A Learning Community Approach

 

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Need for change
PLC Leadership Need for change References Quotations Research

 
Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Albert Einstein (attributed)
 

Why change?

  • The results demanded from K-12 education to enable a student to be productive and successful have changed.  Today's students are different and the expectations for their education are far greater than ever before.
  • Set the Stage for Success

         Engage staff in developing a shared vision of a realistically optimistic future.

         Remind people what isn’t changing.

         Increase opportunities for social connections.

         Increase communication about the coming changes and challenges and explain the 'whys'.

         Work hard to shift blame and whining toward problem solving.

         Listen to people’s anxieties and fears and acknowledge their fear or concerns.

         Encourage a healthy work-life balance.

         Celebrate the little victories along the way.

         Keep the team together.

         Model good practices and behaviors.

  • Why Change Fails-Many education initiatives have been unsuccessful not because they were poor practices but rather because of poor planning or poor execution. The sections that follow provide indicators in both of these areas.  The more schools and districts visited and researched, the more apparent it becomes that leadership and accountability are essential.  If we believe that good first instruction is the single most important factor in student learning, it makes sense to connect that to the principal and their role in leading and supporting that vision.  Just as teachers are accountable for their results, principals should be accountable for the school results that come from consistent and coherent curriculum and delivery across all classrooms for all learners.  Change on the school level can fail when the principal does not truly believe and support the change.

     

    Poor Planning

     ·         The need for change is not clear.

    ·         There is no sense of urgency.

    ·         Incompatibility exists in the organization.

    ·         The change does not address the need.

    ·         There is a lack of trust of senior management.

    ·         There is a lack of respect for supervisors.

    ·         Changes are made in secret.

    ·         There is a lack of shared vision.

     Poor Execution

     ·         There is a lack of communication.

    ·         There is a belief that changes will reduce staff and resources.

    ·         There are no measurable outcomes.

    ·         Key people do not advocate for the change.

    ·         There is a negative impact on social relations.

    ·         The initiative was introduced too quickly or too slowly.

    ·         Vested interests are ignored.

    ·         The cost is too high and the rewards too low.

    ·         There is a lack of confidence and fear of failure.

    ·         There are no rewards for change.

    ·         There are no resources or structure for follow-through.

     *Excerpted from the resource kit, Leading Change in High Schools, published by the International Center for Leadership in Education. http://www.leadered.com

     

     


  
  
  
  
  
  

 

 

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Last modified: 02/06/10