Professional Documents
Culture Documents
JOB-EMBEDDED PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT FOR PRINCIPALS
Lloyd C. Kilmer
Western Illinois University
Georgianna L. Koenig
Mississippi Bend Area Education
Agency
ABSTRACT
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Design Standards
several weeks to see if they truly linked their mission with how they
allocated their professional time. In addition, consideration of Dr.
Reeves presentation on, ”The Myth of The Silver Bullet,” lead to
several conversations about the initiatives that had been selected for
school improvement plans in the past. The participants were also able
to reflect individually after each session on an implementation log
Table 1.
colleagues.
Table 2
Table 3
Table 4
Principals Leadership Academy” Inter-District” Implementation Evaluation 2006-07.
(N=7)
REFERENCES
Appendix
1 - Improvement Initiative:
Creating and implementing a Response to Intervention/Systems for Student Success initiative
at Sample Elementary School that supports improved student achievement in reading.
2 - Goal(s): The specific achievement(s) you want to make (within a period of time)...
achievement(s) that move you closer to the desired results. (Nov. 1)
a. I will work to create an atmosphere of support, teamwork, and cooperation at Sample
School (Balanced Leadership Responsibility-Culture). b. I will work with the Central Office
Administration to inservice the staff on the framework of the Response to Intervention
initiative (Balanced Leadership Responsibility-Intellectual Stimulation, Optimize). c. Work
with the Literacy Facilitators at Sample Elementary to design and implement a professional
development program centered around the Balanced Literacy theory of instruction (Balanced
Leadership Responsibility-Intellectual Stimulation, Involvement in Curriculum, Instruction,
and Assessment). d. Implement ways to assist struggling readers (Balanced Leadership
Responsibility-Focus, Intellectual Stimulation, Involvement in Curriculum, Assessment and
Instruction).
3a - Improvement Initiative Baseline: Preliminary data around selected improvement
initiative (i.e. 360 Survey, Culture Survey) (Nov. 1)
I utilized my quarterly "How Am I Doing?" survey with the staff. There is congruence
between my beliefs on how I am doing in the areas of culture, monitor and evaluate and
affirmation. The staff doesn't believe that I am doing as well in the areas of communication,
discipline, and focus as I do. The staff believes that I am doing better in the areas of monitor
and evaluate, input, and change agent than I believe I am doing.
3b - Student Achievement Baseline: (ITBS, ITED, ICAM, District Assessments) (Nov. 1)
The DIBELS/Early Learning Assessment was administered to every student at Sample School.
The scores were as follows: 52% of students are at grade level benchmark in reading as
measured by DORF--Oral Reading Fluency Test. (More disaggregated data is required here)
4 - Plan: The action that enables you to reach the goal(s). An outline of methods, strategies,
people and resources you can use to guarantee the attainment of your goal. (Nov. 1)
a. To create an atmosphere of support, teamwork, and cooperation at Sample School (Balanced
Leadership Responsibility-Culture) I will: 1) Establish outcomes that matter to all (Kids
First!), 2) Develop Collective Efficacy, 3) Use the Fish! Facilitators to develop team building
activities for staff use at Sample Elementary. b. I will be in each classroom three times per
week to monitor reading instruction to see that the principals of the Balanced Literacy
Lloyd C. Kilmer & Georgianna L. Koenig 85
program are being implemented in the classroom. c. The Response to Intervention Team will
develop procedures and documentation to monitor student progress in the area of reading. d.
Utilize the Literacy Facilitators, District Best Practices Coordinators, and Building
Interventionists to inservice staff and provide follow up training on best practices in reading
based on the Balanced Literacy program and the five elements of reading instruction based on
the findings of the National Reading Panel. e. Use Data Teams to provide support and monitor
implementation at each grade level.
5 - Timeline: A list of specific dates for each task from the plan to be completed by that time.
(Nov. 1)
a. At each monthly faculty meeting, time will be set aside for team building activities such as
sharing and celebrations. The Literacy Facilitators will also be given at least 30 minutes at
each faculty meeting to work with the staff on Best Practices in Reading. b. Beginning in
August and continuing through May, I will complete both scheduled and unscheduled
walkthroughs of each regular and special education classroom, specifically during the
Language Arts block, to see that Balanced Literacy instruction is occurring in the classroom. c.
