/ Network Learning
Capturing our Collective Genius
Spring Leadership Institute
Eugene, Oregon
April 9, 2008
Morning Sessions: Notes
Session # 1: Understanding Leadership Performance
Presenter: Krista Parent, Recorder: Marsha Moyer

The discussion of understanding leadership performance centered on what type of feedback, activities and/or evaluation tool leads to improved leadership performance.

SouthLaneSchool District had used four different evaluation tools in the past to determine what type of feedback was most effective to assist administrators to improve their practices.

South Lane reviewed Oregon’s Administrator Standards, their District Standards and other nationally recognized leadership standards, i.e. VAL-ED, ISLLC. As a result of this extensive review SLSD created a crosswalk-a compilation of resources that assisted them in identifying gaps.

Participants worked individually to identify two specific examples of how they personally demonstrated each of the seven Oregon Standards, and then engaged in a “Give One-Get one” protocol to expand their list for each standard. As a result of this work, the following activities/behaviors is sampling of information shared by attendees:

Standard / #1 / #2 / #3 / #4 / #5
Visionary Leadership / Continuing vision of leaders – incorporating district vision.
District goals, including goals for closing achievement gaps within the district.
Hybird SPED.
Creating and implementing school improvement & goals & strategies. / BBK book group w/Team leaders – movement towards direct vocabulary instruction.
Implement school improvement goals & strategies.
Established Leadership Focus group.
MELDS.
On-going transparent communications. / CIP – living document.
Build background knowledge.
Strategic Plan.
Analyze budget.
Thinks & acts strategically (CIP) / Closing achievement gap.
Goals – sharing with community
Develop core value & community visioning.
Technology grants.
Create practice plans, core values.
School Improvement Plans for the board. / Family story that shares vision w/staff & community.
Develop a plan & engage the community in the process.
Book club with board & administration re: instructional practices (5 books, 7 – 8 books over summer)..
Teacher reading.
PLC – theory of Action Model / individual / student achievement.
Instructional Improvement
Common assessments with collaborative scoring & packaged reporting / Alignment of writing curriculum, SPED, Math Int.
Respond to data to improve.
Teacher expectations
I pods
Deep knowledge of curriculum, instruction, assessment / Math Int. RTI w/TAT’s.
Write grants.
Reading partnerships
Close all achievement gaps (chart) / Administrative License Program.
I pods for journaling & podcasting.
Evaluate educational learning programs to assess the needs of the students
District wide book clubs re: writing (literacy) “Book Talks” to intro book
Math Interventions.
Using data effectively to change behavior / Leadership Team discuss all areas that impact instruction
Engage leadership in PLCs
Core groups.
Administration professional growth.
Textbook process / School improvement plans
Walkthrough training

The sharing of practices was very energizing, as well as informative. Cross pollination of ideas was expressed as being very healthy and non-threatening and this group expressed an interest in remaining together to explore the issues of leadership performance in more depth.

  • EugeneSchool District

A draft of 4J Educational Leadership Performance Measures that aligns with the Oregon Sate Standards for Administrators was introduced to the group. A lead team conducted a reflective self assessment on themselves as a pilot. (A draft of 4J Educational Leadership Performance Measures is attached.)

  • SpringfieldSchool District

SpringfieldSchool District shared their Teacher Evaluation Handbook with the group. This handbook is a comprehensive system of accountability and growth designed to support best practices in teaching and learning. There were many stakeholder involved in the development of the instrument over a period of a two years. The broad base state standards are reflected, but the instrument is directly aligned with Springfield’s standards.

  • SouthLaneSchool District

SouthLaneSchool Districtis focusing on the key initiatives going on in the district, then crosses those with the Oregon State Standards for Administrators. This allows her district to tailor the administrative evaluation to its specific needs.

The district is incorporating a 360-degree component into its evaluation system. In this process:

1)The administrative team gives feedback on an administrator’s performance;

2)The administrator’s self-assessment is considered;

3)The supervisor adds his or her input to the evaluation.

