content with the status quo. Search for opportunities to change, grow, innovate, and improve. In order to search for opportunities, leaders make use of four essentials Seize the initiative Make challenge meaningful Innovate and create Look outward for fresh ideas

Seize the Initiative When people are asked about their personal best leadership experience, they talk about a challenging situation that required innovative solutions. Leaders embrace stress. Change leads to stress, but it also renews our energy and focus to complete the task. Leaders want to be a part of the answer. They take charge of the situation when needed finding solutions to problems.

Seize the Opportunity Successful leaders encourage initiative in others by telling them they can do the job— then they delegate and wait for results. Successful leaders realize effective change occurs when everyone is involved. They don’t expect to have all the answers and look to others for their ideas and talents. Successful leaders expect positive results. They never “hope” for the best.

Make Challenges Meaningful Do you work for money? Do you work for titles? Great leaders realize people are motivated when they are passionate about their work. People become interested when they become involved. They become passionate when they utilize their creativity to find a solution.

Innovate and Create To move the organization, the leader must ask everyone to challenge the “status quo” or more accurately stated, apathy. Problems are inherent in all organizations. Leaders realize to solve the problem they must ask everyone to be creative, searching for answers “outside the box”. When people are involved and creative, they develop a personal responsibility in solving the organization’s problems.

What about a Christian worldview? Elaine Fortier, a VP of human resources at New Focus described her business philosophy was reflective of her whole life philosophy—call it a set of values or a belief system. After reflecting, she stated her philosophy: “I realized that there was no magic that was going to happen. It was now up to me to decide, “What is my framework for living?” So I made a decision, and my decision was: love is the most powerful force in the universe. I BELIEVE that love and courage are the core elements of a fulfilling life and of most successful endeavors.”

Elaine hasn’t read Ecclesiastes God outlines the perspective we should have in relation to our work and careers in Ecclesiastes 2: “I hated all my toil in which I toil under the sun, seeing that I must leave it to the man who will come after me, and who knows whether he will be wise or a fool? Yet he will be master for all for which I toiled and used my wisdom under the sun. This also is vanity. So I turned about and gave my heart up to despair over all the toil of my labors under the sun, because sometimes…

Elaine hasn’t read Ecclesiastes ….a person who has toiled with wisdom and knowledge and skill must leave everything to be enjoyed by someone who did not toil for it. This also is vanity and a great evil. What has a man from all the toil and striving of heart with which he toils beneath the sun? For all his days are full of sorrow, and his work is a vexation. Even in the night his heart does not rest. This also is vanity. There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment…

Elaine hasn’t read Ecclesiastes …in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God, for apart from him who can eat or who can have enjoyment? For to the one who please him, God has given wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner he has given the business of gathering and collecting, only to give to one who pleases God. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.”

John Maxwell helps us with this… John Maxwell is one of the leading authorities in the world on leadership. He has updated his famous book The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership to include biblical principles.

Exercise Outsight Where have educational leaders failed in this task? President Woodrow Wilson once stated, “If you want to make enemies, try to implement change” – Source Lt. Col. Jim Wilson, USMC Can you name changes you have practiced within your educational setting that came from outside your system?

Promote External and Internal Communication Be accessible Encourage and set aside collaboration time but also encourage the staff to be active participants in looking for change opportunities. MIT research findings… Higher performing groups had much more communication with people outside of their labs. Long-lived teams cut themselves off from the kind of information they needed the most to come up with new ideas

WHAT IS YOUR BEST “LEADERSHIP” EXPERIENCE? - The challenge of change! - “Leaders don’t have to change history, but they do have to change “business as usual” Kouzes & Posner

Leaders are always asking… What’s new? What’s next? What’s better? Do you believe most innovations occur from within your own school or system?

Attributes of Exemplary Leadership Treating Every Job as an Adventure Question the Status Quo and foster an environment that allows everyone within the system to do the same. Be on the lookout for new ideas

God Centered Leadership To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder, a witness of Christ's sufferings and one who also will share in the glory to be revealed: Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care, serving as overseers—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not greedy for money, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away Peter 5:1-4

HOW DO WE ESTABLISH A CLIMATE FOR CHANGE?

