Principles for Princi-PALS and Teachers!: One Principal’s Mind-Staggering Insight into Students’ Hope-Filled Futures

By Noah Riley

The missing link to an unsuccessful, stagnant school is a need for the ability to leverage influential leadership and teaching practices. In "Principles for Princi-Pals -- and Teachers," presented in two parts, the author offers insight into leveraging influential leadership and teaching practices.
Part One offers a practical platform for principals and teachers who remain committed to reflecting on their beliefs and increasing their skills, strategies, and practices to establish and maintain highly effective school settings where ALL students continuously thrive at consistently elevated levels. To help educators meet the challenge, the author shares what he calls first principles intended to be a catalyst that will spark courageous conversations and ignite action among aspiring principals, current principals, master principals, aspiring teachers, first-year teachers, and master teachers. They are helpful for all educators who are up to the challenge of building more robust, inclusive school cultures. These first principles help shield educators from the influence of the ever-evolving ills of society and the world on the challenge schools face in educating students. At the end of each chapter in Part One, principals/school leaders and teachers, respectively, are provided a framework to reflect on the principles and apply their leadership and teaching perspective to their work settings.
Part Two gives real-life applications of these first principles in the daily operation of schools and classrooms. Drawing on his experience, the author offers insight into practical strategies for increasing the skills and competencies necessary to ensure a thriving, working school environment.
Rather than a competing product, this book is a companion tool to all books on educational leadership, focusing on improving leadership and teaching practices that influence student learning. The book keeps educators focused on the essential characteristics that defined their initial excitement and enthusiasm, their dedicated commitment to serving students at all costs, and their determination to succeed as influential educational leaders and teachers. It keeps them focused on their initial Vision of Service to ALL students.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Oct 11, 2023
• ISBN: 9798350911473

Book preview

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Principles for Princi-PALS and Teachers!

© 2023 Noah Riley

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

ISBN 979-8-35091-146-6

eBook ISBN 979-8-35091-147-3

Contents

Definition

Preface

Acknowledgements

Part One

Chapter One - Against All Odds

Cultivating a Rhythm of Reflective Practice

Chapter Two - Positive Contributors to Society

Cultivating a Rhythm of Reflective Practice

Chapter Three - Backward With Intention

Cultivating a Rhythm of Reflective Practice

Chapter Four - Backward With Intention

Cultivating a Rhythm of Reflective Practice

Chapter Five - Partnering with Parents

Cultivating a Rhythm of Reflective Practice

Chapter Six - Collaboration, Self-reflection,

and Timely Feedback

Cultivating a Rhythm of Reflective Practice

Chapter Seven - Building the Competencies You Want

Cultivating a Rhythm of Reflective Practice

Chapter Eight - Spiritual Acumen

Cultivating a Rhythm of Reflective Practice

Part Two

Epilogue (Building a Vocabulary for Courageous Conversations)

About School Walks And Data Walls

About Using Technology Tools

About Building Staff Culture

About Relationships Between Principals

And Their Supervisors

About Central Office Leadership And The School Board

About Educational Leaders vs. Managers

About School Site Visits

About Disrupters And Innovators Of Education

About Eliminating The Effects Of Poor Grading Policies And Practices

About The Process Of Change Leadership

Establishing The Foundation For Trusting Relationships

Redefining The Role Of The Principal Supervisor

Building Principal Instructional Leadership Capacity

About Potential Barriers To Change Leadership

Help For Those Who Are Still On The Fence

Final Thoughts

Reprise Challenge For Princi-Pals And Teachers

APPENDICE

Seven Principles+ One

Disruptive & Innovative Formula

Reference List

About the Author

Vision-in-Outline— 5-Point Model to Build Back, Better Education

Mini-Workshop Objective

Principles For Princi-Pals And Teachers!

Principles For Princi-Pals — And Teachers!

DEDICATION

This book is dedicated with heartfelt appreciation and gratitude

to

Dr. Bernice Holloway,

former superintendent of Bellwood School District 88/Bellwood, Illinois,

for her enthusiasm, spirit of encouragement, and confidence in giving me

my first experience as a school principal;

and posthumously

to

Dr. Mark Smith,

Beloved professor emeritus of Wayne State University/Detroit, Michigan,

whose mentor-coach relationship with me helped establish the foundation

for growing my leadership ability to influence instruction and learning in the schools where I served students.

