Supervision: A Guide to Practice

by Jon W. Wiles, Joseph C. Bondi

Overview

By focusing on the skills needed for success, rather than the skills demanded by specific positions or tasks, this universally-applicable book prepares future educators to meet the challenges of contemporary educational environments. The authors imbue this book with the findings of relevant contemporary research through the extensive use of case studies, scenarios, and illustrations—connecting chapter content to real-world problems in education. Material is organized by skills, such as pedagogy, human relations, staff development, and program design, in order to emphasize the supervisor's role in coordinating the various administrative, curricular, and instructional concerns involved in providing instruction in today's demanding multicultural settings. Features broad, extensive coverage of the connection between teaching and the curriculum. Coverage of technology familiarizes future educators with current educational aids—examines the pros and cons of increasing reliance on technology and provides guidelines for evaluating new technology as it is developed. Extensive material on alternative certifications (in Chapter 10)—provides coverage of the realities of alternatives, their advantages and disadvantages, and how to pursue a specific goal. For future educators or those pursuing a variety of career paths that fall under the ¿umbrella¿ of supervision.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780130462671
Publisher:	Pearson
Publication date:	04/17/2003
Edition description:	REV
Pages:	416
Product dimensions:	7.30(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Jon Wiles is a professor of education at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville. Joseph Bondi is a professor of education at the University of South Florida in Tampa. Both authors received their doctoral degrees from the University of Florida.

As a writing team, Wiles and Bondi have co-authored a number of major texts in curriculum, supervision, administration, and middle school education. In addition to Supervision: A Guide to Practice, other texts for Merrill (an imprint of Prentice Hall) include Curriculum Development: A Guide to Practice, The Essential Middle School, and The New American Middle School.

Dr. Wiles and Dr. Bondi are highly experienced educators, having served as researchers, administrators, teachers, and curriculum directors during their careers. As consultants, they have worked together in all fifty states and twenty foreign nations.

Read an Excerpt

The first decade of the twenty-first century is proving to be a challenge for schools across America. Resource shortages, high expectations for performance, and the need to adjust to rapidly changing technology all are pressuring schools to change. Never before has school leadership been so important and necessary. Instructional supervision plays a critical role in meeting these challenges. School supervision will continue to be the keystone position in school leadership in the years ahead.

Because supervisors represent the interface between the curriculum planned and the instruction experienced by students, their influence on the quality of education continues to be immense. Supervisors making action decisions on a day-today basis will define quality education, and their decisions will shape a new instructional age in this century.

This sixth edition seeks to provide readers with an accurate look at supervision in practice in schools. We have retained our previous organization of skills of supervision but have updated all chapters to reflect the new realities. Several chapters have been combined to give readers a broader and more in-depth coverage of teaching and curriculum.

Each chapter begins with a short scenario or two to bring the tasks of instructional leadership to life. These scenarios connect the content of the chapter to the real-world needs and problems of schools.

In previous editions of this text, we acknowledged the diversity of environments in the practice of supervision by focusing on the skills supervisors need to be successful, rather than on titles or the specific tasks of supervision. We continue that theme in this edition with chapters addressing pedagogy, human development, curriculum development, human relations, evaluation, staff development, and program administration. The role of technology is infused throughout the text. As in previous editions, we believe that the generic contribution of the supervisor in education is the coordination of these various administrative, curricular, and instructional concerns. The supervisor is the linchpin in the leadership team and the key player in improving learning opportunities for students.

This edition has many updates. In all chapters case studies and learning activities reflect the changing nature of public education. All bibliographies have been updated to reflect knowledge that will guide us in the new century. Many resources for supervisors are found in Appendix A, and the ISLLC Standards for School Leaders are reprinted in Appendix B.

Table of Contents

1. Defining Educational Supervision.

2. The Foundations of Supervisory Leadership.

3. Professional Knowledge about Teaching and Leadership.

4. Promoting Human Development.

5. Designing and Developing Curriculum.

6. Organizing for Evaluation.

7. Encouraging Human Relations.

8. Providing Effective Staff Development.

9. Administrative Functions.

10. New Directions for Supervision.

Appendix A: Resources for Supervisors.

Appendix B:ISLLC Standards for School Leaders.

ENDNOTES

NAME INDEX

SUBJECT INDEX

Preface

The first decade of the twenty-first century is proving to be a challenge for schools across America. Resource shortages, high expectations for performance, and the need to adjust to rapidly changing technology all are pressuring schools to change. Never before has school leadership been so important and necessary. Instructional supervision plays a critical role in meeting these challenges. School supervision will continue to be the keystone position in school leadership in the years ahead.

Because supervisors represent the interface between the curriculum planned and the instruction experienced by students, their influence on the quality of education continues to be immense. Supervisors making action decisions on a day-today basis will define quality education, and their decisions will shape a new instructional age in this century.

This sixth edition seeks to provide readers with an accurate look at supervision in practice in schools. We have retained our previous organization of skills of supervision but have updated all chapters to reflect the new realities. Several chapters have been combined to give readers a broader and more in-depth coverage of teaching and curriculum.

Each chapter begins with a short scenario or two to bring the tasks of instructional leadership to life. These scenarios connect the content of the chapter to the real-world needs and problems of schools.

In previous editions of this text, we acknowledged the diversity of environments in the practice of supervision by focusing on the skills supervisors need to be successful, rather than on titles or the specific tasks of supervision. We continue that theme in this edition with chapters addressing pedagogy, human development, curriculum development, human relations, evaluation, staff development, and program administration. The role of technology is infused throughout the text. As in previous editions, we believe that the generic contribution of the supervisor in education is the coordination of these various administrative, curricular, and instructional concerns. The supervisor is the linchpin in the leadership team and the key player in improving learning opportunities for students.

This edition has many updates. In all chapters case studies and learning activities reflect the changing nature of public education. All bibliographies have been updated to reflect knowledge that will guide us in the new century. Many resources for supervisors are found in Appendix A, and the ISLLC Standards for School Leaders are reprinted in Appendix B.