1. Presented By: Catherine McCullough
Strong
Districts &
Their
Leadership
Student
Well-being
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Presented By: Catherine McCullough .

2. What you will learn today?
Strong Districts and Leadership project
The current research on an approach to practices that contribute to student well being
What have we learned from this work and recommendations
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3. Improving students’ achievement and well-being is the fundamental role of Educational Leaders
Fundamental role of leaders everywhere and we are always striving for ways to refine our practices.
We all want to stay the course with so many distractions happening everywhere.
There are so many priorities that we are trying to achieve the strong district work brought focus into what we are trying to accomplish.

4. Commissioned By Directors of Education (CODE)
Uses evidence from many sources on the nine characteristics of high performing school districts
In Ontario (over 8 years ago) there was controversial politics happening at the time that recommended we remove a layer of senior leadership. Lets focus on what works in school systems.
Commissioned Dr. Ken Leithwood who has been doing work in Leadership in Ontario for a many years. Author of the Ontario Leadership framework and additional research. Lets talk about what really works.
Google “Leadership in Education” and his name will be number one.
I had the opportunity as a Director at the time to take a lead in making this happen.
Table of what the District Practices are.
9 Key characteristics that research shows districts enact that support student learning.
Also a vision of what we should be striving for.

5. Characteristics Provide Coherent Instructional Guidance
Mission, Vision
and Goals
Establish, broadly shared mission,
vision and
goals
founded on ambitious images
of the educated person.
Provide
Coherent Instructional Guidance
Align budgets, personnel/polices and uses of time with district mission, vision and goals
Build district and
school capacity - Seek out and use
multiple sources
of evidence
Create learning oriented improvement processes
Advocate
for and
support
a policy-governance approach
to Board
Provide Job Embedded Professional Development
Nurture productive working relationships with staff and stakeholders
Mission, Vision and Goals
Ensure transparent visioning/direction setting process is carried out
Consult extensively about district directions as part of the process
Spend sufficient time to ensure that the mission, vision and goals ( direction of the system is widely known)
Model the priorities
Embed district directions in improvement plans, principal meetings and other leadership interactions
Provide Coherent Instructional Guidance
Adopt a service orientation towards schools
Align curricular goals, assessment instruments, instructional practice and teaching resources
Insist on ambitious goals for teaching and learning
Advocate for attention to the best available evidence to inform instructional improvement decisions
Expect schools to focus on needs of individual as well as groups of students
Encourage staff to be innovative
Build district and school capacity-Seek out and use multiple sources of evidence
Use data from all available sources to inform decision making
Insist on the use of the best available research
Encourage collaboration with the data
Provide training on the use of data with your principals and staff
Interactions with trustees should be based on sound evidence.
Provide Job Embedded Professional Development
Provide PD opportunities for teachers and school level leaders in context
Align content of PD with capacities needed for district and school improvement
Require staff and growth plans be aligned with district and school improvement priorities.
Hold staff accountable for applying new capacities.
Align budgets, personnel/polices and uses of time with district mission, vision and goals
Resources with district and improvement goals
Align personnel procedures and organization structures with district goals.
Give principals autonomy in hiring teaching staff
Assist and expect schools to allocate instructional resources equitably.
Use a comprehensive performance management system for school and district leadership development

6. Two Phases &Two Strands
Research
Two Phases &Two Strands
Phase One was a field test.
Development and Field Test of Learning Modules.
Development of 23 Case studies from across the Province (Phase One)
9 Video Interviews.
Second Phase we went in deeper. Continued the learning modules around the (9) characteristics
Professional Development

7. Professional Development
The intent of the modules is to de-privatize practice and
to better understand implications of relevant research
These learning modules took each of the (9) characteristics and put on the table actual case studies of boards approaches.
We used case study guidelines to ask questions of why this was a priority, Details around how they approached the priority and their advice to others.
School Districts share their lessons learned and how they have refined their approach. What burning questions there still may be.
Consider the results of relevant research linked to these learning modules.
This is the first of it’s kind that engages senior leaders in hearing first hand others approaches and how it can apply to their practice.
Typically a learning module starts with the research and then the case study is presented and shared. (A typical approach)
Travel to a part of the province – share the work.