Definition

‘Pal’ on the end of principal is used in that the principal is viewed as a trusted friend to staff, students, and their parents and as a partner of mutual respect and shared accountability for student success.

Explanation of writing style

At the core of this book, the writer has chosen to use what he calls ‘conversational writing’ (e.g., in the form of a speaking engagement). Refrain from being sidetracked, thus, by incomplete sentences and short connecting phrases. Just a heads up! You see? That was one. LOL!

PREFACE

…students we serve will leave our domains

better equipped to fulfill their interests

and to contribute to their community, and

to the betterment of society and the world.

Mantra for Influential Princi-Pals and Teachers!!!

"We can, whenever and wherever we choose, successfully teach

all children whose schooling is of interest to us. We already know

more than we need to do this. Whether we do it or not must finally

depend on how we feel about the fact that we have not done it so far."

Ron Edmunds

Principals and other school leaders implement, monitor, and strengthen strategic learning plans for their schools. Determined teacher educators, as well, join in this equity journey to developing strategies and improving leadership and teaching practices to ameliorate the harmful effects of poor principal and teacher practices on students. The effects notably damage those students inappropriately labeled as ‘at-risk;’ and those considered marginalized and often struggling, reluctant learners.

Baby boomer educational leaders, and beyond, at the very beginning of our careers, were determined to successfully commit to the criteria described in the research on the correlates of effective schools. Most, if truthful, were convinced that once accomplished, they would realize their mission of Learning for All in the schools where we served. Subsequently, we bought into the mission of a student-centered learning environment that was inclusive and belonging to every student. This mission emphasizes that all students would aspire to their fullest potential. And it did. The mission was more than just on its merit, however.

An underlying driving force is necessary to ensure the desired product— students’ hope-filled futures.The underlying driving force is the foundational first principles of leadership and teaching that undergird effective monitoring indicators of equitable programming and processes for meeting the needs of all students. The first principles apply regardless of students’ race, ethnicity, culture, gender, religion, or sexual orientation. First Principles are foundational propositions that stand alone. They lead to practical results. The First Principles included in this book are outgrowths of sound educational leadership principles. They are proven leadership and teaching propositions that stand alone.

Furthermore, several educational gurus and practitioners have validated these propositions. The propositions align with the thinking of the current educational community. To achieve desired results, these foundational first principles of leadership and teaching must be ever present in the minds of those dedicated to uncovering equity-related issues and focusing on equitable practices and outcomes to support standards of equity in their schools and classrooms. This equity journey has challenges, however. Take, for instance, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. With its onset, the disparity of facing new and ever-evolving challenges in schools and Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines, sometimes without the support of parents or community, often tended to distract principals’ focus away from their primary purpose—influencing the execution of quality instruction and culture in their schools.

Teachers, too, were distracted from their primary purpose—executing quality instruction in their classrooms. The disparities include the unfortunate occurrences of school shootings, other mass shootings in low-end and high-echelon communities, controversies surrounding LGBQT+ identities, and discussions about the Critical Race Theory (CRT). Current polls and statistics seem to indicate that many educators—principals and teachers included, due to the stress of meeting these recent high demands, are no longer simply transferring from their jobs to work in more affluent schools and districts offering higher pay, multiple support resources and void of the behavioral characteristics often observed in students of high needs and low performing districts but are leaving the profession. This reality not only leaves millions of students’ lives adversely affected but also hampers the ability of schools, particularly high-need schools, to initiate and sustain school improvement efforts required to achieve meaningful gains for all students.

All educators—principals and teachers – can make equitable, inclusive, and student-centered large-scale organizational change. For best results, however, it will be foundational first principles of leadership and teaching that make the difference of lasting and impactful change in the lives of the students we serve. The organizational change will require courageous educators to unpack leadership and teacher practices that hinder students from aspiring to their fullest potential. Moreover, of course, doing so while avoiding polarizing language or