Step by Step Small steps = Small wins “You can’t eat an elephant at one time.” - Desmond Tutu Small wins build confidence – it’s hard to argue against success! Increases desire to achieve “vision” Strategic planning is ESSENTIAL!

Experiment! “Leaders are constantly learning from their errors and failures.” - Claude Meyer Pilot programs in small scales, one classroom or department at a time. Successes & failures can be altered to fit a larger situation. “You do big things by doing lots of small things.” - Philip Diehl

Make it Safe Break down the negativism “It’ll never work.” “Yeah, right.” “It’s just another one of those educational fads, it’ll pass.” Provide open forums Failures inspire success: Babe Ruth Abe Lincoln Theodor S. Geisel

Break mindsets Challenge perceptions Promote idea sharing Question routines Focus on fixes, not problems Suggestion box ex.

Provide options Builds ownership and commitment Involve others in developing the steps for the process of implementation Practice “guided autonomy”

Accumulate yeses Positive communication “Yes, you have a point there…” “Yes, I can understand that…” “Yes, and…” NOT, “Yes, but…”

The Teacher’s Voice in High Involvement Cultures *Professional capacities diminish chaos *Professional capacities diminish chaos *Continuous improvement is a dynamic force *Continuous improvement is a dynamic force *Communication provides energy *Communication provides energy *Empowerment stimulates activity *Empowerment stimulates activity *Development equips teachers to manage chaos *Development equips teachers to manage chaos HSTW, Dr. Karolyn J. Snyder, President International School Connection, Inc

EVALUATE THE CHANGE

Evaluating Change Key Concepts Collecting baseline data is essential – you can’t measure how far you’ve progressed if you don’t know where you started. Example – quarterly benchmark assessments. Consider all the aspects and implications of change.

Measure even small steps in the right direction – incremental change is sustainable change. Is the school learning and growing from experiences with change, and is learning an essential aspect of the school’s culture? Perspectives from which to evaluate change – biblically/ethically and practically. Evaluating Change Key Concepts

Biblical/Ethical Perspective Does the change explicitly or implicitly violate biblical commands? Does the change fit into a biblical worldview?

Biblical/Ethical Perspective Does the change conform to biblical ethics in how people are treated? Micah 6:8 (NKJV) – He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God? Luke 6:31 (NKJV) – And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.

Practical Perspective IS THE CHANGE BENEFITTING STUDENTS? IS THE CHANGE MEETING THE SCHOOL’S GOALS OR NEEDS? What goals or needs are still unmet by the change and how can the organization address them?

But be careful…

Practical Perspective IS THE CHANGE FEASIBLE? IS THE CHANGE SUSTAINABLE ON A DAILY AND LONG-TERM BASIS? Financial costs/cost effectiveness – Is the change worth the cost(s)? Staff buy-in – is this just the “next big thing” that staff are being pushed to adopt? Opportunity cost/trade-offs – Is the change leading us to miss out on something?

Conducting Postmortems What did we do well? Or, what are we doing well at the moment? What did we do poorly? Or, what are we doing poorly? What did we learn from this project? Or, what are we learning from this project? How can we do better the next time? Or, how can we be doing better than we are currently? (Kouzes & Posner, 2007, p. 213)

Data Sources for Evaluating Change Student grades Standardized test scores Attendance or graduation rates Promotion/retention statistics and trends RTI or other intervention data/assessment results Student counseling and/or disciplinary data – referral statistics

Data Sources for Evaluating Change Staff, student, and/or parent surveys/assessments Fiscal/budgetary reports Observable (but not measurable) changes in school culture

Challenge the Process “Failure is not an Option” Gene Kranz, Lead Flight Director Apollo XIII

Keep in Mind…

Resources The Holy Bible. New King James Version. Kouzes, J.M. & Posner, B.Z. (2007). The leadership challenge, 4th ed. Snyder, D. K. (2003). School Connection and Student Success. Retrieved July 1, 2008, from Southern Regional Education Board: 03-Snyder.ppt