Professional Organizations
This section describes the types of supports available to principals
through a number of major education professional organizations.
These organizations, the Association for Supervision and Curriculum
Development (ASCD), the National Association of Elementary School
Principals (NAESP), the National Association of Secondary School
Principals (NASSP) and the National Staff Development Council (NSDC),
provide ongoing professional development, resources (on-line and
print), and tools to support the development of educational leaders.
Although all these organizations develop their offerings based on
strong theory and research, there remains a lack of empirical examination
of the impacts of these various offerings on student learning.
In addition to the organizations listed above, there are commissions
addressing this critical topic. These groups provide valuable information
to the field and often act as conveners of key informants. We also
include resources from one of these, the National Commission for
the Advancement of Educational Leadership Preparation (NCAELP),
below.
Association
for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD)
ASCD is working to create a more meaningful educational experience
for all students. An essential component of this work is providing
a wide range of professional development opportunities for new and
experienced teachers and school administrators. These opportunities
on the ASCD web site are organized primarily by type—workshop,
on-line course, etc. include the following:
- “Action tools,” which help educators implement an
innovation or practice or accomplish a specific goal, e.g., analytic
processes for school leaders step-by-step, creating the capacity
for change, several modules of a guide for instructional leaders,
and implementing ASCDs new Healthy School Report Card
- “Professional inquiry kits” on various topics, including
emotional intelligence, are intended for use by educator study
groups working together to better understand a topic and incorporate
it into their practice
On-line courses, which are organized not only by topic but also
by intended target group (i.e., administrators, beginning teachers,
experienced teachers), include a 6-lesson offering on “contemporary
school leadership”
- ASCD also works with districts to develop on-site training to
meet their needs, drawing from its large pool of faculty consultants.
Tools to plan and make best use of ASCD consultants are available
on the web site
- 1 to 4-day workshops, including 1 to 3-day “institutes”
and 4-day “academies” are in-depth professional development
offerings on such topics as coaching the adult learner and guiding
professional learning communities to achieve state standards
- A section of the ASCD web site lists several professional development
strategies, such as study groups, action research, peer coaching
and review, reflection, and collaborative planning. It includes
an explanation and rationale for the use of each, guidance on
how to get started using each, and where to read more about and
find other resources related to each
- ASCD offers the following guidance in designing professional
development for educators: focus learning activities on meeting
student learning goals; include both teachers and administrators
in the design process; make development activities school-based,
job-embedded, and part of an integrated long-term strategy; differentiate
training and tie it to district goals
National
Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP)
In addition to developing its own standards for principals on leading
learning communities (Leading Learning Communities: Standards for
What Principals Should Know and Be Able to Do), NAESP has developed
a seven-part series of professional development experiences that
brings these standards to life. The series features instructional
methods such as case studies, cooperative tasks, simulations, reflection,
and action planning. Other NAESP professional development opportunities
for principals include:
- National Leadership Academy, which offers the flexibility of
workshops, seminars, and e-learning and balances theory and practical
advice from renowned speakers with opportunities for collegial
support and continuing education (CEUSs) or professional development
units (PDUs)
- In collaboration with the Council for Educational Change (CEC),
a New and Aspiring Principals Academy, a year-long learning community
experience featuring 2-day events 4 times a year, mentor-led cohort
groups, and assessment of leadership skills
- Accelerated School Administrator Program (ASAP), an e-learning
experience based on the NAESP standards, offering new and aspiring
principals development in communication skills, decision making,
creating learning communities for shared visioning and supportive
culture, etc.
- Series of 6 day-long workshops on understanding and applying
the ISLLC (Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium) standards
- In association with Nova Southeastern University, Principals
Advisory Leadership Services (PALS), a national mentoring certification
program that requires a 72-contact hour practicum with a mentor
National
Association of Secondary School Principals
(NASSP)
NASSP helps to train successful school middle school and high school
leaders by providing development programs designed to meet today's
complex educational challenges. Current NASSP programs include:
- 2-3 day trainings in Breaking Ranks, Breaking Ranks II, and
Breaking Ranks in the Middle to assist middle and high school
principals in implementing the elements advocated in NASSP’s
Breaking Ranks school reform model. Three-day trainings include
a 1-day train-the-trainer component.
- A book of 360 assessment exercises and development guide, 21st
Century School Administrator Skills Self-Assessment and Observer
Assessment, whichprovides principals with tools for gathering
and analyzing data on their own leadership skills and with the
help of a mentor or coach guidance on creating their own professional
development plan
- Assistance provided over a several month period to regional
consortia of school districts, professional associations, universities,
or other groups in developing an assessment and development center.
Such centers build their own cadres of local trainers to provide
development experiences to current and aspiring principals that
are based on a selected training model, are responsive to the
diagnosed needs of local participants, and are aligned with ISLLC
(Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium) standards. Steps
in developing such centers are provided on the NASSP website.
- Chart of college and university programs in educational administration
that have gained recognition by the Educational Leadership Constituent
Council (ELLC) which uses standards developed by the National
Policy Board for Educational Administration (NPBEA) to assess
the quality of these programs.
National
Staff Development Council (NSDC)
NSDC’s standards for the design of professional development
covers such topics as leadership, resources, evaluation, and research
base and are posted on the NSCD web site. The standards address
the domains of content, context, and process. All standards focus
on creating learning experiences that will improve the skills of
school and district leaders in guiding continuous instructional
improvement.
NSDC standards are based on three guiding questions:
- What are all students expected to know and be able to do? This
addresses student learning standards
- What must teachers know and do in order to ensure student success?
This addresses teacher professional practice standards.
- Where must staff development focus to meet both of these goals?
This addresses staff development standards?
NSDC resources include:
- The NSDC website has an extensive library of staff development
articles for download on such topics as diversity and equity,
evaluation, learning communities, model staff development programs,
and resources for staff development
- NSDC conducts 2-days workshops each year on such topics as designs
for professional development and leading for results at various
sites around the country
- Periodically, NSDC conducts an “Academy,” in which
school administrators, teachers, professionals from state and
local education agencies, professional association staff, university
faculty, and others participate in an extended learning experience
modeled on the Council’s vision for professional learning
and teamwork in schools. During the Academy, participants collaborate
in inquiry- and problem-based learning in solving school-based
problems they have brought. An application for the next academy
can be downloaded form the web site.
- NSDC has affiliate staff development councils in 10 states,
which advocate for educator training tied to state academic standards
- In collaboration with the Brande Foundation, NSDC provides long-term
“life coaching” to superintendents and principals
who lead schools with high concentrations of low-income and minority
students. The premise of this program is that such coaching promotes
“happier” educational leaders who are better and more
creative in their work.
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