Differentiating School Leadership

Facing the Challenges of Practice
Daniel L. Duke - University of Virginia, USA
Differentiating School Leadership
November 2009 | 160 pages | Corwin
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ISBN: 9781452273488
Available from January 0001
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ISBN: 9781412970501
Available from January 0001

Description

Leadership Solutions

"Offers a set of extremely useful heuristics, mental models, and organizational checklists with which future and practicing school leaders can analyze leadership situations and take positive, focused action to improve school conditions. The author's gift for narration brings the reader into the case studies and allows you to almost be sitting alongside experienced educational leaders as they ponder about and make decisions concerning critical educational issues. This is highly insightful and helpful for the reader just learning about the complexity of educational leadership and a critical gift for their own future decision making."
—Dan W. Butin, Assistant Dean of Educational Leadership
Cambridge College

"The vignettes, cases, and stories provide insights into what an educational leader at the school level can face each day. These examples lend themselves to professional book study with practicing principals as well as those who aspire to take on that role."
—Michelle Gayle, Principal
Griffin Middle School, Tallahassee, FL

Diagnose your school's critical challenges and apply specific differentiated leadership strategies for improvement!

Whether yours is an urban or a rural school, every setting faces unique types of challenges requiring an appropriate and differentiated response. This book introduces the qualities of differentiated leadership and stresses the importance of understanding that different schools can face very distinct sets of challenges. The author provides principals with an overview of "organizational diagnostics" with guidelines for identifying critical issues and demonstrates how to apply differentiated leadership to four high-level priorities:

  • Preventing school decline
  • Turning around a low-performing school
  • Sustaining improvements
  • Designing a new school

Contents

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments

About the Author

About the Author

Introduction

Introduction

Part I. The Challenge of School Decline

  • 1. Recognizing the Potential for School Decline
  • A School on the Brink
  • Detecting Vulnerabilities
  • The Impact of Inadequate Funding
  • The Impact of a Weak Principal
  • The Impact of a Change in School Culture
  • Meeting the Challenge of School Decline
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps
  • 2. Leadership to Prevent School Decline
  • Leading Schools That Face Demographic Changes
  • The Challenges of Changing Demographics
  • School Leadership in the Face of Demographic Change
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps

Part II. The Challenge of School Turnaround

  • 3. Identifying the Characteristics of Low-Performing Schools
  • A School in Need of Turning Around
  • Analyzing the Causes of Low Performance
  • Diagnosing School-Based Causes
  • Meeting the Challenge of School Turnaround
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps
  • 4. Leadership to Turn Around a Low-Performing School
  • Targeting Key Conditions
  • School Turnaround Leadership
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps

Part III. The Challenge of Sustaining School Improvement

  • 5. Reversing School Failure Is Only the First Step
  • A Promising Start at Stuart High School
  • Determining the Unfinished Agenda
  • Meeting the Challenge of Sustained Improvement
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps
  • 6. Leadership to Sustain School Improvement
  • Building Capacity for Sustained Success
  • The Challenges of Sustained School Improvement
  • Leadership for the Long Haul
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps

Part IV. The Challenge of Creating a New School

  • 7. Leadership for Students Who Need a Different Learning Environment
  • Leading by Design
  • Meeting the Challenge of Creating a New School
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps

Part V. Leadership Lessons

  • 8. Why School Leaders Fail
  • Self-Inflicted Problems
  • The Greatest Mistake of All
  • 9. The Implications of Differentiating Leadership
  • Some Practical Consequences
  • Last Word
  • References
  • Index

Description

Leadership Solutions

"Offers a set of extremely useful heuristics, mental models, and organizational checklists with which future and practicing school leaders can analyze leadership situations and take positive, focused action to improve school conditions. The author's gift for narration brings the reader into the case studies and allows you to almost be sitting alongside experienced educational leaders as they ponder about and make decisions concerning critical educational issues. This is highly insightful and helpful for the reader just learning about the complexity of educational leadership and a critical gift for their own future decision making."
—Dan W. Butin, Assistant Dean of Educational Leadership
Cambridge College

"The vignettes, cases, and stories provide insights into what an educational leader at the school level can face each day. These examples lend themselves to professional book study with practicing principals as well as those who aspire to take on that role."
—Michelle Gayle, Principal
Griffin Middle School, Tallahassee, FL

Diagnose your school's critical challenges and apply specific differentiated leadership strategies for improvement!

