Leadership Call          To Action

Reading leadership philosophy and stories of grand success seem to make being a great leader easy; just read and do. This weeks assignment is the "DO" part.

Model The Way - Set the example

I can't think of anything more important for a leader than to "Set The Way". As we evaluated the powerful, influential leadership of David, we see how a leader sets the way and everyone follows. His obedience to God and loyalty to his people set the example for all. He was consistent in his actions. David practiced, Live The Shared Values (Kouzes & Posner, 2012) daily.

Implementation Plan:

As an Instructional Technology Coach I have the opportunity and responsibility to set the example everyday with teachers. How you spend your time is the single best indicator of what's important to you. (Kouzes & Posner p. 96) Being in the classroom assisting teachers to use technology tools to drive student learning is not only important to me, it's a passion. To see a teacher who has no confidence in their own technology skills, turn around and understand they don't have to know it all and they can facilitate, fail, try again and let the student teach them, is what's important to me.

I will be spending at least 70% of my time in classrooms assisting teachers in digitizing lessons and preparing instruction that enables students to guide the learning process.

Inspire A Vision - Enlist Others

Enlisting others is very important for an Ed Tech Coach. You need to have a shared vision with your teachers to be able to work with them. I also realize I can't do it all myself and I have the unique opportunity to experience awesome teaching skills daily. Not every teacher needs a coach.

Implementation Plan:

My action to enlist others will be to implement what is called, The Pineapple Chart (Barns, Gonzalez-Boss. https://cultofpedagogy.com/pineapple-charts/). This method of sharing promotes pride in what teachers have to contribute. It shows that I listen to what they say by incorporating their input.(Kouzes & Posner, p. 153)

Challenge The Process - Experiment and take risks

Introducing technology in the classroom for most teachers is the definition of experiment and risk taking in education. 1:1 classrooms require a shift in the learning and a shift in classroom management.

Implementation Plan:

Kouzes & Poser (p. 210) suggest to use small wins to get things moving. This has been my strategy for this year and paved the way in getting Math teachers using devices up to 60% of the time in their classrooms. They still love paper and pencil, but at least students are getting a shot at conceptual learning with Desmos and Khan Academy on a regular basis. My goal is to have 100% of the Math teachers using these tools on a regular bases and implementing some project based learning (PBL) to re-inforce.

A Successful Vision for Technology

Successful Technology Leadership Vision

Reflecting back on the reading and my notes to answer the question: "To what extent have the technology leaders at my school been successful in setting a vision for using technology for learning?" I would say that our vision is not a written, publicized vision but rather a developing, personal growth and supportive vision.

I particularly related to the article by Levin and Schrum (2013) using the systems approach to analysis the implementation of various technology rollouts. Over the past seventeen years in educational technology, I have played a major roll in every technology rollout at our secondary schools beginning with the Digital High School Grant in 2000. In their research they examined the implementation as pieces of a jigsaw puzzle by stating:
   "Taking a systems approach means that all parts of the system have to be addressed in concert, and acknowledging that adding one component (such as technology) to a system disturbs other parts of the system."(p. 30).
Levin and Schrum (2013) define the eight pieces of the puzzle as: vision, leadership, school culture, technology planning and support, professional development, curriculum and instructional practices, funding, and partnerships (p. 36) I highlight these in bold because for me, they became the overarching theme of the reading for the week. Unlike adding a parking lot, basketball court or portables, which can affect certain aspects and departments of a campus, technology has a dynamic, transformational change that requires reframing institutional assumptions. Owen & Demb (2004).

To answer the question of our vision as technology leaders and the growth changes we have experienced, three areas stand out; Tools for school improvement (Levin & Schrum, 2013), building capacity (Owen & Demb, 2004), and sharing leadership (Owen and Demb, 2004). Our Information Technology (IT) Department split three years ago to Educational Technology and Information Systems. I remained on the IS team for two years and this year recently joined the Ed Tech staff. Our District is building capacity by increasing the number of devices, doubling and specializing the support, and weaving us into the Curriculum and Instruction support throughout all departments.

Reading, "The Leadership Challenge" (Kouzes & Posner, 2012) has encouraged me to change my approach for providing professional development. Where you spend your time is the single best indicator of what's important to you. (p. 95) This value direction has encouraged me to spend more time in classrooms with teachers, assisting them to implement technology tools to drive student learning. Relating this to John Maxwell's 5 Levels of Leadership (2013), being with teachers will strengthen my relationships and give me the momentum it takes to advance to Level III.

Through this weeks reading, I have a greater awareness of the need for our department to bond together by creating a vision statement that reflects the Superintendent and Director's values with our personal values leading to the creation of shared values for a meaningful statement.

What Defines Leadership

The Word Cloud of Leadership

Pondering the definition of leadership instantly brings to mind all the exceptional (and not so exceptional) leaders I have worked with and for. It then reminds me I, as a teacher, have led leaders in my classroom. Leaders are all of us, daily interacting in our capacities to be the best we can be and serve others.

The numerous text and videos we reviewed this week brought a profound awareness to the attention we all have now on leadership as we watch our government transition from one leadership style to a completely opposite leadership style.

Peter Northhouse examined leadership with traits, mentioning a person can't change out their traits.
He listed six:
Intelligence
Confidence
Charisma
Sociability
Determination
Integrity
I found these traits are all prevalent in the leaders I both admire and respect and also leaders I don't feel comfortable with; I don't consider leaders I would recommend or want to work with. This leads me to believe traits, while a constant, are not necessarily an attribute which determines quality of leadership.

The Leadership Challenge; Kouzes & Posner, video and text provided leadership practices mentioning they have been consistent over time.
The five practices of exemplary leaders:
Model the way
Inspire a shared vision
Challenge the process
Enable other to act
Encourage the heart
"Leadership is not about who you are; it's about what you do."

In the video Leadership Skills of Tomorrows Leaders, various scholars and leaders gave input as to the skills of a leader. There seems to be a common theme to the skills mentioned, personal values, and visionary skills.
Skills mentioned:
Trust
Mindful - notice new things
Character
Empathy
Devotion to others
Curiosity - inquisitive
Relentless
Desire to build capacity around them.
And my personal favorite was "They always explain why. Identify what."

The resources we used to research the question, "What defines leadership" were plentiful with positive and encouraging, traits, skills, practices, and more. Not only did the reading and research help me identify these qualities in others, they have sparked an awareness in my actions as I deal with staff and students daily.