Some school administrators also allow staff to give administrative feedback. A different evaluation tool is used for central office administrators. The indicators on the tool will change as the district initiative changes in the future. Principals want effective management and culturally competent practices included in the evaluation tool.

Session # 2: Professional Learning Communities
Presenter: Sarah Boly, Recorder: Courtney Vanderstek

Beaverton’s Story:

Big S -strategy – touches every student, every teacher; must happen

  • Challenge: keeping eye on the prize; partners with NIKE, universities
  • Adaptive change vs. technical change

Used ChangeLeadership (Wagner) as text for school leaders

Critical Friends helped with culture, but didn’t make sustainable change; wanted a system that helped each teacher have success.

Hold and Sommers, 2007 – ProfessionalLearningCommunities

It’s about the greater good, not just individual teachers

Having a focus made some improvements, but then it plateaued…

It’s about having a strategy, system wide.

Work with Harvard on Instructional Core resonated.

Question: How do we use the cycle of improvement or coherence framework?

5 stages: Assessment, Analysis, Consultation, Intervention, Refinement

“It’s about gaining coherence among actions at the district, school and classroom level rather than a particular strategy.”

Questions: How do we move from silos of excellence to entire district?

How do we find the time to help teachers do this? i.e. (Robust resources).

Help schools implement interventions/strategies to help struggling kids?

This is about teacher leadership…

Have also developed a lens of cultural competency that provides questions for each stage.

Challenges: teachers want to do this when they see success for students. The Issaquah Protocol -

Define Dilemma: Time and Focus (multiple teams and purposes, how does it all get done, small school challenges, staff are over -committed)

Session # 3: Leadership for Equity
Presenter: Tom Henry, Recorder: Marla McGhee

Session began with the introduction of two primary topics:

What Equity Is?

  • Allocating Resources to Address Student and School Needs

Sources of information utilized in the session:

  • Education Trust; University of Washington-Center for Teaching and Policy and Center on Reinventing Public Ed.; BayAreaSchool Reform Collaborative; Wallace Foundation
  • Facts (most from Haycock): Black and Latino students tend to be segregated into high poverty schools; fewer lower income students graduate from college; poorer teaching quality in high poverty schools
  • Funding Gaps 2006: schools with high minority populations are under resourced
  • U of W: Less $ is spent in high minority schools; teachers are not as well paid (less experienced and fewer graduate degrees); generally under-funded (salary averaging issues); in Title I schools, teachers are generally paid less; schools losing $ due to salary averaging
  • Why are high poverty schools receiving less $$? Fund raising; equipment and technologies; more grants and foundation dollars go to higher income schools (more grant writers)
  • After the test study-BARSC: Leadership for equity; use of data; school focus (ex: ongoing professional development for literacy)
  • Greatest challenges and barriers in Eugene SD: one board goal on achievement gap, but 100 initiatives, need tighter focus (think small to get big results); put your resources on your focus area
  • 2 Key Questionswas posed to the group for their small group discussion: How does your district or school define equity? Do you have a policy or written statement about resource allocations relating to equity?
  • Groups engaged in discussion and shared thoughts and examples from their work sites, schools and districts (Place table discussion notes from small groups here)
  • Some of your schools/SD are grappling with this; Eugene SD working on for 5 years-Tom shared board philosophy statements-some schools may require additional resources--unequal input for equal output. The district will allocate human, financial and community networking resources to close the gap and help all students achieve their potential.
  • 2 more Key Questions was posed to the group: If you are differentiating resources how and what areyou doing? To what extent should resources be differentiated? Class sizes, Per pupil allotment; Title I funds; how and to what extent resources should be shifted or adjusted is a complex question; access to technology; taking % of $$ from foundations and placing it in a central pot—schools apply for it

Groups engaged in discussion and shared thoughts and examples from their work sites, schools and districts (Place table discussion notes from small groups here)