Whether yours is an urban or a rural school, every setting faces unique types of challenges requiring an appropriate and differentiated response. This book introduces the qualities of differentiated leadership and stresses the importance of understanding that different schools can face very distinct sets of challenges. The author provides principals with an overview of "organizational diagnostics" with guidelines for identifying critical issues and demonstrates how to apply differentiated leadership to four high-level priorities:

  • Preventing school decline
  • Turning around a low-performing school
  • Sustaining improvements
  • Designing a new school

Contents

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments

About the Author

About the Author

Introduction

Introduction

Part I. The Challenge of School Decline

  • 1. Recognizing the Potential for School Decline
  • A School on the Brink
  • Detecting Vulnerabilities
  • The Impact of Inadequate Funding
  • The Impact of a Weak Principal
  • The Impact of a Change in School Culture
  • Meeting the Challenge of School Decline
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps
  • 2. Leadership to Prevent School Decline
  • Leading Schools That Face Demographic Changes
  • The Challenges of Changing Demographics
  • School Leadership in the Face of Demographic Change
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps

Part II. The Challenge of School Turnaround

  • 3. Identifying the Characteristics of Low-Performing Schools
  • A School in Need of Turning Around
  • Analyzing the Causes of Low Performance
  • Diagnosing School-Based Causes
  • Meeting the Challenge of School Turnaround
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps
  • 4. Leadership to Turn Around a Low-Performing School
  • Targeting Key Conditions
  • School Turnaround Leadership
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps

Part III. The Challenge of Sustaining School Improvement

  • 5. Reversing School Failure Is Only the First Step
  • A Promising Start at Stuart High School
  • Determining the Unfinished Agenda
  • Meeting the Challenge of Sustained Improvement
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps
  • 6. Leadership to Sustain School Improvement
  • Building Capacity for Sustained Success
  • The Challenges of Sustained School Improvement
  • Leadership for the Long Haul
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps

Part IV. The Challenge of Creating a New School

  • 7. Leadership for Students Who Need a Different Learning Environment
  • Leading by Design
  • Meeting the Challenge of Creating a New School
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps

Part V. Leadership Lessons

  • 8. Why School Leaders Fail
  • Self-Inflicted Problems
  • The Greatest Mistake of All
  • 9. The Implications of Differentiating Leadership
  • Some Practical Consequences
  • Last Word
  • References
  • Index
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Differentiating School Leadership

Facing the Challenges of Practice


November 2009 | 160 pages | Corwin

Format Published Date ISBN Price
Paperback 28/04/2023 9781412970501 $39.95
Lifetime 28/04/2023 9781452273488 $36.00

Leadership Solutions

"Offers a set of extremely useful heuristics, mental models, and organizational checklists with which future and practicing school leaders can analyze leadership situations and take positive, focused action to improve school conditions. The author's gift for narration brings the reader into the case studies and allows you to almost be sitting alongside experienced educational leaders as they ponder about and make decisions concerning critical educational issues. This is highly insightful and helpful for the reader just learning about the complexity of educational leadership and a critical gift for their own future decision making."
—Dan W. Butin, Assistant Dean of Educational Leadership
Cambridge College

"The vignettes, cases, and stories provide insights into what an educational leader at the school level can face each day. These examples lend themselves to professional book study with practicing principals as well as those who aspire to take on that role."
—Michelle Gayle, Principal
Griffin Middle School, Tallahassee, FL

Diagnose your school's critical challenges and apply specific differentiated leadership strategies for improvement!

