printer friendly >
Toolbox
The Toolbox contains a collection of articles with practical advice for school and classroom management.
Toolbox Archives >
Instructional Leadership vs. School Management
Sound familiar? You arrive at school, core values in place, goals and objectives in a row. A teacher stops to tell you his classroom is freezing. Your assistant reports that the building is short two substitute teachers.
Now comes a concerned parent “to see the principal.” No appointment? That’s ok, she’ll wait.
Admit it. There are days when the order of business is one minor crisis after another. But if you’re accountable for student achievement on Proficiency tests—and who isn’t—you need to do more than put out fires.
So, instructional leader or manager? The answer is “yes” to both. Management is the road on which leadership travels. If the road is riddled with potholes, your leadership won’t go very far, very fast.
When the road runs smooth, you have a different story altogether. Now is the time to reflect on smoothing out your school’s routines and procedures as you plan for school year 2000.
As you plan, pull this book off the shelf: The First Days of School identifies two characteristics of a well-managed classroom and school. And like it or not, your own leadership will be the role model for your teachers’ classroom leadership.
From The First Days of School:
School environment is task oriented. Students know exactly what is expected of them and what behaviors will meet those expectations.
School environment is predictable. Just as in sports, students know that the “out” lines won’t change from day to day.