The Response to Intervention Team will meet monthly to discuss and prepare documentation
protocols to record student progress in reading, aligned with the five elements of reading
instruction developed by the National Reading Panel. d. The Literacy Facilitators will work to
establish a professional development plan for the year beginning in August. The plan will be
refined monthly as I meet with the Literacy Facilitators to discuss progress and needs. District
Best Practices Coordinators will be brought in on an as-needed basis to help provide clarity
and direction to our processes.
6 - Reflection 1: Describe implementation of your Action Plan with results to date (reference
Balanced Leadership behaviors) (January)
Balanced Leadership Responsibility--Culture: To date, we have revisited our mission
statement (Kids First!) and have created descriptors of what that should look, sound and feel
like in our classrooms and in the school as a whole. We developed these descriptors working
in cooperative teams and have reviewed them quarterly this school year. Our Fish! facilitators
have developed a program whereby teachers draw a stick each week or each day (their choice)
that describes an action they can take to bring the Fish! philosophy to life in our school (e.g.
Look for something positive someone did with their students today and compliment them on
it). We have utilized our Literacy Facilitators and District Best Practices Coordinators to
reexamine the Balanced Literacy philosophy. Literacy Facilitators have been provided with
time to present and share with the teachers at each faculty meeting thus far this year. Teachers
have re-worked their daily classroom schedules to reflect the Balanced Literacy Philosophy. I
have not been in to the classrooms as much as I had intended to be--not the three times per
week. My data tells me that it is probably closer to two times per week. The Five Elements of
Reading Instruction from the National Reading Panel has become the cornerstone of our
efforts at implementing Response to Intervention in Reading. All assessment, intervention and
documentation that has been developed in reading is tied to those elements. The results of the
How Am I Doing Survey that I asked the staff to completed towards the end of the second
quarter were disappointing. The staff feels that culture and climate are suffering with the
implementation of Response to Intervention. They also feel that I am still trying to do too
much on my own and not delegating leadership responsibilities enough. This is something that
86 NATIONAL FORUM OF APPLIED EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH JOURNAL
I will try to rectify throughout the remainder of the year. Perhaps I need to consider how to
delegate some responsibility for culture and climate so that the staff feels involved and valued.
7 - Reflection 2: Describe implementation of your Action Plan with results to date (reference
Balanced Leadership behaviors) (February)
The implementation of the plan continues. I have attempted to delegate more responsibilities
to my staff, especially my data team leaders, though I have no additional data at this point to
quantify the results. We continue with the implementation of Response to Intervention and the
Fish! action plans. Impact on culture is key.
8 - Reflection 3: Describe implementation of your Action Plan with results to date (reference
Balanced Leadership behavior Learning Leader Tools) (March)
As above.
9 - Reflection 4: Describe implementation of your Action Plan with results to date (reference
Balanced Leadership behavior Learning Leader Tools) (April)
The latest How Am I Doing Survey that was administered to the staff indicates that the climate
and culture in the building have not improved (3.8 on a 1.0-4.0 scale with 1.0 being the
highest score). However, staff has noticed that they have been entrusted with more
responsibility and that I am not trying to do as much on my own which they see as a positive.
Parents and students indicate overall satisfaction with culture and climate as indicated on the
District Survey.
10a - Summary of Results: Improvement Initiative Data: (Required)(June 22)
The staff continues to be dissatisfied overall with culture and climate, due primarily to the
implementation of RiI.
10b - Summary of Results: Student Achievement: (Required)(June 22)
Student achievement data is not available as ISAT is our primary indicator. However, as noted
earlier, most students and parents indicate that they are pleased with the education they are
receiving at Sample Elementary. DIBELS results are going in the wrong direction. Student
writing scores are up.
10c - Summary of Results: Other (June 22) None
11 - Summary of Learning: Comment on your results. (June 22)
I feel that I have a better handle on those things that I need to delegate. However, I'm going to
delegate further those areas that continue to suffer--climate and communication. Perhaps with
staff responsible for those areas with my oversight, the situation will improve and student
learning will be enhanced.
12 - General Comments: (June 22)
I enjoyed my PLA experience over the past two years. However, I was not able to devote the
time to it that I wanted to. Too much management still gets in the way of my being as effective
a leader as I would like to be.
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