The Institute for Educational Leadership's bi-monthly
newsletter:
IELeadership
Connections, Vol. 1, No. 3, January/February
2003
This
edition's topic:
Trust
Contents:
Trust
(Commentary)
A Happy New
Year to all and special thanks to those who took time from busy
holiday schedules to respond to the IELC survey, "Is trust the
missing link in effective school reform?" As in our first survey,
the responses reflected a broad range of experience and
perspective-and a thoughtfulness which over time may prove to be
the hallmark of IELC readers.
Respondents
unanimously agreed that trust was an essential component of
effective school reform and/or leadership, but were not sure it
was necessarily THE missing ingredient. Other fundamental
components of effective school reform included integrity,
fairness, respect, competence, honesty, adequate
preparation, clear expectations, accountability, and
budget. Several respondents pointed out the need for balance
so that leaders would avoid the pitfalls of benign neglect on one
side and coercion or micromanagement on the other. It was
abundantly clear that respondents had more first-hand experience
in systems (K-12 and others) where trust did not exist than in
those where it did.
"Relational
trust" between students and schools, teachers and parents,
politicians and educational leaders, principals and teachers, the
haves and the have-nots, administrators and staff in a variety of
organizations, and even Woody Hayes and his football players at
Ohio State was described-or described as lacking. Perspectives
varied among those who had served under untrustworthy leaders and
those who were leaders trying to build trust in an organization or
school system. Several respondents mentioned the results of the
lack of trust, most notably the loss of creativity and innovation.
The difficulty in making the "leap of faith" needed for leaders to
move from controlling others to truly trusting them was also
noted.
A college
professor summed it up well: "Trust is imperative for consistent
excellent performance, whether it be school reform or ... People,
young and old alike, know after a period of time whether or not
someone is trustworthy based upon his or her actions and
decisions. Reform will stagnate without trust, leadership will
become coercion, and at best mediocrity will reign." This summary
was echoed in the observation of a k-12 educator: "At this time
the trust is not there. Everyone is worried about how they are
being judged. With increased pressure coming down from the state
to increase test scores, I think we will see the problem grow. "
So how do
leaders build trust in a system where it is lacking? How do you
start to build the relationships and develop the components of an
effective school reform system described so well by our readers?
An "appreciative inquiry" (AI) approach may hold part of the
answer. Instead of rooting out the problems that need to be
"fixed" in an organization, we can start by identifying and
building on the components that work well and by recognizing and
respecting the people who are making positive contributions. AI is
a data-driven philosophy that focuses on the positive, not the
negative-certainly a better approach than some cited by our
respondents, including the principal who stated in a local paper
that 25% of his staff were inadequate-thereby losing the trust of
his entire staff. (To learn more about AI and whether it may help
you build trust in your organization, read "What is Appreciative
Inquiry?" at http://www.thinbook.com/chap11fromle.html
or visit the Web site http://www.appreciative-inquiry.org/.)
NO CHILD
LEFT BEHIND-ONE YEAR LATER
Just in time
to observe the first anniversary of the signing of The No Child
Left Behind Act of 2001 comes a report from the Center on
Educational Policy, From the Capital to the Classroom: State and
Federal Efforts to Implement the No Child Left Behind Act
(available at http://www.cep-dc.org/ in both
pdf and html formats). The opening commentary by Jack Jennings
states: "Our study found that the states are committed to the
goals of the legislation and are trying hard to carry them out,
but the prescriptive nature of the requirements is causing great
concern. States are moving faster on the elements of the law where
they have more experience, such as developing state tests, and
slower on aspects where they need to create new procedures, such
as approving nonprofit and for-profit groups to provide tutoring.
We also found that the fiscal crisis in most states, coupled with
the prospect of limited additional federal aid, could threaten the
successful implementation of this very ambitious law."
Jennings also
has four recommendations for national policymakers based on the
first year findings, which are summarized below:
1. Tone
down the rhetoric from Washington.
2. Be more flexible and
sensitive to the complex and varying circumstances found in states
and school districts
3. Fully fund the Act.
4. Implement all
requirements of the law as fully as possible, considering changes
in the law in later years if unintended
consequences emerge.
At the briefing at which the report
was released, Jennings was asked to grade the President and the
states on implementation at the one-year mark. The President
earned a C- and the states earned a B+.
