PRINCESS FRANCOIS

Without prioritizing staff and community, there is no reason for a school to exist. Having aided in the transformation of my school's culture, I have learned the importance of listening and engaging others. I have learned that all members of the school community must be engaged, but in different ways.

 

For example, to engage teachers one must foster collaboration, one must set clear expectations, and one must try to create a highly supportive yet highly challenging environment. Since differerent teachers have different needs, one must differentiate such support. I realized this as I have worked with numerous teachers to improve their instruction, ranging from a first year teacher to a 20+ year veteran teacher.

 

In order to help teachers, I believe it is important for me to improve my own craft as well. I cannot help others if I am not going to improve myself. Rather than believing I am the source of all knowledge, I think it is important to come into any interaction with the mindset I will learn something new. I invest a lot of time attending professional development, collaborating with staff, and reflecting on my own practices to grow as an educator. I truly do believe learning is a continous process that one must be actively engaged. I think my internship is a true reflection of that.

 

I have been focused on providing useful and impactful feedback. Through engagement with articles from graduate school and collaborating closely with two teachers, I have taken to heart that feedback must be a continuous dialogue with a teacher. From reading "Strategic Conversations" by Robyn R. Jackson and "How to Give Feedback Effectively" by Michele Mattoon, I have been able to learn how to provide feedback that is focused, purposeful, yet reflective. It has been most important for me to engage in the journey along with my colleagues. I think as a leader, it is important that the teacher is on a journey to learn how to improve their instructional practice while the leader is on a journey on how to provide effective feedback that leads to the greatest impact. It is even more important to facilitate conversations so teachers are the ones doing the reflecting to come up with solutions rather than it being a directive conversation where the teacher is told what to do. I truly belive in the quote below:

 

"The way in which supervisors try to bring about change largely determines how teachers respond to the challenge. Supervisors can mandate change externally; or they can, together with teachers, build collaborative cultures that encourage the seeds of change to take root and grow."

 

To engage students, the key is being receptive to their opinions. Students often feel they are being dismissed, that the adults just want to impose rules. Part of how I was able to improve school culture so drastically was paying attention to what students were complaining about--lack of activities, lack of school spirit. By listening, I was able to create buy-in where students wanted to become actively involved in transforming the school. As a result, we have been able to create school traditions that make it a pleasant environment for both students and teachers. At the end of the day, if the community is not happy, then members will not be invested in its progress.

 

I realize that we must engage parents as much as we try to engage students and teachers. Although many may be unable to attend a parent meeting or a school-wide event,  that does not necessarily mean they are not involved or do not want to be involved. Providing frequent forms of communication with parents is crucial. Whether that is through consistent mailings that are short, concise, and visually pleasing or through an up-to-date website, parents want to know that the school cares about them and wants to collaborate with them in the development of their child. I noticed that parents were more receptive when I changed the appearance of our mailing or when I redesigned our website. Parents viewed it as a new face, which created an appearance of change and progress.

 

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