Leadership Challenges in High Schools

Leadership Challenges in High Schools PDF Author: W. Norton Grubb
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317256883
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 251

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Book Description
Principals are responsible for an increasing range of duties in an era of school reform, standardized testing, and more. These responsibilities are even greater in high schools, which are many times larger and more complex than elementary and middle schools. Yet little has been written on the special challenges of high schools and their leadership. This book fills the gap by exploring the challenges specific to high schools, including their size and complexity, the special difficulties in improving instruction, the crucial role of high schools for students' futures, adolescent behavioral issues, and many more. Grubb shows how principals and other leaders can address the complexities of multiple pathways, or efforts to create theme-based trajectories through high school - one of the most promising high school reforms. Looking to the future, he offers alternative ways of preparing professionals for high schools, and the responsibilities of districts for improving high schools and their leadership.

Current Issues in School Leadership

Current Issues in School Leadership PDF Author: Larry W. Hughes
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1135612595
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 410

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Book Description
Current Issues in School Leadership examines controversies about, and affecting, school practices. Focusing on two essential questions--what is important to today's school leaders? and what is interfering with schooling processes?--it includes chapters by a broad range of authors, with expertise on their specific topic. The text is organized in three sections: *Social and Political Issues; *Curriculum and Learning Issues; and *Organization and Management Issues. The goal of this text--designed for school leadership, educational administration, and foundations of education courses--is to challenge readers to think carefully and critically about each of the issues presented, leading to positive action and leadership.

Challenges and Opportunities of Educational Leadership Research and Practice

Challenges and Opportunities of Educational Leadership Research and Practice PDF Author: Alex J. Bowers
Publisher: IAP
ISBN: 1681232766
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 263

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Book Description
As the sixth volume in the International Research on School Leadership series, the contributing authors in this volume consider the history, challenges, and opportunities of the field of research and practice in educational leadership and administration in schools and districts. Ten years after the work of Firestone and Riehl (2005) and their contributing authors, our aim with the present volume was to summarize and update the work of the field, and provide a space to consider the multiple futures of educational leadership in schools and districts, as both challenges and opportunities. The first decade of the twenty?first century brought significant critiques, challenges, and competition to the research and practice of training leaders and administrators of schools and districts around the world. Congruently, the field experienced significant growth and change, as multiple new sub?domains flourished and were founded. Thus, in this volume we were delighted to included excellent chapters from multiple authors that considered the duality of the challenges and opportunities of: - The work of the field of educational leadership and administration research to date. - The opportunities and challenges of new visions of leadership in traditional and non?traditional schools. - The evolving state of research evidence in educational leadership and the increasing sophistication of multiple methodologies, including qualitative research, quantitative modeling, the ability to test theory, and the increasing opportunities brought on by the intersection of data, research, and practice. - The preparation of educational leaders. - And the emerging trends in the professional development of school leaders. The authors of the nine chapters in the present book volume took on this challenge of confronting the duality of not only including the past as we look to the future, but also the duality of the critique of the field in the midst of exciting and significant progress in our knowledge and understanding of leadership in schools. In the first section of the book (Chapters 2, 3 and 4), the authors examine the interplay of educational leadership research and theory as it relates to reform in schools, especially as it relates to serving historically underserved populations globally. In section 2 (Chapters 5 and 6), the authors highlight the importance of methodological considerations in school leadership research as a means to understand theory and practice as well as providing interesting avenues that point to multiple exciting future possibilities through rely ing on current innovations noted within the chapters. Section 3, (Chapters 7 and 8) examine the research and practice of school leadership preparation, especially as it relates to university?district partnerships and non?traditional school settings. And in the final chapter, (Chapter 9), our capstone contributor provides a means to link the present volume with the past writings on these topics, while also providing a lens to view the exciting possibilities and promises of the multiple futures of the field of educational leadership research and practice.

School and District Leadership in an Era of Accountability

School and District Leadership in an Era of Accountability PDF Author: Bruce G. Barnett
Publisher: IAP
ISBN: 1623963842
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 291

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Book Description
Our fourth book in the International Research on School Leadership series focuses on school leadership in an era of high stakes accountability. Fueled by sweeping federal education accountability reforms, such as the United States’ No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and Race to the Top (R2T) and Australia’s Performance Measurement and Reporting Taskforce, school systems around the world are being forced to increase academic standards, participate in high-stakes testing, and raise evaluation standards for teachers and principals. These results-driven reforms are intended to hold educators “accountable for student learning and accountable to the public” (Anderson, 2005, p. 2, emphasis in original). While policymakers and the public debate the merits of student achievement accountability measures, P-12 educational leaders do not have the luxury to wait for clear guidance and resources to improve their schools and operating systems. Instead, successful leaders must balance the need to create learning communities, manage the organizational climate, and encourage community involvement with the consequences testing has on teacher morale and public scrutiny. The chapters in this volume clearly indicate that as school leaders attend to these potentially competing forces, this affects their problem-solving strategies, ability to facilitate change, and encourage community involvement. We were delighted with the responses from colleagues around the world who were eager to share their research dealing with how leaders are functioning effectively within a high-accountability environment. The nine chapters in this volume provide empirical evidence of the strategies school leaders use to cope with problems and negotiate external demands while improving student performance. In particular, the voices and actions of principals, superintendents, and school board members are captured in a blend of quantitative and qualitative studies. The breadth of studies is impressive, ranging from case studies of individual principals to cross-district comparisons to national data from the National Center for Education Statistics. To highlight important findings, we have organized the book into five sections. The first section (Chapters 2, 3, and 4) highlights the problem-solving strategies used by principals and superintendents when pressured to turn around low-performing schools. In the second section (Chapters 5 and 6), attention is devoted to ways in which school leaders act as “buffers” by reducing the impact of external demands within their local school contexts. Next, Chapters 7 and 8 explore creative ways in which financial analyses can be used to assess the cost effectiveness of programs and services. Chapters 9 and 10 examine how principals enact their instructional leadership roles in managing curriculum reforms and evaluating teachers. Finally, in the last section (Chapter 11), Kenneth Leithwood synthesizes the major themes and ideas emerging across these chapters, paying particular attention to practical issues influencing school leaders in this era of school reform and accountability as well as promising areas for future research.