Here’s what is being done in Eugene SD: Common basic staffing by level; General Funds given by need; Title I funds only to elementary--threshold starts at 40% students in poverty; differentiation in Title II and V funds; Literacy infusion of 1.5 m funds on a weighted formula for ELL; SPED and poverty. State funding formula used. Equity funds provided to schools on % of minority and poverty; additional FTE divided among 3 low SES elementary schools; additional ELL equity funds divided among 8 schools; 2009-10 will implement a differentiated staffing ratio on poverty, ELL, and SPED; Identified Academy schools based on poverty--gave them $100,000 per year including .5 FTE, planning for staffing ratio change based on poverty, ELL and SPED. Principal at Howard shared her experience as an Academy School--their campus is very site-based; they decided to use the $ for professional development and making site visit to high performing Title I schools across the state; they implemented a number of changes and new programs in reading and writing, also bought technology. Downsides: won’t always be an AcademySchool, still struggling with decisions and initiatives, maintaining energy and enthusiasm over time.

What is your district doing to ensure that staff are highly qualified and motivated to work with high needs students? In Eugene, success—strategy that is applied to Academy schools—if they decide that they don’t want to work in this school, they can say so and make a transfer to another school (they can declare 3 schools they would like to work in); Principal in Academy schools get first posting—involve staff and community member in these decisions;

Groups engaged in discussion and shared thoughts and examples from their work sites, schools and districts (Place table discussion notes from small groups here)

A team from BevertonSD lead by their superintendent shared information with the whole group: Two years ago, leadership and student achievement (Tom) excellent work, this work is excellent, too; opportunity for students to have an equal chance to be successful—expectations, skill of teacher, curriculum (rigor). Student mobility and poverty are being worked with in BSD. Breakthough books were suggested by the Superintendent: Words that Work; and Ideas that Stick. Ability to communicate and give people stories they will remember. Shared a story about two high schools—A school gave an AP to a campus that needed it more (lower SES HS). Beverton administrators shared their own situations and stories. MS Principal-Restructuring the school for better and improved performance; funding adjustments; Financial officer talked about district funding formula; Principal of K-8 School-changing the ways we think about organization, reading first grant 8th grade literacy looks like early learning literacy, worries about sustainability, though; RAM model and funds over time—achievement sustained, accountability, investment of taxpayer funds; TOSA in HR-recruit, hire, and keep the right people; others-getting members on board support decisions and actions, not succumbing to only the “squeaky wheels.”

Key Questions-How are you monitoring student progress to know that students are receiving appropriate and effective interventions? What are you doing to ensure that students are accessing the general curriculum and experiencing rigor?

Eugene SD: Diagnostic assessments for all K-9 students; Data warehouse; developed RTI protocols and tiers for intervention; established guidelines and purchased new instructional materials for SPED and ELL students to access general curriculum; hired literacy and sheltered English coaches

Groups engaged in discussion and shared thoughts and examples from their work sites, schools and districts (Place table discussion notes from small groups here)

Resources that are often overlooked are time and technology; to address, have extended learning opportunities; adopted district calendars that provide planning time and professional development time; extended school days to allow for release time/days for professional development; infrastructure and equipment for technology use in high poverty schools or with students who are struggling (4J technology p

Session # 4: Leadership for Literacy, K-5
Presenter: Paul Weill, Recorder: Tom Ruhl

Successful literacy initiative = Instruction, assessment, curriculum AND motivation

Gallery Walk: Discussion of selected quotes about reading. (see master list of quotes)

Key Questions for the morning session:

  • Why have a literacy initiative?

Literacy stampede: Multiple forms of literacy and increasing complexity

(example: 1974 an auto mechanic needed to be able to understand 500 pages of text in an automotive repair manual, in 2008 that same mechanic must be able to access approximately 1,000,000 pages of related text)

We must increase literacy skills of students to “run with the literacy stampede”

  • Where has SpringfieldSD been?

