Organization and Administration Final Reflection

I think one pitfall that I may encounter is handling getting staff to buy in to the school vision and initiatives to support it. As a school improvement chair I encounter staff members all the time who make comments such as "I have enough to do, why do we need to do this?" Comments and others like this can be disheartening. Even so, I will definitely begin the school year by having a session on consensus. I admit upon beginning this course I had the wrong understanding of consensus. I believe that many of my colleagues probably do as well. Now knowing that consensus is not majority rules, I believe clear understanding of this concept and knowing that it will be an effective method used in the shared decision making process will facilitate buy in.

I am so excited to use many of the new methods and strategies I learned in this class with my staff. Just today I used the root cause analysis video clip with my staff to help the curricular PLCs at my school with goal setting. It really broke up the humdrumness of our afternoon meetings. I all really looking forward to exposing the staff members at my school to the various online meeting methods and collaboration tools. I am also excited about some of the interesting instructional strategies and tools shared by my instructors and classmates. It is amazing what a wealth of knowledge we can bring to one another simply by sharing our experiences.

I believe that all aspects of my plan include opportunities for shared leadership. I truly believe that people give more when they are included in making the decisions that shape what is expected of them. I plan on allowing all stakeholders to have input on decision making. I feel administrators have to provide all stakeholders with opportunities to share their opinions and show their strengths. You never know, they may be untapped resources that hep lighten your load. Lord knows administrators have to wear many hats. Allowing other to participate in shared decision making can provide opportunities for administrators to practice the art of delegation, and in some instances, provide opportunities for up and coming leaders to emerge.

Final Curriculum Theory Course Reflection

I have learned quite a bit about curriculum as a result of this course. I used to think of curriculum simply in the terms of what is supposed to be taught to the students via the textbook and information included in district pacing chart. I have now come to the realization that curriculum is composed of a lot more. Not only do I have a clearer understanding of the written, taught, and tested curriculum but I also know that there is such thing as hidden curriculum as well. Furthermore, I have learned that these all go hand in hand with one another and it is essential that they are all realized, discussed and integrated completely in order to ensure students’ academic achievement. My definition of curriculum has changed because I now that it is shaped by more than just the school district. All stakeholders can play influential and pivotal roles in developing and implementing the selected curriculum.

I have also learned that professional development plays a key role in ensuring that staff members are also clearly aware of what curricular goals they need to meet. Professional development can also provide training for instructional strategies such as differentiated instruction and co-teaching which will assist in making sure the curriculum is imparted clearly and effectively to students. As the future instructional leader of a school it is important that I am not only well versed in these innovative and effective instructional strategies, but that I also provide extended and job embedded opportunities for my staff to learn them.

I must say I particularly enjoyed the week when we discussed creativity in the classroom. I agree with the gentleman in the movie clip for that week that students are now scared to be wrong and creative. That is a shame though because many times those are the very learning opportunities that can teach students so much. The film clip has inspired me to find ways to tap into my students creative skills set and use more creative approaches regarding instruction and assessment.

Previous Reflections Links

*Please see the following reflections posted for previous courses

- Curriculum Course Reflections - http://lenora-individualreflection1-lenora.blogspot.com/
- More Effective Leadership Reflections -http://lenorastransfornationalleadership.blogspot.com/ and http://lenorasfirst3weeks.blogspot.com/

Sorry for the confusion. :-)