8. Student outcomes including…
Research Strand
45 District’s
Student outcomes including…
Math and Language achievement
Two surveys
Intensive interviews with 48 leaders
Well-being
2 Surveys. District and School Level leaders were invited to engage.
Questions were asked about students outcomes in math and language, well being and student engagement.
Board results were given back to the board and also informed our research results.
The 48 interviews with School Leaders were also transformational.
Approximately
1,400 & 1,200 respondents
Engagement

9. What is the extent the (9) characteristics influence?
schools
Research Goals
classrooms
What is the extent the (9) characteristics influence?
IMPACT
families
student success
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10. District effects on students
classrooms
schools
families
A central goal of the study was to identify those features that should be the most productive focus of intervention by school leaders.
What characteristics, under the control of the district themselves, explain the significant variation in student learning?
How do these characteristics interact with the conditions found in the schools, classrooms and families.
What role do school leaders play in district efforts to improve student learning.
students

11. What we anticipated students GROWTH & STREAMLINE PROVIDE leaders
study results
efforts
Approved.
The study results will provide leaders with greater leverage over the elements of their school systems that matter to student growth and streamline their efforts.

12. District Characteristic (9)
Study framework
District Characteristic (9)
District Leadership
Achievement
Well-being
Engagement
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School
Conditions
(12)

13. How do you define: student well-being?
Student well-being is like a
HUGE bucket.
Well being is a huge bucket. There are numerous organizations that contribute to well being. Social services, hospitals etc.
Our work in schools was intended to focus on intellectual tasks.
The question is one of leadership.
How can leaders influence well being.

14. Ontario Well Being Strategy
Student well-being
That positive sense of self and spirit and belonging we feel when our cognitive, emotional, and physical needs are
being met
Ontario Well Being Strategy
Research more on the Ontario well being strategy.

15. Achievement, mission of school
The degree to which a student is functioning effectively in the curriculum offered in the school community
Our study adopted a domain-specific, subjective, conception and measure of student well being focused narrowly on the achievement mission of schools.

16. What are the twelve school conditions?
Leadership is an exercise of influence and recognition
The following 12 conditions can be influenced by leadership practices that have direct effects on students
The framework is based on this premise.

17. Classroom instruction
Focused instruction
Academic Emphasis
Disciplinary Climate
School-wide
Experience
The Emotions Path
Collective Teacher Efficacy
Teacher Trust
Teacher Commitment
Leadership practices
Student
Learning
Organizational Path
Safe and Orderly Environment
Organization of Planning and Instructional Time
Collaborative Cultures and Structures.
Leaders influence flows along 4 paths to reach students (12 school conditions).
The 12 conditions have an effect on student learning and leadership.
Classroom
Experience
Family Path
Parent Expectations
Forms of Communication at Home
Parents social capital around schooling

18. What we found
Academic emphasis and school leadership are the most influential of the 12 conditions on student well-being
Teacher trust and collective teacher efficacy had a significant relationship to student well-being

19. Academic emphasis
A combination of teachers setting high, but reasonable goals, students responding positively to the challenge of these goals, and the principal supplying the resources and exerting influence to attain these goals
Academic emphasis has been found to be positively related to achievement in all types of schools including schools serving poor and minority students
Goddard, Hoy, Tarter and Hoy (2006)

20. What will be effective for improving achievement will also be effective for improving well-being
You don’t build well being by focusing on well being .
You build it by focusing on these variables.

21. Discussion
What do you do to promote academic emphasis in your district?
How can you further leverage Academic emphasis in your schools?
District leaders by themselves do not make a huge impact – school leaders do.
District leaders impact is putting in place the conditions that lead to leadership success.

