WE INSPIRE SUCCESS, CONFIDENCE & HOPE IN EACH STUDENT Leadership for Learning Climate for Learning and Working Teaching and Learning Peel Leadership Framework for Instructional Staff Leadership Development and School Support Services
Whether you are an aspiring leader or already in a leadership position, the Peel Leadership Framework provides important insights about building your leadership capacity. It is a valuable tool for self-reflection and self-assessment. The Peel Leadership Framework is designed to: Facilitate a shared vision of leadership in our schools and district Promote a common language that fosters an understanding of leadership and what it means to be a school or system leader Identify the practices, actions and personal resources that describe effective leadership Provide a framework for reflection and mentoring Guide the design and implementation of professional learning and development for school and system leaders Support School Success Planning Align performance based assessment with evaluation and annual success planning Aid in the recruitment, development, selection and retention of school and system leaders Guide and direct candidates through the promotion process Leadership Development and Preparing for the Promotion Process As part of the reflective preparation involved in leadership development, you may use this tool as a gap analysis to determine which leadership domains and practices are your areas of strength and which require you to gain more experience or participate in additional training. Used in conjunction with the Peel Leadership Strategy Continuum at a Glance document, you can map out your leadership development journey and help inform your Annual Learning Plan. As part of the Promotion Process Application for Vice-Principal and Principal, you will use this tool as a leadership readiness self-assessment. Complete the developmental continuum for the Personal Leadership Resources and each of the five domains identified in this framework under Leadership for Learning, Climate for Learning and Working, and Teaching and Learning. Provide supporting evidence of your leadership in action, including reflections and the impact of your leadership on student achievement and well-being within a diverse school community as part of your application package.
The five domains are: Leadership for Learning: Climate for Learning and Working: Teaching and Learning: 1 setting directions 2 securing accountability 3 Building relationships and developing people 4 developing the organization to support desired practices 5 Improving the Instructional Program School Success Planning One Plan, One Place Through School Success Planning, schools set measurable goals based on their school s areas of greatest need and implement success strategies to increase student achievement and well-being within a diverse school community. The Peel Leadership Framework and School Success Planning share a common focus on Leadership for Learning, Climate for Learning and Working, and Teaching and Learning. Developmental Continuum This tool has been designed to: link and align School Success Planning and leadership development honour the developmental continuum of leadership growth promote reflection of leadership development identify within the five domains, areas of strength and next steps provide a common language for conversation and descriptive feedback Personal Awareness Becoming familiar with Limited opportunities to experience Observing and recognizing Acquiring knowledge about Beginning Application Familiar with and beginning to incorporate into philosophy and practice Beginning to apply knowledge into action Some opportunities to experience and put into practice Application Incorporates into philosophy and practice Applies knowledge and action Many opportunities to experience and practice Routine use Consultative Integration Philosophy and practice are embedded in School Success Planning Automatic and sophisticated knowledge and action An integral part of experience and practice Reflecting and experimenting Intuitive, intentional and situational 1
Leadership for Learning Climate for Learning and Working Teaching and Learning Personal Leadership Resources Effective leaders tend to possess a small but critical number of personal leadership resources that they draw upon when enacting the leadership practices identified in this framework. These resources are applied by effective school leaders as needed across each of the five domains under Leadership for Learning, Climate for Learning and Working, and Teaching and Learning, playing a key role in considering readiness for promotion. Cognitive Resources Problem-solving expertise Understanding/interpreting problems Identifying goals Articulating principles and values Identifying constraints Developing solution processes Maintaining calm/confidence in the face of challenging problems Knowledge about school and classroom conditions with direct effects on student learning Technical/rational conditions Emotional conditions Organizational conditions Family conditions Systems thinking Being able to understand the dense, complex and reciprocal connections among different elements of the organization Having foresight to engage the organization in likely futures and consequences for action Psychological Resources Optimism Habitually expecting positive results from our efforts Recognizing where we have and do not have opportunities for direct influence and control Taking positive risks Self-efficacy Believing in our own ability to perform a task or achieve a goal As a result of positive self-efficacy, taking responsible risks, expending substantial effort and persisting in the face of initial failure Resilience Being able to recover from or adjust easily to change or misfortune Being able to thrive in challenging circumstances Proactivity Being able to stimulate and effectively manage change on a large scale under complex circumstances Showing initiative and perseverance in bringing about meaningful change Social Resources Perceiving emotions Recognizing our own emotional responses Discerning emotional responses in others through verbal and non-verbal cues Managing emotions Reflecting on our own emotional responses and their potential consequences Persuading others to likewise reflect on their responses Acting in emotionally appropriate ways Being able to exercise control over which emotions guide our actions Being able to help others act on emotions that serve their best interests 2
