Will to Lead, the Skill to Teach, The: Transforming Schools at Every Level

by Anthony Muhammad, Sharroky Hollie

Overview

School improvement begins with self-examination and honest dialogue about socialization, bias, discrimination, and cultural insensitivity. The authors acknowledge both the structural and sociological issues that contribute to low-performing schools and offer multiple tools and strategies to assess and improve classroom management, increase literacy, establish academic vocabulary, and contribute to a healthier school culture.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781935542544
Publisher:	Solution Tree Press
Publication date:	10/17/2011
Series:	Essentials for Principals
Pages:	176
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.60(d)

Table of Contents

About the Authors xi

Part I Will And Skill

Introduction 1

Will and Skill 2

The Blame Game 6

The "Turnaround" Concept 7

1 The Two Parts of a Positive School Environment 9

Will 9

Skill 11

The Four Zones of a Positive Learning Environment 12

The Need for Philosophical Agreement 15

Embracing Culture and Structure 16

Part II The Will to Lead

2 Conflicting Wills 19

Schools as Microcosms 19

The Importance of a Healthy School Culture 20

Toxic School Culture 22

Collective Commitment to Success for All Students 23

Abolishing Conflicting Wills 28

3 Frustration in a Toxic Culture 31

Insufficient Preparation 32

Overwhelming Conditions 34

The Cycle of Blame 36

A Culture of Complaint 38

Doing to Students Versus Acting With Students 39

Lessening the Frustration 41

4 The School Culture Framework: Creating a Culture of Collaboration 43

The Players 44

Believers and Fundamentalists 45

Collegial and Managerial Cultures 47

Reducing Fundamentalism 52

Building Up the Believers 54

Reversing Perceptions 54

5 Leadership at Every Level 57

Transformational Leaders 57

Teacher Leaders 62

Site Leaders 65

Central and District Leaders 69

State and Federal Leaders 71

Building a Healthy Culture 72

Part III The Skill to Teach

6 Developing a Responsive Pedagogy 75

Aligning the Will With the Skill 77

Skill Is Being Responsive 79

Three Lessons From Hollywood 80

Recognizing the Need for a Responsive Pedagogy 82

Identifying the Audience for Responsive Pedagogy 83

Beware of Deficit Thinking 84

Becoming Skillful 84

7 The Steps to a Responsive Pedagogy 87

Step One: Identify an Area of Instruction for Improvement 88

Step Two: Assess the Quantity and Quality of the Activities Currently Used 92

Step Three: Implement Responsive Activities During Teaching 93

The Art of Juxtapositions 94

Steps for Success 96

8 Responsive Classroom Management 97

Philosophies of Classroom Management 98

The Three P Approach 99

Activities for Responsive Classroom Management 101

Building Responsive Classroom Management 110

9 Responsive Academic Vocabulary 113

Four Key Premises 113

Steps for Responsive Vocabulary Instruction 116

Building Responsive Academic Vocabulary 123

10 Responsive Academic Literacy 125

Engaging Students With Culturally Responsive Texts 126

Using Read-Alouds in the Oral Tradition of Storytelling 128

Using Responsive Literacy Techniques Effectively 131

Building Responsive Academic Literacy 137

11 Responsive Learning Environment 139

A Print-Rich Environment 141

Learning Centers 141

Culturally Colorful Materials 142

Optimally Arranged Space 143

Multiple Libraries 144

Technology 145

Relevant Bulletin Boards 146

Displayed Student Work and Images of Students 147

Building a Responsive Learning Environment 147

Afterword 151

References and Resources 153

Index 159