Best Practices, Best Thinking, and Emerging Issues in School Leadership

Best Practices, Best Thinking, and Emerging Issues in School Leadership PDF Author: William Owings
Publisher: Corwin Press
ISBN: 9780761978633
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 290

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Book Description
Featuring the leading figures in educational leadership, this resource presents research and key considerations to assist in making decisions about new programs and directions for your school.

Leadership Challenges in High Schools

Leadership Challenges in High Schools PDF Author: W. Norton Grubb
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317256891
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 253

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Book Description
Principals are responsible for an increasing range of duties in an era of school reform, standardized testing, and more. These responsibilities are even greater in high schools, which are many times larger and more complex than elementary and middle schools. Yet little has been written on the special challenges of high schools and their leadership. This book fills the gap by exploring the challenges specific to high schools, including their size and complexity, the special difficulties in improving instruction, the crucial role of high schools for students' futures, adolescent behavioral issues, and many more. Grubb shows how principals and other leaders can address the complexities of multiple pathways, or efforts to create theme-based trajectories through high school - one of the most promising high school reforms. Looking to the future, he offers alternative ways of preparing professionals for high schools, and the responsibilities of districts for improving high schools and their leadership.

Educational Leadership, Culture, and Success in High-Need Schools

Educational Leadership, Culture, and Success in High-Need Schools PDF Author: Elizabeth T. Murakami
Publisher: IAP
ISBN: 1641135034
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 223

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Book Description
The exploration of the intersection of leadership practices from the school principal and other educators, the school culture, and the school success across different high-need contexts and cultures make this volume unique. Chapters in this volume present original investigations or reanalysis of empirical research enhancing our understanding of the interrelationship between leadership, culture and success through descriptions of practice that can contribute to lessons in leadership for school improvement. When considering a culture of success, leadership that focuses on impacting schools in high-need areas bring about lessons on how to create sustainable environments for student learning in challenging contexts. High-need schools include not only socioeconomic challenges influencing the performance of students. It includes multiple external and internal factors impacting leaders, teachers, students, and their families, affecting the management of structures, processes, and most importantly, learning. In the quest to improve high-need schools, and understand strategies for principals dedicated to a variety of contexts, this volume brings lessons with application for researchers, policy-makers, and practitioners who want to join in the quest to improve the quality of education among worldwide communities.

On Becoming a School Leader

On Becoming a School Leader PDF Author: Arthur Wright Combs
Publisher: ASCD
ISBN: 0871203367
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 243

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Book Description
The work of educational leaders depends on relationships with people--faculty and staff members, students, other administrators, parents, and community members. This book presents a new way of viewing leadership: how to become person-centered leaders. Rather than relying on outdated ways of managing schools, principals and other leaders must take up the challenge of paying attention to the people issues of the school. Through many examples, the authors show how school leaders must * consciously seek the appropriate type of data to respond to; * increase their capacity for empathy; * develop healthy personal self-concepts; and * learn how to develop healthy self-concepts in others, both students and teachers. School leaders also should be committed to a broad purpose for schooling, should be informed about how their beliefs and behavior influence the organization of the school, and should be able to participate in interactions with authenticity. They also must be able to help create authenticity in their school organizations. In these ways, school leaders will create schools that are learning organizations for everyone. Universities that prepare future school leaders should spend more time developing leaders who are person centered in their approach to leading schools. This new way of thinking will require leader preparation programs to change their priorities for curriculum, academic activities, and field experiences.

The Educational Leadership Challenge

The Educational Leadership Challenge PDF Author: Joseph Murphy
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 336

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Book Description
Part I of the National Society for the Study of Education's 101st yearbook explores the changing context of educational leadership in the twenty-first century through the lenses of school improvement, social justice, and democratic community. Authors discuss topics such as leadership roles for teachers, principals, and superintendents; rethinking professional development for school leaders; school improvement processes for building instructional capacity; and the evolving role of leadership in education over time.

School Leadership in Times of Urban Reform

School Leadership in Times of Urban Reform PDF Author: Marilyn Bizar
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1135688125
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 293

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Book Description
Examines schools in Chicago, where the largest experiment in site-based management & accountability is being enacted. An analysis allows insights relevant beyond this single site & permits pursuit of an agenda concerned w/ educational leadership & reform