"I applaud Gupton's focus on the learner. This is the most important tenet for a school administrator's decision making. Each chapter describes a portion of school leadership that the successful principal needs to master."-Sharon Madsen Redfern, PrincipalHighland Park Elementary School, Lewistown, MTUse these powerful leadership tools to build teamwork and improve instruction!Every school leader needs a toolbox of strategies for improving teaching and learning schoolwide. In this second edition of The Instructional Leadership Toolbox, Sandra Lee Gupton examines the role of principals in leading instruction and provides practical ways for leaders to reflect on and improve their practice. Emphasizing a democratic approach that involves stakeholders in instructional leadership, this resource offers a compendium of helpful skills and strategies drawn from current research and theory in school administration. The book provides:Updated standards from NAESP and ISLLCNew research that shows how a principal's actions can affect student achievementQuestions for reflective practiceQuotes and examples of instructional leadership strategies by practicing principals and veteran educatorsAdditional resources such as Web sites, workbooks, books, and articlesThis valuable guide provides a blueprint that demonstrates how school leaders can focus on student learning, while using specific tools to empower others and build teams for a common goal: increased student achievement.

This book offers a set of metaphorical, cognitive tools to assist educators in growing professionally and to hone their teaching and learning skills in their own unique settings. Chapter 1 helps the reader understand the importance that all educators, especially principals as instructional leaders, possess and strategically use an internal compass when making decisions. Chapter 2 deals with the importance of school leaders being reflective and well-read about today's leadership issues, such as understanding accountability and standards for 21st-century school principals, and being up-to-date and aware of a principal's key role in instructional leadership. Chapter 3 is about basic processes and products that guide the daily operation of the school and channel its energy most appropriately toward students and learning. Chapter 4 provides insight into ensuring that a school's culture is positive and centered on teaching and learning. Chapter 5 focuses on communication conduits. Reflective practice, supportive supervision, and cooperative evaluation are main topics of chapter 6. Chapter 7 emphasizes the instructional leadership lens in guiding one's work and decision-making. Chapter 8 covers the tools of accountability. Chapter 9 focuses on proactive leadership for school improvement. Chapter 10 returns focus to the leader as an individual, rounding out the importance of self-understanding. (Contains 177 references.) (RT).

Supercharge school improvement with instructional coaches! For instructional coaches, no two days are ever the same. This unique companion melds theory and practice to show how coaches can seamlessly integrate themselves into the fabric of the school and help teachers improve their practice from day one. Dean Spaulding and Gail Smith address common challenges of coaches and instructional leadership teams, including: Observing classrooms and providing formative feedback Reaching out to the hesitant or resistant teacher Adapting data and analysis into usable information for the team Recruiting, training, and supporting new instructional coaches Journal entries based on the real-life experiences give an inside look at the day-to-day work of an instructional coach and the power of coaching to improve teacher effectiveness. The book also includes field-tested activities, materials, and forms for collecting data, navigating busy days, and organizing information. Instructional Coaches and the Instructional Leadership Team is ideal for those wanting to learn best practices to engage educators and support teacher evaluation reform. "This book would have made my life SO much easier. I highly recommend it to new and experienced instructional coaches alike!" —Kathy Ferrell, Instructional Coach Excelsior Springs Middle School, MO "This is a wonderful resource. Even schools without instructional coaches will benefit from the strategies and suggestions included. It′s an excellent book even for those who shy away from data analysis!" —Ann Dargon, Assistant Superintendent of Schools Westport Community Schools, MA

The purpose of this book is to provide a toolkit of resources, activities, and steps, towards building teams to assess and design distributed leadership practice among school leaders. The author defines leadership practice as the interactions between leader and follower, relating to a situation over a period of time. The most important task is to help leaders perfect their performance of these daily routines through observation and reflection of their own practice. The intent of this book is to give school teams a new way of thinking about the relationship between leadership practice, classroom performance, and student achievement. This book is designed to help school leaders bring distributed leadership into practice, offering unique tools to help identify pitfalls in leadership within present school-wide efforts.