President Bush,
Secretary Paige, members of Congress, and others marked the anniversary
of NCLB with a celebration in the East Room of the White House
on January 8th. There, the first five states to have their NCLB
accountability plans approved were announced: Colorado, Indiana,
Massachusetts, New York, and Ohio. The President's FY 2004 budget
proposals for Title I, Reading First, and Early Reading First
were also released. For a press release, photo, and more information
on the anniversary celebration, go to http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2003/01/01082003a.html
Meanwhile, the
Washington Post reports that the Democrats are trying to
boost federal funding for schools in the FY 2003 budget
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A51459-2003Jan13.html)
and that schools of education are being forced to "rethink their
approach" to teacher education as a result of NCLB (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A52358-2003Jan13.html).
We also note
that this week's episode of the television program, Boston
Public, featured a plot line where a talented athlete was
recruited out of his home school via NCLB's provision that
students in chronically low-performing schools may transfer to
higher performing schools-thereby following the letter, if not the
intent, of the law (and giving a whole new meaning to reality
TV).
NEWS FROM THE
FIELD
For resources to help
in your implementation of NCLB, go to the current issue of
Community Schools On-line at http://www.communityschools.org/newsletterv.2.15.html.
IELC joins the
education community in remembering Harold "Doc" Howe II, who
passed away on November 29, 2002, in Hanover, New Hampshire. A
veteran of World War II, Doc was a teacher, principal,
superintendent, U.S. Commissioner of Education, Ford Foundation
Vice President and Harvard Graduate School of Education professor.
He was also instrumental in creating the Institute for Educational
Leadership and served on its board of directors for six years. In
his remarks at the Harvard memorial service, Jim Kelly said,
"Doc's life reminds us that for truly great men and women,
intellectual rigor and human compassion go hand in hand, each
reinforcing and enriching the other…Doc Howe commanded immense
respect and affection from legions of admirers precisely because
of the integrity with which he constantly fought to advance his
social and political values." Readers in the Washington area may
wish to attend the memorial service scheduled for Wednesday,
January 22, 2003, 4:30 p.m., Dorothy Betts Marvin Theatre, Marvin
Center, First Floor, The George Washington University, 800 21st
Street, NW, Washington, DC.
The Petra Foundation
seeks nominations for its 2003 Petra Foundation Awards honoring
"unsung individuals who are making distinctive contributions to
human freedom" and who are "not widely recognized, do not have a
strong institutional base of support, and who have demonstrated a
capacity to grow, overcome obstacles, and make a significant
contribution to human freedom by leading, teaching, or otherwise
helping others." The award includes a "no-strings" stipend of
$7500 and inclusion in a leadership network of on-going support.
Submit your nominee prior to the February 10th deadline via an
on-line registration form at http://www.petrafoundation.org/nomination.shtml.
The January issue of
District Administration features an article on identifying
and encouraging potential leaders. Superintendents Prepared alumni
will be interested to know that Larry Leverett, the current superintendent
of Plainfield, NJ, who was quoted in the article, has just been
selected as the new superintendent of schools for Greenwich, CT.
The article is available on-line at http://www.districtadministration.com/page.cfm?id=289.
We hope you never need
it, but the fifth edition of A Practical Guide for Crisis Response
in Our Schools has been released by The American Academy of
Experts in Traumatic Stress®. For ordering information, go to
http://www.schoolcrisisresponse.com/.
New Leaders for New
Schools (NLNS), is aggressively recruiting talented people to
become urban school principals. If you are looking for a well-designed
pathway to become a principal in an urban district or charter
school and are interested in working/studying under an
outstanding mentor-principal, visit the NLNS website at http://www.nlns.org
to obtain application information. The standard program deadline
is February 5, 2003.
THINGS TO
WATCH
Harold "Bud"
Hodgkinson, Director of the Center for Demographic Policy and
well-respected demographer, warns that many children will be left
behind if more attention is not paid to the crucial development
years of birth to 5 years. Dr. Hodgkinson says that improving the
quality of infant and childcare and excellent programs for 3 and 4
year olds, like those in other developed countries, are needed.
His recommendations include convening a national Governors' Summit
on this issue. His white paper, Leaving Many Children Behind:
The Tragic Neglect of the Nation's Youngest Children, will be
published shortly. Send an e-mail to iel@iel.org
if you want to be notified of its availability.
