"This practical guide outlines five keys to effectively close achievement gaps in their districts and schools and provides tools for increasing student achievement"--

"With the spotlight on schools and the achievement of subgroups of students, educators need to read this book and reflect on the guiding questions. Then we need to take the challenge and do what we know is right so we are doubling student performance and closing achievement gaps." —Leslie Standerfer, Principal Estrella Foothills High School, Goodyear, AZ "This text is the product of considerable research and disciplined reflection on closing the student achievement gap in schools, unquestionably the most important challenge facing schools. The book offers a wealth of well-illustrated advice about how to address this challenge and should be required reading for every principal and superintendent." —Kenneth Leithwood, Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto The keys to closing achievement gaps from principals who have been there! What does it take to reach across cultural and socioeconomic barriers to bridge student achievement gaps? Drawing on five years of nationwide research, the authors present Learning First, an integrated schoolwide framework of collaborative leadership that helps school leaders advance learning for all students. Using case examples that illustrate how Learning First works in action and providing worksheets, checklists, and rubrics to support implementation, the book shows principals how to apply this field-tested model to four critical dimensions of leadership: Advancing equity and excellence in student learning Developing teachers′ instructional capacity Managing and aligning resources Building and engaging community Learning First! offers an approach that strengthens principals′ leadership skills, delineates shared goals for professional communities, and helps educators keep their eyes on the prize—closing the achievement gap in their schools.

The SAGE Guide to Educational Leadership and Management allows readers to gain knowledge of educational management in practice while providing insights into challenges facing educational leaders and the strategies, skills, and techniques needed to enhance administrative performance. This guide emphasizes the important skills that effective leaders must develop and refine, including communication, developing teams, coaching and motivating, and managing time and priorities. While being brief, simply written, and a highly practical overview for individuals who are new to this field, this reference guide will combine practice and research, indicate current issues and directions, and choices that need to be made. Features & Benefits: 30 brief, signed chapters are organized in 10 thematic parts in one volume available in a choice of electronic or print formats designed to enable quick access to basic information. Selective boxes enrich and support the narrative chapters with case examples of effective leadership in action. Chapters conclude with bibliographic endnotes and references to further readings to guide students to more in-depth presentations in other published sources. Back matter includes an annotated listing of organizations, associations, and journals focused on educational leadership and administration and a detailed index. This reference guide will serve as a vital source of knowledge to any students pursuing an education degree as well as for individuals interested in the subject matter that do not have a strong foundation of the topic.

To commemorate the 10-year anniversary of the International School Leadership Development Network (ISLDN), this book is a compilation of the work conducted by network scholars. This volume is the first comprehensive overview of the studies conducted by ISLDN members engaged in examining how social justice leaders and leaders of high-needs schools address the social conditions, learning experiences, and performance of their students. Other international school leadership research consortia have emerged in the 21st century; however, the ISLDN is the second longest operating project, after the International Successful School Principalship Project (ISSPP). Since its creation in 2010, ISLDN scholars have delivered papers at a variety of international conferences and shared findings in research publications, including books and special issues of journals. Until now, ISLDN research findings have been disseminated separately for the project’s two strands: (a) social justice leadership and (b) leadership in underperforming high-needs schools. Therefore, the purpose of the book is to document the history and evolution of the ISLDN and to provide descriptions and reflections of the project’s research findings, methodologies, and collaborative processes across the two strands. This volume captures studies of school leaders from 19 countries representing six continents - Africa, Asia, Australia and Oceania, Europe, North America, and South America. The authors examine important external and internal contextual factors influencing schools in different cultural settings and provide insights about the values and practices of social justice leaders working in high-needs school settings. Numerous practical strategies are provided for school leaders working in schools with similar conditions. The concluding chapter by the co-editors synthesizes the structural factors, personal beliefs and values, and contextualized change management strategies that shape school leaders’ actions aimed at ensuring the best learning outcomes for their students. Besides capturing the range of findings emerging from various ISLDN studies conducted over the past decade, several chapters critically examine the project’s current contributions to the field. Authors suggest broadening the dissemination of our findings to increase the visibility of the project, expanding the research methods beyond qualitative interviews, incorporating studies from non-Anglophone countries, and augmenting the scope of our analyses and research focus. These researchers’ journeys also reveal the obstacles to and benefits of engaging in these types of international collaborative research ventures.

Drawing on twenty years of research in school effectiveness, this book presents a distributed model of task-based school leadership that leads to continuous school improvement. The book outlines the tasks school leadership teams must focus on to improve teaching and learning, grouped into the following five domains: Focus on Learning Monitoring Teaching and Learning Building Nested Learning Communities Acquiring and Allocating Resources Maintaining a Safe and Effective Learning Environment Recognizing that the principal is a single actor in a complex web of activity influencing student learning, the focus is not only on the principal’s role but on a range of leadership and instructional practices to be shared across the leadership team (including APs, counselors, teachers, and support personnel). These tasks, organized into 21 subdomains, have been demonstrated through extensive research to contribute to improved student learning.