Whether yours is an urban or a rural school, every setting faces unique types of challenges requiring an appropriate and differentiated response. This book introduces the qualities of differentiated leadership and stresses the importance of understanding that different schools can face very distinct sets of challenges. The author provides principals with an overview of "organizational diagnostics" with guidelines for identifying critical issues and demonstrates how to apply differentiated leadership to four high-level priorities:

  • Preventing school decline
  • Turning around a low-performing school
  • Sustaining improvements
  • Designing a new school

Table Of Contents:

  • Acknowledgments
  • About the Author
  • Introduction
  • Part I. The Challenge of School Decline
  • 1. Recognizing the Potential for School Decline
  • A School on the Brink
  • Detecting Vulnerabilities
  • The Impact of Inadequate Funding
  • The Impact of a Weak Principal
  • The Impact of a Change in School Culture
  • Meeting the Challenge of School Decline
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps
  • 2. Leadership to Prevent School Decline
  • Leading Schools That Face Demographic Changes
  • The Challenges of Changing Demographics
  • School Leadership in the Face of Demographic Change
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps
  • Part II. The Challenge of School Turnaround
  • 3. Identifying the Characteristics of Low-Performing Schools
  • A School in Need of Turning Around
  • Analyzing the Causes of Low Performance
  • Diagnosing School-Based Causes
  • Meeting the Challenge of School Turnaround
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps
  • 4. Leadership to Turn Around a Low-Performing School
  • Targeting Key Conditions
  • School Turnaround Leadership
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps
  • Part III. The Challenge of Sustaining School Improvement
  • 5. Reversing School Failure Is Only the First Step
  • A Promising Start at Stuart High School
  • Determining the Unfinished Agenda
  • Meeting the Challenge of Sustained Improvement
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps
  • 6. Leadership to Sustain School Improvement
  • Building Capacity for Sustained Success
  • The Challenges of Sustained School Improvement
  • Leadership for the Long Haul
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps
  • Part IV. The Challenge of Creating a New School
  • 7. Leadership for Students Who Need a Different Learning Environment
  • Leading by Design
  • Meeting the Challenge of Creating a New School
  • Key Lessons and Next Steps
  • Part V. Leadership Lessons
  • 8. Why School Leaders Fail
  • Self-Inflicted Problems
  • The Greatest Mistake of All
  • 9. The Implications of Differentiating Leadership
  • Some Practical Consequences
  • Last Word
  • References
  • Index

Recent Product Reviews:

"Duke's divergence from 'cookie-cutter' leadership theory in [this book] is a result of his extensive work as a researcher and consultant in school transformation and turnaround schools. The simplicity of the message and case studies to illustrate interventions needed in high-priority school settings identified in [this book] provide a practical and insightful look into improving schools."
Glenn Stephen Baete, Jefferson County Public Schools, Louisville, Kentucky
"Offers a set of extremely useful heuristics, mental models, and organizational checklists with which future and practicing school leaders can analyze leadership situations and take positive, focused action to improve school conditions. I really appreciated the numerous frameworks for thinking about school reform and the models that clearly differentiated across different school conditions. The author’s gift for narration brings the reader into the case studies and allows you to almost be sitting alongside experienced educational leaders as they ponder about and make decisions concerning critical educational issues. This is highly insightful and helpful for the reader just learning about the complexity of educational leadership and a critical gift for their own future decision making."
Dan W. Butin, Assistant Dean of Educational Leadership, Cambridge College
"Addresses real issues of every school leader. The vignettes, cases, and stories provide important insight into what an educational leader at the school level can be faced with each day. These examples lend themselves to great material for a professional book study with practicing principals as well as those who aspire to take on that role."
Michelle Gayle, Principal, Griffin Middle School, Tallahassee, FL
"Superintendents, curriculum specialists, and teacher leaders will find the information useful and the suggestions easily implemented, to say nothing of the thoughts provoked and the comments generated by those who share the reading."
Stephen Shepperd, Retired Elementary Principal, Kellogg, ID

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