The Difficulties of Second-Order Change

Marzano, Waters, and McNulty (2005), describe that most school reforms, even though, highly researched, thought-out, and articulated, are short lived. Marzano et al. (2005), contribute these “duds” to “leadership that is not consistent with the order of magnitude of change represented by that innovation” (p. 66). To me, this quote is referring to the 21 leadership responsibilities used in ineffective ways and do not coincide with the order of change. Marzano et al. (2005), describe two types of change one being incremental and superficial while the other type of change is more of a “deep transformational” effort. Second order change requires transforming the way an entire school runs and meets the needs of their students. Marzno et al. (2005), gives an example of second-order change as one that exceeds the needs of the achievement gap in under achieving schools to using innovative instructional strategies seen in open education. When a leader embarks in second-order change, they must not tread lightly and continuously analyze the enormous complexities that come with this type of alteration. One way to effectively instigate second-order change is by implementing the most effective 21 leadership responsibilities.

Marzano et al. (2005), explain that of the 21 responsibilities only seven of them affect second-order change the most. These are: knowledge of curriculum, instruction, and assessment; optimizer; intellectual stimulation; change agent; monitoring/evaluating; flexibility; and ideals/beliefs. Since second-order change is so comprehensive and changes the entire way business is ran attention must be given to meeting the requirements of the seven responsibilities. For example, change agent and monitoring/evaluating are very important because they urge for challenging current school practices and then creating an evaluation system that gives feedback on how new practices are affecting student achievement. Fullan agrees with this practice and illustrates that supporting change with student data is one of the best ways to subside anxiety and to implement change itself (video ELC, 2010). Marzano et al. (2005), have researched their findings thoroughly and advise that each order of change is approached in a specific way.

The demands of second-order change requires a thoughtful and flexible administrator because change is a difficult process for people to embrace and difficult to execute from a leadership perspective. Not only does the principal have to use all seven leadership responsibilities but they also have to utilize and balance the use of six leadership styles outlined by Goleman (2000). These demands make the job very complicated; therefore, a principal needs to dedicate a lot of time analyzing and fine-tuning their actions and must possess the willingness to overcome the unexpected. A principal that is rigid or thinks second-order change will happen over night and is not willing to utilize the research supplied to them then status quos will not be broken and student achievement will continue to plummet.

References
Goleman, D. (2000, March). Leadership that gets results. Harvard business review, 78-90.
Marzano, R. J., Waters, T., & McNulty, B. A. (2005). School leadership that works from research  to results (pp.42-63). Alexandria: ASCD.

Change is Facilitated by a Positive Culture

            Change is a scary process.  Moving to Washington, DC from a little farm town in Southwest Michigan was a significant change in my life and I was very apprehensive about it.  To me, moving 13 hours across the country took me away from everything I knew and was comfortable with and the idea of reestablishing myself and adapting to a “new way of life” was very daunting.  However, the one thing that got me through this entire process was a positive relationship with my family.  The strength these relationships gave me allowed me to take on this change with full force and helped me understand how to properly survive in my new surroundings.

            This story reveals that change is hard for most people to take on.  Without proper leadership and positive relationships that facilitate support and collaboration, change is not going to be accepted or incorporated.  Peterson (2002) states, “a school culture influences the ways people think, feel, and act” (p.10).  If your school culture is not one that supports progressive thinking, does not place student achievement first, and creates a feeling of solitude within the staff then implementing the complexities of the change process is going to be very difficult.  Before any change takes place, the leader must check the cultural pulse of the school and determine what aspects of the culture are positive and should be reinforced and what aspects of the culture are negative and harmful and should be changed (Peterson, 2002).  By creating a positive school culture, individuals will be able to develop a learning community that fosters professional development that continues the process of teacher learning.  

             If teachers enjoy discussing new ways of thinking, are reflective on their daily practices, are open to other opinions, and support both professional development and student achievement then implementing change will most likely be accepted by the staff.  As a leader, it is our job to support positive school cultures because without it we will not be able to perform our job, as the SEDL: facilitative leadership, (2002) describes, “leaders, then, are change makers and transformers, guiding the organization to a new and more compelling vision, a demanding role expectation” (p.1).  Without the aid of a positive school culture that supports innovation, respect, trust, and shared leadership that balances continuity and improvement any school reform model will surely fail.  Much of the school culture is derived from the leadership, if leaders trust the strength of others and value their efforts and see the people in the organization as its greatest resource not only will change take place but it will be supported with an enriched school culture (SEDL: leadership characteristics that facilitate school change, 2002).

References

Peterson, K. D. (2002). Positive. At issue culture, 10-15.

SEDL: facilitative leadership (2002). Retrieved August 20, 2010, from http://www.sedl.org/change/facilitate   

            /leaders.html

SEDL: leadership characteristics that facilitate school change (2002). Retrieved August 20, 2010, from              

            http://www.sedl.org/change/leadership/character.html

Self-Assessment and Survey Reflection

Principals are usually referred to as visionary individuals but their successes as leaders are not just simply due to their visionary strengths and execution. The self-assessment along with the online survey has truly helped me identify other important leadership characteristics that increase student achievement. The self-assessment was more straightforward and simply required a 1-5 ranking. While the online survey seemed a bit more complex because it extracted the 21 characteristics from a series of questions and then applied a numerical value from multiple responses; overall, my results were very similar. The minor differences were no more than one point for each characteristic, this illustrated that my perceptions for leadership characteristics are consistent.