What does it take to provide each student with equitable access to daily quality instruction? Our public schools have undergone significant demographic change. At the same time, we have abundant evidence that our schools haven’t effectively served children of color, children from low-income families, and other marginalized student groups. This solution-oriented guide for school leaders helps create a high-quality, culturally responsive learning environment for all students. You’ll learn deliberate, data-driven actions critical to 21st Century success. Written by instructional leaders, who understand the challenges of equity-driven reform, this guide helps school leaders: Understand the root cause of the racial-achievement gap Take concrete actions to transform the educational process Use daily, real-time data to determine effective teaching and learning practices Provides leaders with an original framework to achieve their instructional vision for equity Eliminate gaps in student outcomes by eliminating instructional gaps between educators and their students. Including practical implementation strategies and tools, reflective-discussion questions, and powerful vignettes, this transformative book helps school leaders take concrete steps to accelerate the achievement of underserved students! "For those who are unsure where to begin the process, or lack a context for why they need to undergo the transformation of changing their instructional practices to align with the need to respond to America′s changing public school population, the contents are arranged in a manner to provide the necessary support to guide the audience through the process." —Dr. Kandice W. Taylor, Principal Baltimore County Public Schools, MD "This book provides school leaders with practical tools and a practical model to implement drastic change in any school climate. The PACE Framework perfectly outlines strategies and activities to implement an effective, quality-first instruction program at schools that serve students who are normally underserved. School leaders and district leaders, who serve as change agents in multi-faceted school communities, can use this book. I highly recommend it for any school leader needing a framework to shift the culture, instructional practices, the mindset of staff, and community members alike." —Tara A. Minter, Principal Rosa L. Parks Elementary School, Hyattsville, MD

Outlines research-based strategies for developing high-performing schools and fostering educational equity for all students.

Your best resource for curriculum leadership post-NCLB and beyond! Put quality curriculum front and center with this classic toolkit to savvy curriculum leadership for the 21st Century. Newly revised and updated case studies, research, and state and national curriculum and leadership standards complement a completely new section focused on emerging technologies. New features include up-to-date information on: Professional Standards for Educational Leaders, ESSA, CCSS and more District-level curriculum mapping, planning, and integration Facilitating professional growth, learning-centered scheduling, and leadership time management State curriculum frameworks, online assessments, SBAC, PARCC, and adaptive testing Learn what it really takes to structure, align, integrate and evaluate quality curriculum in the post-NCLB, ESSA and Common Core era. This nuts and bolts guide will help you navigate the new curriculum landscape with ease! "As principals, we so often get caught up in the day-to-day management of our schools. We must quit putting out fires and instead focus our attention on leading, specifically as curriculum leaders. The Principal as Curriculum Leader provides a clear framework with a plan of action to put you and your school on a path to student success." —Stephen Baker, Principal Smithfield-Selma High School, NC "The Principal as Curriculum Leader is a blueprint for principals to use when implementing curriculum reform. It brings clarity to the many trends, mandates, and guidelines that masquerade as simple solutions to complex issues. This book should be read and owned by every principal and curriculum leader." —Dr. Jerry V. Congleton, Former Superintendent Weldon City Schools

The pathway to uncovering and dismantling inequities Educational leaders who work in the district, site, or classroom level know that opportunity gaps have long been a focus of education policy in the United States. Leadership can be a critical lever for advancing policies that oppose racism and confront systemic inequities. In meeting this challenge, educators have found that acknowledging beliefs and behaviors is critical. Still, deficit-based thinking, especially due to privilege, remains a barrier to equity. Among the most damaging blind spots is the continuation of practices that are grounded in the values of entitled groups. Leading Change Through the Lens of Cultural Proficiency tells the story of a school community in the midwest United States that contended with its approach to teaching and valuing students of diverse backgrounds. Featuring the research-based Cultural Proficiency Framework and Tools, the book provides a clear road map to advancing equity across schools and districts. Designed to support leaders and school communities in developing policies and practices that respond to the needs of all students, this book Guides school leaders in a journey of learning the theory and strategies that improved student achievement and improved the working conditions in this district Features a real-life case study of a school community using the Tools of Cultural Proficiency and the Framework Provides vignettes and data, based on work conducted across an actual school district, that resulted in improvements in school climate, achievement, mindset, and equitable educational practices Includes powerful reflection, dialogic, and action activities for use in a variety of community learning modalities Is grounded in assets-based assumptions with respect to students, families, and the school community With a focus on engagement, leadership, implementation frameworks, and collaborative learning, the authors demonstrate how to uncover and remedy inequities. Designed for education leaders at all levels of the education system, this is the ideal foundational text for implementing Cultural Proficiency in your setting as you open doors for all students to thrive.

This authoritative handbook examines the community, district, and teacher leadership roles that affect urban schools. It will serve as a foundation for pedagogical and educational leadership practices that foster social justice, equity, and advocacy for those who have been traditionally and historically underserved in education. The handbook’s ten sections cover topics as diverse as curriculum, instruction, and educational outcomes; gender, race, and class; higher education; and leadership preparation and support. Its twenty-nine chapters offer both American and international perspectives.