Leadership for Learning Climate for Learning and Working Teaching and Learning Personal Leadership Resources Personal Awareness Beginning Application Application Integration Cognitive Resources Problem-solving expertise Knowledge about school and classroom conditions with direct effects on student learning systems thinking Social Resources Perceiving emotions Managing emotions Acting in emotionally appropriate ways Psychological Resources Optimism Self-efficacy Resilience Proactivity These essential resources are applied as needed across each of the five domains under Leadership for Learning, Climate for Learning and Working, and Teaching and Learning, within the appropriate context of a diverse school community. Evidence of the Personal Leadership Resources in action should be clear throughout the Evidence/Reflections/Impact on Student Achievement and Personal Leadership within a Diverse School Community section for each of the five domains. 3
Leadership for Learning setting directions Effective leaders use this set of leadership practices to ensure that a meaningful vision and relevant goals rooted in high expectations for all members of the school community are identified, communicated and enacted upon. Empowering stakeholders in this process better serves the needs of a diverse student population, including English language learners and students with special needs, and develops more inclusive and effective schools. Building a shared vision Establish with staff, students and other stakeholders an overall sense of purpose or vision for work in their schools to which they are all strongly committed through the development of an aligned School Success Plan respectful of a diverse school community Build an understanding of the specific implications of the school s vision for its programs and the nature of classroom instruction Help staff and other stakeholders to understand the relationship between their school s vision and board and provincial policy initiatives and priorities Encourage the development of organizational norms that support openness to change in the direction of that purpose or vision Identifying specific, shared, short-term goals Facilitate stakeholder engagement in processes that ensure all voices are heard for identifying specific school goals Ensure the goals are clearly and effectively communicated to all stakeholders Regularly encourage staff to evaluate their progress toward achieving school goals Make frequent explicit reference to (and use of) the School Success Plan and the school s goals when engaged in decisions about school programs and directions Build consensus among students, staff and other stakeholders for the school s goals and priorities ensuring all voices are heard Encourage staff to develop and periodically review individual professional growth goals, as well as the relationship between their individual goals and the school s goals Creating high performance expectations Make one s expectations known through words and actions Have high expectations for teachers, for students and for oneself Devote additional effort to creating high expectations among staff for the achievement of students who have traditionally struggled to be successful at school Encourage staff to be innovative in achieving those expectations Encourage staff to assume responsibility for achieving the school s vision and goals with all students Communicating the vision and goals Use many different formal and informal opportunities to explain the overall vision and goals established for the school to stakeholders Demonstrate to all stakeholders what the school s vision and goals mean in practice Regularly invite different stakeholder groups to describe how their work furthers the school s vision and goals 4
Leadership for Learning setting directions Core Leadership Practices and how each is enacted by effective school leaders: Personal Awareness Beginning Application Application Integration Building a shared vision Identifying specific, shared, short-term goals Creating high performance expectations Communicating the vision and goals Evidence/Reflections/Impact on student achievement and personal leadership within a diverse school community: 5
Leadership for Learning setting directions Evidence/Reflections/Impact on student achievement and personal leadership within a diverse school community (continued): 6
Leadership for Learning securing accountability With the aim of on-going school improvement and sustaining public confidence in the school, effective leaders help build a sense of internal accountability for achieving school goals on the part of stakeholders, as well as meeting the external conditions for accountability. Building staff members sense of internal accountability Regularly engage staff in the analysis of evidence about the learning progress of all students Promote collective responsibility and accountability for student achievement and well-being Participate actively in one s own performance appraisal and make adjustments to better meet expectations and goals Insist on the use of evidence that is of high quality (reliable, valid, using systematic collection processes, available in original form, subject to collaborative interpretation) Help staff make connections between school, district and ministry goals in order to strengthen commitment to school improvement efforts and the School Success Plan Assess one s own contributions to school achievements and take account of feedback from others Meeting the demands for external accountability Clearly define individual staff accountabilities in terms that are understood, agreed to and can be rigorously reviewed and evaluated Measure and monitor teacher and leader effectiveness using evidence about changes in student achievement Align school targets with board and provincial targets Provide an accurate and transparent account of the school s performance to all school stakeholders (e.g., ministry, board, parents, community) Create an organizational structure which reflects the school s values and enables management systems, structures and processes to work within legal requirements 7
Leadership for Learning securing accountability Core Leadership Practices and how each is enacted by effective school leaders: Personal Awareness Beginning Application Application Integration Building staff members sense of internal accountability Meeting the demands for external accountability Evidence/Reflections/Impact on student achievement and personal leadership within a diverse school community: 8
Leadership for Learning securing accountability Evidence/Reflections/Impact on student achievement and personal leadership within a diverse school community (continued): 9