Co-published with University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA), this textbook prepares aspiring educational leaders for the important and challenging task of supporting instruction in their schools. Instructional Leadership in the Content Areas equips leaders—who might not have content backgrounds that align with those of the teachers they supervise—with research-based practices and knowledge specific to a range of subject areas. Presenting over 20 problems-based cases at the elementary, middle, and high school levels and across seven areas of content, this book deepens knowledge of exemplary instruction, improves feedback dialogues, and helps leaders work effectively alongside teachers and instructional specialists. Rich with activities, resources, and discussion questions, this casebook provides a broad overview of instructional leadership and the tools for school leaders to improve and support classroom practices across all content areas in intentional ways that support career-long professional growth. Case facilitation notes are available here: www.routledge.com/9781138578845

Designing School Systems for All Students provides a clear methodology for school leaders, teachers, and school board members to follow as they redesign their schools for the benefit of students. The authors demonstrate how school leaders set the expectations for all students to learn and grow as important contributors to the culture. In the effective schools that the authors describe, students deliver performances, discuss and conduct important inquiries, and lead profound learning activities. The book explains how curriculum can be redesigned to engage students in advanced cognitive and social and emotional development. Additionally, several barriers to great schools that include assessment practices, false testing procedures, poor governance, ineffective leadership and staff development are described in stark detail. Throughout the book are examples of effective practices that make it possible for all students to prosper in school. This book is filled with practical ideas that are compiled into a toolkit to fix America's schools.

Being a school principal is tough. And there's a lot that nobody told you before you took the job. The Principal's Toolbox picks up where most leadership training leaves off, exploring the reality of life as the head of a school. Covering 275 topics from the obvious to the obscure, The Principal's Toolbox gives aspiring, new, and seasoned leaders an opportunity to reflect on the complexities of the principalship. Entries address issues principals WILL encounter, such as "How do I begin to craft a master schedule?", "What if a teacher is so good I can't come up with quality feedback?", "How do I stay out of trouble with the fire marshal?", "How should I handle it when a teacher's kid misbehaves?", and " A pipe burst - where do I turn off the water?"Written by an experienced and currently practicing elementary school principal, The Principal's Toolbox doesn't exist to tell readers WHAT to think; it exists to challenge readers TO think. By honestly (and often humorously) presenting a variety of scenarios common to the principalship, the author gives readers the freedom to accept his viewpoint or form their own. With their engagement in each entry, leaders will sharpen their mind and increase their skill.The Principal's Toolbox consists of 9 sections (with example topics from each): -FACULTY (Relationship with faculty, candor, tough conversations, caring for people, human nature)-CULTURE (Gathering feedback, giving credit, parent support organizations, influential stakeholders, honoring traditions)-INSTRUCTION (Understanding data, state testing, lesson plans, grading, coaching vs. evaluating, quality questions)-PARENTS (Perceptions, sharing bad news, handling requests for a teacher, admitting when you're wrong, confidentiality)-KIDS (Communicating with, party invitations, tardiness, nurse visits, the purpose of discipline, dress code, child abuse, bullying)-LOGISTICS (Class sorting, school pictures, reassigning teachers, interview questions, school floor plan, professional learning)-SELF-MANAGEMENT (Discretion, emotions during difficult situations, personal biases, giving recommendations, precedent)-MONEY (Teacher wishlists, employee benefits, discretionary funds, tax-exempt status, restricted vs. unrestricted accounts)-THIS AND THAT (Student residency, physical plant maintenance, the laminator, ADA compliance, drills, employee injuries)With its straightforward tone and extensive content, The Principal's Toolbox is equally suited to a graduate school book study as the shelf of a veteran principal needing a quick reference. No more need we say, "Well they didn't teach us THAT in principal school!"