22. School leadership – what successful leaders do
Setting directions
Building relationships and developing people
Developing the organization to support desired practices
Improving the instructional program
Securing accountability
Ontario Leadership Framework

23. Setting directions Build a shared vision
Identify specific, shared, short term goals
Create high performance expectations
Communicate the vision and goals

24. Build relationships and develop people
Stimulate growth in the professional capacities of staff
Provide support and demonstrate consideration for individual staff members
Model the schools values and practices
Build trusting relationships with staff students and parents
Productive working relationships with teacher federation representatives

25. Develop the organization to support desired practices
Build collaborative cultures and distribute leadership
Structure the organization to facilitate collaboration
Build productive relationships with families and communities
Connect the school to it’s wider environment
Maintain a safe and healthy school environment
Allocate resources to support the schools vision and goals

26. Improve the instructional program
Staff the instructional program
Provide instructional support
Monitor student learning and school improvement progress
Buffer staff from distractions to their work

27. Secure accountability
Build staff members’ sense of internal accountability
Meet the demands for external accountability

28. Recommendations from Strong Districts
Districts should reassess what they are doing to nurture the development of their school leaders consistent with research based practices.
There is likely no single improvement focus for a district that will make as large a difference to it’s performance as focus on leadership development.
What do you do to develop your current leaders?

29. Leadership development
The 12 school conditions have significant effects on student learning
Evidence demonstrates that they are workable by school leaders

30. What do you focus on in your leadership development programs?

31. Leadership for learning
It is important to make tacit knowledge about leadership and leadership development explicit, at all opportunities and with all audiences throughout the system
One district that I know offers leadership development programs.

32. Collective teacher efficacy
The level of confidence a group exudes in its capacity to organize and execute whatever educational initiatives are required for students to reach high standards of achievement

33. What does collective efficacy look like?
Challenging goals for themselves
High levels of planning and organization
Testing new methods
Classroom time dedicated to learning.
Helping Students succeed with persistence and resiliency
Setting high goals for students
Demonstrate a passion for teaching

34. How can leaders foster collective teacher efficacy?

35. Good leadership practices
Promoting cooperation and collaboration among staff towards common goals
Encourage staff to form networks and join other networks
Sponsor meaningful and professional development
Inspire others with a vision of the future

36. Teacher trust
Transparency, competence, benevolence and reliability are trustworthy teachers qualities
Teacher trust is critical to the success of schools, and nurturing trusting relationships with students, and parents is a key elements in improving student learning

37. Outline the ways to foster teacher trust?

38. Trust is earned when…
Behave towards teachers in a supportive, friendly open manner
Listen to the needs and assist in supporting those needs
Articulating a clear vision of expectations
Buffer teachers from unreasonable demands
Set high standards for students then follow through with supports for teachers
Be reliable, open, honest in all interactions

39. Student well-being recommendation
Schools and districts aiming to improve conceptions of student well being should include as part of their improvement efforts, increase the status in their schools of
Academic Emphasis
School Leadership
Collective Teacher Efficacy
Teacher Trust

40. Recommendations from Strong Districts research
Districts should set as a priority supporting the work of their schools in learning more on how to improve the status of the 12 conditions and develop resource material that schools can use to improve these efforts.
Include specific training for school leaders on how to diagnose and improve the status of these conditions.
Districts should avoid an exclusive focus on just one of the conditions as a “silver bullet” All 12 Conditions have the potential to help improve student success. The choice of which one or several to focus on at a given time should depend on the judgment of what would be most helpful in individual school contexts.

41. Shouldn’t the status of improving conditions be a focus on a leadership development program?

42. References
School Leaders’ Influences’ on Student Learning: The Four Paths
How School Districts Influence Student Achievement

43. For more information Catherine.mccullough@cmcleadership.ca .