Standard Two: Instructional Leadership
School executives set high standards for the professional practice of 21st century instruction and assessment that result in a no-nonsense accountable environment. They must be knowledgeable of best instructional and school practices and must use this knowledge to cause the creation of collaborative structures within the school for the design of highly engaging schoolwork for students, the on-going peer review of this work, and the sharing of this work throughout the professional community.
2A. Focus on Learning and Teaching, Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment
The school executive leads the discussion about standards for curriculum, instruction and assessment on research and best practices in order to establish and achieve high expectations for students.
Explaining Curriculum to Teachers
During my residency, I engaged in various discussions and meetings on teaching and student learning. From facilitating PLCs to leading learning walks, I sought ways ensure teachers were equipped with the knowledge, tools, and resources needed to engage students in rigorous and meaningful learning. When one of our ELA teachers expressed her confusion on some of the questions from a recent Benchmark assessment, I took time to read and annotate the passage and questions for her as well as provide detailed explanations as to what the correct answer was and why. The teacher was then able to use my feedback as a guide when explaining the passage and questions to her students.
Email response I sent to the teacher requesting help.
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Document I created for teachers explaining the confusing questions.
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Walkthroughs
I regularly conducted walkthroughs and provided teachers with feedback on observed instructional practices. During our admin team meetings, we would decide on the weekly focus for walkthroughs. These focuses would primarily be derived from strategies and best practices shared at recent PLC meetings (e.g., "accountable talk," "student engagement," "depth of knowledge questioning," etc.).
Rather than using a form or checklist for walkthroughs, we decided to send follow-up emails that outlined: (1) positive observations, (2) what we specifically were looking for, (3) evidence of implementation, and (4) suggested ideas for future implementation. The administrative team felt this was a more user-friendly way to give feedback, and teachers seemed to be more receptive when it was given in this manner.
Rather than using a form or checklist for walkthroughs, we decided to send follow-up emails that outlined: (1) positive observations, (2) what we specifically were looking for, (3) evidence of implementation, and (4) suggested ideas for future implementation. The administrative team felt this was a more user-friendly way to give feedback, and teachers seemed to be more receptive when it was given in this manner.
2B. Focus on Instructional Time
The school executive creates processes and schedules which protect teachers from disruption of instructional or preparation time.
Bechmark Testing Schedule
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Benchmark testing occurs at the end of every quarter. I serve as our school's backup test coordinator. I work alongside our primary test coordinator, the assistant principal, to schedule and plan testing sessions and daily schedules for teachers during this time. We ensure that there is adequate coverage and settings for students in light of student accommodations. These plans ensure that testing occurs as efficiently as possible. They are submitted to our Director of Accountability for further review to ensure that we are meeting testing guidelines.
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Global School Coordinator
During my residency, I served as Pattillo's Global School Coordinator. In this role, I was responsible for ensuring that teachers complete professional development on incorporating global concepts into their curriculum. Teachers were then tasked with creating and implementing globally-focused lessons. At the start of the school year, I met with one of our Social Studies teachers, who is the chair of our Social Justice Committee, to discuss her ideas for what she’d like to our students do. I was then able to compile a collection of resources and activities for further consideration based on project and inquiry-centered learning concepts. This protected the teacher from preparation and planning, so that her focus could be on developing curriculum and instructional practices for her classes. These resources and activities were used by the teacher to create a Global Social Justice club for our students. [see artifacts below]
Global Social Justice Project Overview
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Collection of Activities/Assignments
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