An incipient
and disturbing trend may be accelerating due to the increased
accountability provisions of NCLB: the routing of low-performing
15, 16, and 17 year old students to GED programs in order to
increase high school assessment scores and graduation rates. This
trend was highlighted in a July 2002 American Youth Policy Forum
titled "The Rapid Increase of Young People in GED and Adult
Education Programs." The Forum focused on New York City schools,
but anecdotal information exists that indicates this is a growing
problem in Washington DC, Portland, OR, and other areas. For more
information on AYPF Forums, go to http://www.aypf.org/.
The National
Clearinghouse for Comprehensive School Reform (NCCSR) has
developed a workshop on "Identifying Research Based Solutions for
School Improvement." The workshop will address the need for
practitioners and technical assistance providers to understand the
use and application of scientifically-based research in improving
student learning. An invitation-only "Train the Trainer" workshop
will be held on February 12th in partnership with MCREL for
members of the Regional Education Labs and Comprehensive
Assistance Centers, who will then facilitate workshops at the
state, district, and school levels. In early February, the
workshop materials (including a CD-ROM version) will be available
on the NCCSR web site (http://www.goodschools.gwu.edu/).
As we noted in
the last issue of IELC, the What Works Clearinghouse website went
on-line in November. The Clearinghouse is now soliciting education
topic areas, interventions, and general approaches for the site
from the education community. To nominate a topic or for more
information, visit (http://w-w-c.org/topicnom.html).
READER SURVEY QUESTION:
NCLB ONE YEAR LATER?
Using the
Appreciative Inquiry approach to implementing school reform, we
want to know the positive effects of the implementation of the No
Child Left Behind Act. You can also tell us the strategies you're
developing or using to implement or support the NCLB Act and that
you think will be successful based on your past experiences. We
want to know what you're observing whether you're a parent,
student, community member, teacher, principal, school board
member, policy-maker, professor of education, member of the media,
or any member of the rainbow of leaders who support
education.
The reader survey question is: What positive
changes are you are starting to see as a result of the No Child
Left Behind Act? Be brief, but specific.
Send your
response to survey@iel.org
with "survey" in the subject line. You can be cryptic as long as
we understand your point. Please remember that IELC surveys are
informal exchanges and are not intended to be
"scientifically-based research." We will collect your responses
and use them to inform future issues of IELC. We will not be able
to provide a personal response to each submission.
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Submission
Deadline for the next issue: February 28, 2003
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ABOUT IELEADERSHIP
CONNECTIONS
IELeadership
Connections is a free bi-monthly e-newsletter focusing on
leadership for education. The editors are Mary Podmostko and
Denise Slaughter. Gerardo Medrano is the assistant editor. Please
feel free to share this newsletter with interested parties. The
editors will do their best to provide active links and information
but cannot be responsible for expired links.
To submit a news
item, suggest a topic for future publication, or provide feedback,
send an e-mail to feedback@iel.org
with “IELC” in the subject line. Submissions should include a link
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highlighted program or issue.
To initiate or
discontinue a subscription to IELeadership Connections, please
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with “subscribe” or “unsubscribe” in the subject line.
This e-newsletter is
made possible by grants from The Ford Foundation, Carnegie
Corporation of New York, and MetLife Foundation.
ABOUT
IEL
For more than
thirty-five years, the Institute for Educational Leadership
(IEL)—a non-profit, nonpartisan organization based in Washington,
DC—has worked to achieve better results for children and youth. At
the heart of IEL’s effectiveness is a unique ability to bring
people together to identify and resolve issues across policy,
program, and sector boundaries. As a natural outgrowth of IEL’s
work, diverse networks have been created and nurtured.
Today, IEL is working
to help individuals and institutions increase their capacity to
work together to improve outcomes for children and young people.
We are building and supporting a cadre of diverse leaders,
strengthening the capacity of education and related systems, and
informing the development and implementation of policies. IEL
supports a national network of over 15,000 policymakers and
practitioners, publishes books and reports, facilitates meetings,
produces seminars and conferences, and disseminates ideas that
have an impact on policy at all governance levels. Please visit
our Web site at www.iel.org
to learn more about IEL.
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