Room Arrangement

There are many types of classroom set ups in my building. All of the science classrooms have tables due to the nature of the various group experiments and collaboration activities that occur in these classrooms. Other classrooms have individual student desks. Some teachers, like me, break away from the traditional rows facing forward desk setup and place students in semi circles of clusters facing one another. No matter how the desks are set up most classroom configurations are set up in a way that all students can clearly see the front of the room where presentations and the whiteboards can clearly be seen. The placement of the teachers desks vary from room to room, some are in the back of the room, while others are right next to the entry door. In all rooms there is a clear traffic pattern. Every student work area is accessible by the teacher.
Computer usage is encouraged in the school. Every classroom had at least one working computer. Over 90 percent have two updated working computers and a network printer. Some ambitious teachers have held on to older computers and created a mini lab in their classrooms as a means of creating computer work stations for various class activities. There are three classrooms that are composed of computer desk where the computer is located beneath the glass desktop so that students have an open and clear workspace area. There is also one classroom that has access to over 30 iMac wireless laptops for a Carnegie math program.
Computer location in the classroom varies. Some are on the side of the room, while others are in the back. Most teachers allow students to use computers freely as long as the work they student is doing relates to the educational environment. There are no hard drives on the computers so students are encouraged to purchase and use their own personal flash drives.
I believe that room arrangement is an important part of the educational environment a teacher maintains. The direction students face is important because it could possibly lend itself to how well a student will focus on class work. For instance, not all of my students face my desk. Some face me while others' backs face me. I do this because I want to provide an opportunity for students to work together, when necessary, but I also want all of them to face the board. Certain students who I know are not as focused as others will face me, so that I can better monitor them from my desk. It’s actually funny because I almost have it down to a science. I can even tell which student it talking, even if I can’t see them. The kids think I have a sixth sense, but I really just pay attention to them.
I think it is important that staff pay attention to room arrangement and possibly have a professional development activity that focuses on it. For many teachers room arrangement is not high on the list of priorities for the school year, but it could definitely play a major role in how successful on is in maintaining classroom management and on student’s focus. Personally, I would be interested in learning about what research has to say about how desk arrangement affects students learning. I think it would be a great topic to center a summer professional development opportunity around.

School Culture

From this week's readings I have come to understand that school culture is the way in which a school does what is does. By that I mean, how the school is ran and how stakeholders interact with one another: commonly shared beliefs and expectations of those stakeholders as well. Effective school leaders must understand the various components of their own school's culture in order to effect change in a positive manner. By understanding the culture, an effective leader will know how to got about rolling out initiatives and school reform efforts. It is essential that an effective leader know the intricacies of how their individual school thrives and functions in order to make appropriate and intelligent decisions. In turn when leadership and other stakeholders are able to identify and agree on what ideals and beliefs are important for their community (positive school culture), the chances of school reform succeeding is greater.

I have learned a great deal in this course so far regarding being an effective leader. I have learned that effective leaders wear many hats at the same time. At times, it will be necessary for an effective leader to step up and provide directives for stakeholders to adhere to. At other times it may be necessary, and more well received, if the leader takes on the role of being a facilitator and instead of telling team members how to accomplish a task, actually giving them the latitude to come to their own conclusions and methods for reaching certain goals and/or accomplishing certain tasks.

I have also learned that effective leaders are charged with the task of embodying and promoting the school mission and vision. The majority of tasks that an effective leader performs should directly tie into the goals and beliefs of the school they are leading. Providing this example of continuity will further promote the organizations goals and well as encourage other team members (staff, students, parents, community members) to buy into efforts and strategies that will promote school improvement and success. Effective leaders also realize that they cannot do it all and they are not afraid to embrace this reality. Instead they can clearly identify areas where assistance may be needed and have the wisdom and ability to be able to identify those in the organizations structure who can perform these tasks more effectively and efficiently. The effective leader will then encourage those individuals to step up and participate actively in contributing to the success of the organization/school, thus building a more positive school culture.

Reflection

In order to be successful in this program I will have to get a head start on assignments. I tend to be pretty busy and in order for me to make adequate progress I will need to stay ahead of the game.

I will be a productive and contributing team member member by abiding to team norms and pulling my fair share of weight regarding assignments. I will be open to constructive criticism and suggestions so that my team can succeed and learn the most from one another.

I was labeled as a sensor communication style. I have learned that means I am pretty much to the point and focused on accomplishing the tasks at hand as they arise. As a result, I will have to be more understanding and accepting of those who are not of the same communication style as I am and realize that I can learn as much from them as they can from me.

I don't think I need additional support at this time. I just need to remain focused and motivated throughout this process.

Comfort Level with ELC

I am pretty comfortable with the ELC learning environment. The mini movie provided many helpful tips. I especially enjoyed the scavenger hunt because it gave me a clearer understanding of the functions of the ELC. Currently, I do not have any concerns regarding the ELC.