The assessments were both interesting for me to fill out. From my personal experiences, I tried to gauge how much each characteristic plays into the success of a principal. Based off the online survey and self-assessment my top seven strengths as a school leader are: communication (r = .24), culture (.25), ideals and beliefs (.22), input (.25), outreach (.27), relationships (.18), and visibility (.20) (Marzono; 2007; McRel; 2010). My average correlation for strengths was r = .23. This shows that not all my strengths have been proven to be highly effective (visibility and relationships) while some are considered more effective like input and outreach. However, when evaluating how each of the 21 characteristics are measured to their 95% CI the most accurate measurements are culture, focus, input, involvement CIA, monitoring, and optimizer; of these I have two (culture and input).

The two assessments also revealed to me some areas of improvement. My seven top areas of improvement are: affirmation (r = .19), change agent (.25), discipline (.27), flexibility (.28), intellectual stimulation (.24), involvement CIA (.20), and order (.25) (Marzono; 2007; McRel; 2010). My average correlation for improvement was r = .24. Unfortunately, this correlation shows that my weaknesses have a higher impact on student achievement than do my strengths. Yet, when comparing my areas of improvement to the strongest correlated characteristics based off their 95% CI, I have only one (involvement CIA).

Overall, I am not taking these results too seriously because I have never even attempted to be a principal before so I truly have no idea if I am effective or not. However, based off these results it shows that I do have characteristics that will impact student achievement and even though I have areas of improvement neither assessment had any characteristic ranked lower than a three. This experience has been insightful and I look forward to doing it again in the future, especially once I have become an administrator.

References

Marzano, R. J., Waters, T., & McNulty, B. A. (2005). School leadership that works from research to results (pp.42-63). Alexandria: ASCD.

McRel balanced leadership (2010). Retrieved July 31, 2010, from https://www.educationleadershipthatworks.org/Default.aspx

Successful Principal Characteristics

           The last few weeks of class have been interesting.  I have learned how to navigate an online class and a lot about leadership.  Through this reflection I am going to explore four characteristics of what a successful principal should posses.

  “In matters of style, swim with the current;
In matters of principle, stand like a rock.”
                                    - T. Jefferson

            This quote describes my first characteristic of leadership, authentic inner direction.  According to Evans (2007), the authentic leader possesses “ a source of inner direction” (139), which continuously leads the principal toward effective long-range planning and routine problem solving.  Also, the inner direction of principals defines them as leaders because they will consistently pay attention to what is important and good for the school.  The inner direction manifests itself through strong actions, which results in a “not just saying, but a doing mentality.”  Evans describes that authentic leaders are much like Popeye the sailor, they know who they are, what they want, and what they are good at (Evans, 2007).  Quality principals have authentic inner direction.

“And when we think we lead, we are most led.”
                                    - Lord Byron

            Lord Byron is simply describing that leadership is a give and take process, or being both a lion and a lamb.  Effective leaders know how to embody two varying personalities; one that is learning and serving while the other is directing and leading.  Being the lamb means working hard to make other people successful—and then giving them the credit and enabling others to work by sharing the power (Murphy, 2007).  Being the lion encompasses setting directions, leading by example, demanding high standards and holding staff and students accountable.  Quality principals are both lions and lambs.

“People are more easily led than driven.”
                                    - David Harold Fink

            Fink is suggesting that leading is much different than just forcing people to do what you say.  To me an effective leader understands the importance of creating metanoia or a shift of mind in their staffs’ everyday thinking patterns.  This characteristic focuses on teamwork and the idea of “we” and not “I.”  Metanoias create environments where the common vision is embraced by all workers and is resonated throughout the organization as pride-in-work-mentality.  This mind shift leads staff to a higher understanding of their work and fosters intrinsic motivation, consequently, alleviating a command and conquer approach from the administration (Senge, 2007).  Quality principals believe in metanoia.

“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”
                                    - Ralph Waldo Emerson

            Emerson believes that a leader is one who believes in taking transformational action.  My background of teaching has been served in the inner city and all the schools I have worked in need transformation.  A great transformational principal will evaluate the current status of a school and then set direction, develop their staff, and redesign the organization.  Transformational leaders inspire trust and confidence in others and work wholeheartedly to create results (Leithwood, 2007).  Quality principals are transformational leaders.

References

 Evans, R. (2007). The authentic leader. In . Jossey & . Bass (Eds.), The jossey-bass reader on   educational leadership (2nd ed., pp. 135-154). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Leithwood, K. A. (2007). Transformation school leadership in a transactional policy world. In .             Jossey & . Bass (Eds.), The jossey-bass reader on educational leadership (2nd ed., pp.                183-196). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Murphy, J. (2007). The unheroic side of leadership. In . Jossey & . Bass (Eds.), The jossey-bass   reader on educational leadership (2nd ed., pp. 60). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Senge, P. M. (2007). Give ma a lever long enough.and single-handed I can move the world. In .             Jossey & . Bass (Eds.), The jossey-bass reader on educational leadership (2nd ed., pp. 3-            13). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.