Climate for Learning and Working Building relationships and developing people Building not only the knowledge and skills staff need to accomplish organization goals, but also the dispositions to persist in applying these are powerful sources of efficacy. Effective leaders informally and formally contribute to the professional and leadership development of staff from diverse communities, backgrounds and identities. Building healthy, trusting and productive relationships with all stakeholders and within a diverse school community is essential. Providing support and demonstrating consideration for individual staff members Recognize individual staff member accomplishments Consider staff members opinions when initiating actions that affect their work Build upon and respond to individual staff members unique needs and expertise Treat individuals and groups equitably Stimulating growth in the professional capacities of staff Encourage staff to reflect on what they are trying to achieve with students and how they are doing it Challenge staff to re-examine the extent to which their practices engage student voice and contribute to the authentic learning of all of their students Facilitate opportunities for staff to learn with and from each other Suggest new ideas for staff learning Lead discussions about the relative merits of current and alternative practices Encourage staff to pursue their own goals for professional learning Encourage staff to develop and review their own professional growth goals and their relationship to school goals and priorities Encourage staff to try new practices consistent with their own interests and school goals Building trusting relationships with and among staff, students and parents Act in ways that consistently reflect the school s core values and priorities and support an equitable and inclusive environment Demonstrate respect for the diversity of staff, students and parents by listening to their ideas, being open to those ideas and genuinely considering their value Encourage staff, students and parents to listen to one another s ideas and genuinely consider their value within an equitable and inclusive learning community Create norms in the school which value constructive debate about best practices Demonstrate respect, care and personal regard for all students, staff and parents Encourage staff, students and parents to demonstrate respect, care and personal regard for one another Demonstrate competence when carrying out tasks Establishing productive working relationships with teacher federation representatives Include federation representatives (along with staff more generally) in processes for establishing goals for school improvement Encourage federation representatives to keep their members well-informed about their work with school leaders Encourage federation representatives to collaborate in determining how to implement labour contract provisions so that they support school improvement work Modelling the school s values and practices Be highly visible in one s school Be easily accessible to staff, parents and students Have frequent, meaningful, interactions with teachers, students and parents that further the school goals and build a climate for inclusive shared responsibility, capacity and leadership Exemplify through one s own actions the school s core values and its desired practices including equity and inclusion Demonstrate the importance of reflective practice and continuous learning through visible engagement in one s own professional learning 10
Climate for Learning and Working Building relationships and developing people Core Leadership Practices and how each is enacted by effective school leaders: Personal Awareness Beginning Application Application Integration Providing support and demonstrating consideration for individual staff members Stimulating growth in the professional capacities of staff Modelling the school s values and practices Building trusting relationships with and among staff, students and parents Establishing productive working relationships with teacher federation representatives Evidence/Reflections/Impact on student achievement and personal leadership within a diverse school community: 11
Climate for Learning and Working Building relationships and developing people Evidence/Reflections/Impact on student achievement and personal leadership within a diverse school community (continued): 12
Teaching and Learning developing the organization to support desired practices Working to build a school culture of collaboration requires attention to organizational structures, physical and emotional safety, community partnerships and the allocation of resources in light of the School Success Plan. Leveraging each of these in the interest of student achievement and well-being within a diverse school community is the task of an effective leader. Building collaborative cultures and distributing leadership Help develop the shared determination of group processes and outcomes Help develop clarity about goals and roles for collaboration Foster open and fluent communication among collaborators Provide adequate and consistent resources to support collaborative work Involve staff in the design and implementation of important school decisions and policies Provide staff with leadership opportunities and support them as they take on these opportunities Encourage a willingness to compromise among collaborators Model collaboration in the conduct of one s own work Nurture inclusivity, mutual respect and trust among those involved in collaborating Structuring the organization to facilitate collaboration Create timetables for teaching that maximize time on tasks for students Provide regular opportunities and structures to monitor and encourage teachers to work together on instructional improvement Participate with staff in their collective instructional improvement work Engage teachers in making decisions that affect their instructional work Establish team and group structures for problem solving Distribute leadership for selected tasks Allocating resources in support of the school s vision and goals Enact efficient budgetary processes Secure sufficient resources of all types needed to carry out the instructional work of the school Provide sustained funding for the school s improvement priorities Distribute resources of all types in ways that are closely aligned with the school s improvement priorities and the School Success Plan Revisit and realign the nature, amount and alignment of resources as priorities for school improvement change Building productive relationships with families and communities Create a school environment in which parents are