Professional Learning with TCRWP Instructional Leadership

This is my third post reflecting on the learning that took place during a one day conference with presenters Laurie Passah and Mary Ehrenworth from the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project. You can read my first post here and my second post here.

Laurie was a former principal and lead this portion of the conference focusing on instructional leadership. Here are some of her key points:

• Be clear about your vision and let that guide you to when you do and do not say, "Yes."
• Be the most visible learner in your building.
• Develop school-wide structures that support collaboration.
• Decide if and when assessment windows will fall.
• Establish common planning times.
• Develop school-wide systems of note-taking and data collections.
• Support establishment of teacher leaders (some emerge out of study groups).
• Seize every opportunity for PD (longer am recess, etc).
• Support study groups that pop up.
• Start thinking NOW (December) about June planning.
• Schedule walkthroughs with teacher leaders and administration. (choose one indicator to look for, what are we noticing/wondering. Do this in EVERY SINGLE classroom.
• Find problems and rally people around them.
• Help people work smarter, not harder.
• Develop a community of learners that read and write together.
• Be the protector of the learning time (for both teachers and students).

I have been in buildings with these types of leaders and have been inspired to grow. Strong instructional leaders who build up more leaders in their building are whom I want to work for and strive to be like.