Teacher Involvement in Curriculum Development

All students should have access to a well-developed curriculum that acts as the backbone for fair school policies and teacher researched instructional practices. A balanced curriculum should take into account student interests and in doing so help students to develop the motivation to succeed. A student-centered curriculum translates into research-based instructional practices that have a positive impact on students, teachers, and parents.

Consequently, I trust that a superiority curriculum needs to inspire teachers to know their pupils. A superiority curriculum must be transparent with no hidden curriculum and accessible to all stakeholders. A well-developed curriculum needs to encompass high but realistic standards that all students can attain. It needs to be flexible and based on modern solid research not based on the latest passing teaching fad or opinions of what one teacher thinks works does not work. 

In my experience, the three most pressing issues in curriculum design are:

1) curriculum not based on educational research;

2) not student-centered and

3) not flexible.

Far too many times, I have had the unsettling experience of witnessing the curriculum being developed or changed based on the whim of a teacher’s opinion of what works or does not work in their classroom. The majority accepted the vote as evidence of research. There was little or no research-based experience considered in the development of large parts of the curriculum.

For many, there still seems a divide between what happens in the classroom and what educational research tells them.

I have sat through curriculum development meetings where teachers only focused on their needs, and in far too many instances students’ needs did not even figure into the discussion. If we are not building the curriculum for the students, then why are we building it?

Number three sums up numbers one and two. Teachers need to examine research and stay student-centered. However, I noticed that giving “lip service” comes very easy to a lot of teachers, but getting them on board to accomplish a task is a very different matter, if it involves the C-word, you guessed it CHANGE.  

Transformational Leadership: Principals Supporting Teachers

William J. Peters

“The single biggest way to impact an organization is to focus on transformational leadership. There is almost no limit to the potential of an organization that recruits good people, raises them up as leaders and continually develop them.” — John C. Maxwell (2001) The 17th Irrefutable Laws of Teamwork, page 185

Teacher morale is perhaps the biggest influence on any school climate. When teachers feel supported and work recognized job satisfaction increases. But, when teachers sense a lack of support, it can have a disturbing effect on the school atmosphere. Teachers already have to deal with the constant demand for accountability and the pressure that accompanies such demands can lead to low teacher morale. Therefore, principal support is imperative to increase levels of work satisfaction and to retain teachers.

Principals play a key role in supporting and encouraging teachers in a safe, holistic school environment that allows all teachers and students to feel empowered and supported. Empowering and supporting teachers and teaching in the classroom through transformational leadership is a particular and important challenge for even the best principal. In fact, research by Kruger, Witziers, and Sleegers (2007) state that “transformational leadership has a positive impact on teacher motivation, professional growth, and on a variety of organizational conditions, including school culture, contributing to educational change in schools” (p. 16).

The leadership role of the principal has been evolving and one wonders how anyone can keep up with all the myriad of roles and sophisticated leadership strategies. Still, the challenge for principals is to keep up on the latest transformational leadership research and find better ways to support teachers and teaching. Healey (2009) reminds us that “healthy relationships among teachers, students, coaches, parents, and staff members transform schools” (p. 31).

References

      Healey, T. (2009, September). Creating greatness. The Education Digest, 30-34.

Kruger, M. L., Witziers, B., & Sleegers, P. (2007). The impact of school leadership on school-level factors: Validation of a causal model. School Effectiveness and School Improvement, 18, 1-20.

Maxwell, John C. (2001) The 17th Irrefutable Laws of Teamwork, page 185. 

     

School Leadership Reflection - The Ideal Administrator

William J. Peters

I have always firmly believed that effective school leadership must start with trust. Respectable school leaders must have the ability to build trust and inspire others to be the best that they can be.

Effective school leaders must be able to build trust with the people they work with and also be able to help a team to build trust with each other. For this to happen, school leaders must have a solid sense of who they as a person knowing their strengths and weakness.

For me, good school leadership is having the courage to move forward, but also to have the courage to selected a new direction when the current one is not giving the desired results. School leadership means being strong but also it means showing compassion. Leadership does not mean standing alone but instead working together to reach a common vision.

Self-evaluation is a powerful tool that helps me to be a more thoughtful school leader. Reflecting on and evaluating my leadership choices gives me insights that have saved me loads of trouble later. In the haste of making everyday leadership decisions, I may be tempted to forgo self-evaluation. But if I do not evaluate myself, my team will be the loser. I am amazed at how just a few minutes of reflection can help me discover things I may not have otherwise noticed.

In conclusion, I strongly encourage school leaders to take the time to seriously reflect on leadership choices. It is imperative to be self-reflective of leadership decisions. It is the primary way to benefit from past experience.