2005 – 06 Literacy Initiative: Increased training and material selection

Gift of Literacy

2006-07 Literacy Support teacher (coach), Core curriculum (Houghton-Mifflin) training for certified and classified staff, data training

Literacy Task Force Report Conclusion: All students have an educational right to literacy. The district has failed in the past to meet this challenge and is committed to implementing recommendations to guarantee that all students acquire literacy skills.

  • How is Springfield doing?

2007-08 Implement Core Curriculum, 90 minutes of reading instruction for every student (desire to increase amount of time), Battle of the Books.

Battle Of the Books: 16 titles are read in common, quiz show format.( comprehension type activity) Contact Springfield about Battle of the Books. or Oregon Battle of the Books (OBOB) at Oregon Department of Education

“Can judge the value of school by it’s library” Paul Weill

Literacy Successes in OLN districts:

Eugene: Reading Coaches at each school

Bethell and Nyssa: Response to Intervention is very successful. “Close monitoring of student progress”

Bend: Review of the collection in the school library. Quality and Quantity of current texts. Replace old titles

Beaverton: Teacher leaders/ literacy coaches in every building. Professional assessment model for certified staff helped clarify the role of Literacy Coaches

Salem-Keizer: District-wide literacy model with core standards.

Nyssa, Beaverton and Hillsboro: Developing data teams to understand student progress.

Bend: Emphasis on small class size, and Professional Learning Communities concentrating on literacy

Springfield: Literacy coaches working with adults, not a Reading Specialist who works with students

TIPS:

Literacy in-service for administrators

District must take the time to develop teacher recognition that Literacy Support/Coaches will provide useful service. (Stephen Barkley has assisted Salem-Keizer also Jim Knight

assisted in Beaverton.)

Valerie King – SpringfieldSD

“Best practices vs. Common Practice”

Round Robin is a very commonly used reading strategy

Alternatives to Round Robin (see handout: Eight Alternatives to Round Robin Reading)

Session # 5: Leadership for Literacy, 6-12
Presenter: Colt Gill, Recorder: Pat Burk

Challenges Leaders face in improving literacy 6-12:

  • Aligning district programs and leadership (SpEd, Title, ELL, Regular core instruction, RTI initiatives)
  • Maintaining a “Highly Qualified” staff
  • Systems that actually deliver less instructional time to SpEd students
  • Time and personnel to implement formative assessments
  • Less can be more with integration…how do we make it happen?
  • Aligning instruction and curriculum across schools and levels
  • Implementing summer literacy programs
  • Elementary teachers focus on and know students’ reading levels/HighSchool teachers know their content, not the students’ literacy levels
  • Tying writing into the literacy puzzle
  • Maintaining quality elective programs and still meeting students’ literacy needs at the secondary level
  • 9th grade course failure rate

Successes Leaders are experiencing in improving literacy 6-12:

  • Combining depts. (SpEd, Instruction, ELL, Title) to create alignment of literacy programs district-wide (Bethel)
  • Embedded coaching model for teacher training (BethelBeaverton)
  • ACCESS Toolkit and quality training in reading and comprehending in the content areas (Bethel)
  • SpEd Course design and curriculum adoption process (Hillsboro)
  • Two period reading at MS (Hillsboro)
  • Common assessments (BethelBeaverton)
  • Intervention period with teams (Beaverton)
  • Summer school success (Beaverton)
  • MS/HS literacy teams working with students
  • ESL summer school success (Beaverton)
  • Equity staffing (Eugene 4J, Beaverton, Springfield, Bethel)
  • Publishing scores on school signs (Beaverton)
  • Anita Archer trainings
  • Writing across the curriculum and shared scoring (Hillsboro)
  • Power of leadership through core standards for literacy (Salem-Keizer)
  • Kevin Feldman vocabulary training (Bethel)
  • Daily advisory for lower performing literacy students (Eugene 4J)

Session # 6: The Oregon Diploma: Leadership for Learning
Presenters: Glenn Gelbrich, Salam Noor
Recorder: Karen Phillips

The presenter opened the session by explaining that the purpose of the session was to use the group and their collective wisdom to inform the implementation of the new diploma requirements.