Educational leaders and aspiring leaders are constantly searching for ways to improve the functioning of their institutions. This book provides them with a unique approach to diagnosing a school, school system or college’s organizational health and determining what interventions might be necessary to improve their operations. Each chapter of the book is dedicated to one of the ten essential components of an organization like a school, school system or university. Most of the content of each chapter focuses on the implementation of these components, but there is some emphasis on the supporting theory that speaks to why these leadership practices actually work. We know that administrators are busy people; therefore, at the end of each chapter there is a Diagnostic Checklist of questions that should be helpful in quickly assessing the status of these components in an institution and indicating whether they need to be addressed. In the Appendix, there are two diagnostic instruments; Heart Smart surveys I and II that will help in quantifying the assessment process so that the weaknesses can be easily identified and quickly corrected.

Quick, easy, specific steps that make a difference in teaching and learning Busy school leaders need an easy-to-apply resource to increase teacher effectiveness quickly and efficiently. This book shows principals and staff developers how to improve teaching school-wide through high-impact inservices lasting only ten minutes—incorporated easily into weekly staff meetings. Written by popular education consultants Todd Whitaker and Annette Breaux, this important book offers 40 teacher-tested, mini-workshops that can improve teaching in every classroom. The book covers a range of topics, from behavior challenges and parent engagement to motivating students and making lessons meaningful. Offers school leaders a proven plan to help every teacher improve on a weekly basis by conducting simple 10-minute inservice workshops Offers staff developers, new teacher induction coordinators, mentors, and Professional Learning Communities ideas for effective training sessions Each of the 40 mini-training sessions offered include tips on how to introduce the topic, sample scripts to follow, and implementation activities to ensure lasting learning Whitaker and Breaux are bestselling education authors with a proven track record improving teacher effectiveness This handy resource contains a simple and effective method for improving teacher effectiveness school wide.

A Case Study Approach to Educational Leadership takes on six core areas of school leadership—organizational vision; curriculum, instruction, and assessment; school and external community; school climate and culture; equity; and improvement, innovation, and reform. Using a case learning approach, this volume introduces salient theoretical and empirical literature in each core area and provides illustrative cases designed for individual and group analysis. Written for aspiring educational leaders, this book facilitates the discussion and reflection of individual and collective professional judgment and helps developing leaders make sense of the challenges school leaders face today. Special Features: Featured Cases direct readers toward the issues of practice embedded within the theoretical content area Linkage to relevant Professional Standards for Educational Leaders (PSEL) standards ground each chapter in the latest guidelines for the field Discussion Questions foster reflection of content and practical applications Leadership Activities and Web-Based Resources support leaders in making further connections to practice

Leaders and aspiring leaders from all over the world are constantly searching for role models who are successful in placing leadership theory into effective practice. This book identifies ten such role models whose heroic leadership behavior is analyzed in order to reveal what particular abilities and skills made them successful in their particular society and culture and how those attributes can be applied to one’s own leadership practice, whether that be as a classroom teacher, a principal, a superintendent of schools or a college president in the United States or elsewhere in the world..

Children in today's world are inundated with information about who to be, what to do and how to live. But what if there was a way to teach children how to manage priorities, focus on goals and be a positive influence on the world around them? The Leader in Meis that programme. It's based on a hugely successful initiative carried out at the A.B. Combs Elementary School in North Carolina. To hear the parents of A. B Combs talk about the school is to be amazed. In 1999, the school debuted a programme that taught The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Peopleto a pilot group of students. The parents reported an incredible change in their children, who blossomed under the programme. By the end of the following year the average end-of-grade scores had leapt from 84 to 94. This book will launch the message onto a much larger platform. Stephen R. Covey takes the 7 Habits, that have already changed the lives of millions of people, and shows how children can use them as they develop. Those habits -- be proactive, begin with the end in mind, put first things first, think win-win, seek to understand and then to be understood, synergize, and sharpen the saw -- are critical skills to learn at a young age and bring incredible results, proving that it's never too early to teach someone how to live well.

Inside the Team: Questions and Answers Facing Teacher Leaders is a book for K-12 teachers and leaders who face dilemmas leading teams of peers. With little formal training, few venues for professional conversation, and more responsibilities to lead groups of peers, teacher leaders are seeking answers and direction that will help them build strong professional teams to support student learning. Inside the Team acknowledges a number of changes that are having a profound impact on schools today. Technology, copious information accessible via the Internet, a focus on standards and test scores, fewer teachers with more students, and the never ending cycle of change all impact teaching and learning. Teacher leaders and teams have been asked to step up and shoulder more of the responsibilities to make schools work. However, good intentions aren’t enough. Using Q/A scenarios and building context for leadership in practice, the authors provide answers, useful, practical tools, resources, models and conversation starters that move teams forward.

“Who is an effective leader?” has been a question posed by scholars, educators and practitioners of leadership for centuries. Historically, leadership positions, as well as research on leadership and effective leadership, was primarily reserved for men or masculine characteristics With most societies traditionally following a patriarchal hierarchy, few people questioned inequalities in leadership attainment, largely because of supernatural and/or natural explanations of men’s natural ability and desire to lead. This book runs counter to that culture and examines the experiences and leadership enactments of ten historically famous women leaders in hopes of gaining insight into their uniquely female leadership styles. The ten leaders include Catherine the Great, Jane Addams, Queen Victoria, Marie Montessori, Indira Gandhi, Golda Meir, Mother Teresa, Margaret Thatcher, Pat Summit, and Hillary Clinton. The idea, of course, is to reflect upon these great women’s leadership styles in order to inform one’s own leadership behavior.

This collection explores the political philosophy and theory foundations for educational administration and leadership as they influence our understanding, analysis and practice in the field. The first section, "Political Philosophy: The Foundations," discusses the work of such writers as Machiavelli, Kant and Hegel, Hayek, Habermas, and Bourdieu as their theories apply to the educational context. The second section, "Political Analysis: The Critique," examines various types of political analyses, such as the politics of the policy process, minority politics, civil society, micro-politics, community politics, and cosmopolitan theory. The last section, "Current Political Controversies: The Practice," addresses current topical issues of a political nature, including the serving of the state economic agenda, the democratisation of educational organisations, the neo-conservative agenda, and globalisation. The broad international perspective from which these topics are covered makes this volume an excellent addition to the fields of educational leadership, organizational studies, and educational administration theory.

Scoring Eagles When an 11-year old, dedicated golfer discovers that his trust in people can't always be relied on, he learns that life, like golf, must be taken as it comes, and the best he can do is the best he can do. A golf match reveals the emotional frailty of his golfing buddy and challenges his beliefs about winning and loyalty. Finally, a confrontation with two bullies reveals the inner strengths of the boys and solidifies their friendship.

Carrying out leadership research in educational establishments can be challenging, but it is also rewarding. This accessible book offers sound practical advice and a clear conceptual framework for this research. Drawing on their extensive expertise, the authors show you how to prepare to carry out research, design research tools, and report and reflect on the results. Students using the book are supported by features such as: key learning objectives in each chapter examples of research tools derived from real leadership project figures explanation of key terms and questions further reading and key web links for each chapter. This text will be of interest to Masters′ and Doctoral level students, academics in the field of educational leadership and management and all those who wish to research a wide range of issues connected with the operation of schools and institutions of further and higher education.