welcomed, respected, valued and included as partners in their children s learning Demonstrate leadership which parents trust (confident, systematic and attentive) Help develop staff commitment to engaging parents in the school Work with staff to provide direct assistance to diverse families that will help them provide their children with support in the home that will contribute to their success at school Encourage staff to adopt a broad, equitable and inclusive view of parent engagement that encourages more parents to be involved Help connect families to the wider network of social services they may need Assist staff to better use the social and intellectual capital of students from diverse family backgrounds for instructional purposes in their classrooms Connecting the school to its wider environment Develop and maintain connections with other expert school and district leaders, those knowledgeable about policy and members of the educational research community Maintaining a safe and healthy environment Secure the school s physical facilities from unwanted intrusions and intruders Maintain the physical facility in a safe, healthy and attractive condition Communicate standards for non-violent behaviour and uphold those standards in an equitable manner Empower adults in the school to play a leadership role in promoting a positive, inclusive school climate for learning and working, and model appropriate behaviour Implement and monitor the use of appropriate discipline practices not only in classrooms but in all other locations within the school Develop the processes with staff and students to identify and resolve conflicts quickly and effectively to re-engage, repair, rebuild and restore relationships, a sense of safety and inclusion as needed Provide opportunities for staff and students to learn about effective conflict resolution and problem-solving strategies that can support social justice and foster equity in education practices and procedures 13
Teaching and Learning developing the organization to support desired practices Core Leadership Practices and how each is enacted by effective school leaders: Personal Awareness Beginning Application Application Integration Building collaborative cultures and distributing leadership Structuring the organization to facilitate collaboration Allocating resources in support of the school s vision and goals Building productive relationships with families and communities Connecting the school to its wider environment Maintaining a safe and healthy environment Evidence/Reflections/Impact on student achievement and personal leadership within a diverse school community: 14
Teaching and Learning developing the organization to support desired practices Evidence/Reflections/Impact on student achievement and personal leadership within a diverse school community (continued): 15
Teaching and Learning Improving the Instructional Program Effective leaders can guide and monitor student learning and school improvement by providing both indirect and direct support to staff within a positive and healthy learning environment that leads to high quality instruction. Effective use of data in guiding collaborative decision making enables the realization of School Success goals. Staffing the instructional program Recruit and select qualified teachers with the interest and capacity to further the school s efforts, adhering to board policies, procedures and practices related to recruitment, hiring and assignment of staff to meet program needs, performance appraisal, leaves of absence and human rights Recruit and select qualified staff who will foster the success of our diverse student population Retain skilled teachers by providing support and time for collaboration, sharing leadership, creating a shared vision for instruction and building trusting relationships Providing instructional support Actively oversee the instructional program so that all students belonging to a diverse school community can be successful Coordinate what is taught across subjects and grades to avoid unnecessary overlap while providing needed reinforcement and extension of learning goals Provide adequate preparation time for teachers Observe in classrooms and provide constructive feedback that is useful to teachers and supports learning for all Provide advice to teachers about how to solve classroom problems Engage teachers in observing effective instructional practices among colleagues in their own school as well as in other schools Participate with staff in their instructional improvement work Monitoring student learning and school improvement progress Provide conditions for teachers to use data effectively (time, support, partnerships with experts, data culture) Give priority to identifying students most in need of additional support Assist staff in understanding the importance of student assessment for, of, and as learning Collaborate with staff during the process of data interpretation Use multiple sources of evidence when diagnosing student progress Incorporate explicit data use in almost all decisions about student learning and school improvement Examine trends in student achievement over time (one or more years), rather than just at one point in time, when assessing student learning Collect and use data about the status of those classroom and school conditions serving as the focus of their school improvement efforts Buffering staff from distractions to their work Implement a systematic procedure for deciding how best to respond to initiatives from outside the school Develop guidelines with staff to govern the amount of time teachers spend on non-instructional and out-of-school activities Regularly assess the contribution of all out-of-classroom activities to the learning priorities of students Create and enforce consistent, school-wide discipline policies Minimize daily disruptions to classroom instructional time 16
Teaching and Learning Improving the Instructional Program Core Leadership Practices and how each is enacted by effective school leaders: Personal Awareness Beginning Application Application Integration Staffing the instructional program Providing instructional support Monitoring student learning and school improvement progress Buffering staff from distractions to their work Evidence/Reflections/Impact on student achievement and personal leadership within a diverse school community: 17
Teaching and Learning Improving the Instructional Program Evidence/Reflections/Impact on student achievement and personal leadership within a diverse school community (continued): 18
Revised March 2014 Leadership Development and School Support Services