Embedded Files
Identity as a Leader for Social Justice
My identity as a leader for social justice has certainly grown more confident in purpose. I have been even more outspoken and able to bring forward equity issues within my school. Colleagues view me as a leader who listens to their concerns and who they can confide in with questions and problems they have. I feel confident because I can speak upon matters and recall readings we have done knowing that it is not just a belief I have come up with but are peer-reviewed and data-backed ideas. I feel validated in many of my previous feelings and certain of myself moving forward, and not afraid to ask hard questions because I am a leader who believes the manner and process in how we do things is extremely important.
Leadership Skills & Knowledge
When I first started PLI my knowledge set was really restricted to my union contract, school site documents, and very few district policy bulletins. Now, I have knowledge of historical context, alternate school models, federal and state laws, court cases, data collection and analysis methods, teacher growth processes, and a variety of different lenses in which to view schools. It really is a lot to process even with ample time because one thing I still lack is experience in having to use all this knowledge with the variety of situations that can occur at a school site. However, I now know which specific documents, books, or research articles we have discussed in class so that I can refer to them when presented with a problem or situation at school assisting me in better finding a resolution. Even the documents I referred to earlier are seen in a new light because I now understand the bigger picture behind why it is created and how it is created. For example, when I previously read over the School Plan for Student Achievement for my school site I would have simply read it to see what responsibilities or Professional Developments were going to be assigned that year. Now, I see the document as a true building block to the school's identity and foundation for creating lasting change in school culture.
My leadership skills have also grown and changed over the year in the program. I used to be a solo outspoken individual but now I am wanting to collaborate with more colleagues and partake in meaningful dialogues to reach a mutual understanding. Going through a coaching cycle with colleagues really helped me begin growing as a leader that is there to provide support for my colleagues and learn how to communicate effectively with them. Asking purposeful questions and providing specific feedback was not a natural skill for me to take part in because I felt I did not know how to not come off as judging a teacher’s practices. However, after the coaching cycle, I have learned how to use the standards to guide feedback and reflection led by the teacher being coached. This has given me new skills that I can use even with my students and especially in future conversations with colleagues.
Perspective on Leadership
During our first course in the summer, I remember thinking that an administrator’s role was to be a sort of mediator between the needs and ideas of parents, students, and teachers. I saw an administrator as working for and being held accountable to each of the three stakeholders. This was in stark contrast to what I have seen practiced at my previous schools where the administrator seems to wield a lot of decision-making power and control over resources, staff responsibilities, and the ability to create systems of their own design with very little input. However, as I progressed through this program there is many more layers and complexities that are placed on the role of an administrator and more specifically a leader working towards equity, social justice, and anti-racist practice. As stated earlier I thought administrators and leaders should be almost like a neutral third party that helps come to a group consensus. The leader would essentially give up their voice and opinion over to the more favored ideas of the group and need to be free of them. However, after course readings, discussions, opportunities to experience leadership roles, and fieldwork actions my thoughts on an administrator and leadership have humanized that role and instead of a mediator, the role has become an ear and guide towards better educational systems within the school community. A leader has to have a strong vision and grounded beliefs to inspire change and build a cohesive member group. I would compare this role to that of an orchestrator knowing what each member plays, and brings to the concert, when to let someone stand free for a solo, how to accompany members harmoniously together, and work together in times of calm and chaos. Leadership working for equity, social justice, and anti-racism needs to know how their tone and demeanor can greatly impact student and staff feelings to feel included and supported in their work. The leader must also constantly be looking out for concerns with different lenses and be willing to make changes quickly before things can get more complicated or more damage is done.
Challenges & Successes of My Leadership Journey
During my leadership journey, I think some successes were how open and honest people spoke when we were picking an equity issue at our school site and how open they felt to give suggestions. I believe this was in part because of the relational trust I had built with my colleagues over the years and how open and honest I am when talking to them about any other issue. When we were discussing problems they were able to share their personal frustrations and stories of how they have been impacted by the issue and how they see their students’ progress get affected by the issue. It was good to hear them vent out their frustrations to really get a sense of how real and difficult the issue has been in trying to address it as a single teacher. Once we came together and agreed upon an issue to address, the focus they gave coming up with a plan they felt good about was inspiring. This really showed me how far relational trust and treating teachers like valuable members can go and that their voice and input let them feel ownership over the action plan.
However, one of the challenges after our initial discussions was being able to carry that momentum into action while managing all the other day-to-day responsibilities of being a teacher. It became easy for teachers to get behind on their personal daily responsibilities and then say they would get to their action plan step later or “tomorrow”. This led to delays and changes in who could follow through on particular actions or just meet with a person one-on-one to try and complete the action with them. This seemed to work a little better with some members because they appreciated the help. The biggest challenge was in having teachers implement the use of the English Learner application. This again was due to the day-to-day demands of being a teacher as well as the school focusing on the Summative Balance Assessments coming up. Teachers really felt pressure to do more assessment preparations and focus on those skills and question types. This pointed back to one of the group's initial frustrations that they had very little planning time to meet the needs of their individual students because so much emphasis and stress is placed on a whole group approach and assessments.
Next Steps
The next steps in my leadership journey will be to try and form a strong group of teachers that are willing to put in some extra time and work to accomplish a goal. I want to create a purposeful adjunct duty that can work on particular projects during the school year and do something new and different. I don’t know if I necessarily think each project will be a large or equity-driven project because I do want to have each teacher's input and passion come out during our planning and actions. I recall in the Instructional Rounds readings that giving teachers space to explore their passions and interests will allow for more growth and learning for that teacher than compared to assigning personal learning goals. I think forming a sort of instructional rounds or community of practice with my colleagues will be something that can be fun and exciting to give us space to grow and contribute to our school.
Future Growth
I am more likely to want to continue and get my Tier II administrative credential because after learning all we have and seeing how much influence a principal has on the entire school culture it would still be frustrating to be unable to do everything I know can be done while in an assistant role. Although I know the difference between a leadership position and still being a leader, the ability to focus on what I would like to focus on would be split between the tasks an assistant principal will be required to do daily and the tasks I would like to do to bring positive change for students, teachers, parents, school and community. On the other hand, I do think becoming an assistant principal would be a necessary learning experience to help me better understand the nuances of working with many different people and departments. I feel I have an ability to organize and create systems that could still benefit a school if given the chance.
Further Knowledge and Experience
As I finish this program something I find myself wanting to know more specific details about is CAPE 3A which is understanding the day-to-day and long-term management strategies that affect staff and student health, safety, academic learning, and well-being. In my experience at my school site, I may see examples of this but only in the spaces and meetings I take part in. I think being able to follow the principal for some time will help me see the daily tasks and strategies that are implemented even hour to hour with students, and staff. This leads me to want to further study CAPE 3B and specifically how we use “a systems thinking perspective to set priorities and manage organizational complexity; develop schedules and assignments that coordinate human resources, physical space, and time to maximize staff collaboration and student learning; and to engage staff and other stakeholders in using data to help establish, monitor, and evaluate the alignment and effectiveness of organizational processes to meet school goals and provide equitable access to opportunities for all students.” I do believe I had some experience in this during my leadership RLP project, but I want to see the details of how it is applied to a whole school approach and compare that process to what we have learned. I think I really appreciate when good systems are put in place and also like to create my own system to make things easier, and seeing this process in person during a principal shadowing would help me put perspective on theories I have learned.
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