The Principal’s Companion

Pam Robbins earned her doctorate in educational administration from the University of California, Berkeley. Currently, she consults with school systems, professional organizations, State Departments of Education, leadership academies, and corporations throughout the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Europe, Asia, and South America. Her presentation topics include professional learning communities, effective teaching, how the brain learns, emotional intelligence, leadership, teaching in the block schedule, peer coaching, school culture, and presentation skills. Pam has served as a teacher, high school basketball coach, administrator, director of special projects and research, and director of training for the North Bay California Leadership Academy. She has lectured at several universities, authored and co-authored books, and developed training materials for several principals' academies.

The classic personal guide for principals, updated to address today's challengesOf all the elements needed for a successful school, a competent, responsive and visionary principal may be the most important. And for over a decade, principals of all experience levels have turned to The Principal's Companion for ideas, techniques and reflective opportunities that help them do their jobs better. The thoroughly updated fourth edition covers big-picture strategies and day-to-day tactics such as: The principal's many rolesCritical skills for effective leadershipHonoring the school's missionWorking together to build a learning communityStarting effectively and staying the course

Foreword - Kent D. PetersonPrefaceAcknowledgmentsAbout the AuthorsPart I. The Principal¿s Many Roles1. Leader as Learner Principal as Lifelong Learner Learning in Many Contexts The Expanding Role of the Principal A Global Perspective When Old and New Ideas Converge Reflections2. Leader as Manager Instructional Leadership Requires Effective Management Management Responsibilities and Strategies Crisis Management Planning A Final Observation Regarding School Management Reflections3. Leader as Shaper of School Culture Core Values and Beliefs Are the Heart of Culture The Physical Environment Reflects Core Values: Portraits of Practice Rituals Display Core Values and Call Attention to What Is Important Celebrations Call Attention to What Is Important How People Spend Time Reflects Core Values Norms Are the Unwritten Rules of Culture Powerful Stories Communicate and Reinforce Cultural Values Reading, Transforming, or Shaping a Culture Final Thoughts on Culture ReflectionsPart II. Critical Skills for Effective Leadership4. The Art of Human Relations: Getting the Job Done Task and Relationship Behaviors Differentiated Support Personality Styles Recommendations for Skillful Human Relations The Role of Emotions in the Organization: Remembering the Heart Reflections5. Managing Time: Leading With Purpose Brevity, Fragmentation, and Variety Techniques for Time Management Managing Bifocally Multitasking: A Modern-Day Solution or Hazard? Final Thoughts on Using Time Reflections6. Effectively Working With the Central Office: Coordinating Teaching, Learning, and Professional Development Caught in the Middle How Is the School District Governed? Communication Between the Schools and the Central Office The District Office as a Teaching and Learning Center The District Office and Principal Evaluations: Partnering for Success Management Tips for Working With the Central Office Maintaining a Strong Relationship Between the Central Office and the School Forging a School and Central Office Partnership: Putting Staff and Student Learning First ReflectionsPart III. Honoring the School¿s Mission7. Understanding, Planning, and Implementing Change Guiding the Change Journey: Three Questions Understanding Change Change Brings Loss and Resistance Change Influences Individuals and the Organization Failure, Risk-Taking, and Conflict: Ingredients for Change Strategies to Promote Trust Classical Insights Regarding Change and Continuous Improvement Three Phases of Change A Look at Change From the Individual¿s Perspective Stages of Concern Some Final Thoughts on Change Reflections8. Building a Vision and a Mission Together Reflecting on Vision and Mission Why Have a Shared School Vision and Mission? School Activities That Highlight the Mission Mission-Building Activity Developing Yearly School Improvement Goals to Accomplish the Mission ReflectionsPart IV. Working Together to Build a Learning Community9. Enhancing Teacher Growth Through Supervision and Evaluation Practices Designed to Promote Student Learning Issues and Dilemmas Essential Ingredients for Successful Supervision Effective Instructional Strategies Brain-Compatible Teaching Practices Guidelines to Successfully Navigate Through Required State and District Teacher Evaluations Frameworks Increasing Teacher and Administrative Understanding Through Reflective Clinical Supervision Tips for Conferencing and Observing Walk-Throughs, Instructional Rounds, Snapshots, or Drive-Bys Guidelines Related to Evaluation and Legal Concerns Final Thoughts on Supervision and Evaluation Reflections10. Maximizing Feedback About Teaching: Differentiated Professional Growth Options Reflections on Feedback Creating the Environment for Maximizing Feedback Building a Foundation: Getting Started Moving Toward Collaborative Feedback Differentiated Professional Growth Options: How the System Works Sources of Feedback: Categories and Approaches Self-Assessment: Establishing Benchmarks of Progress Individual Reflection and Institutional Renewal Reflections11. Building a Collaborative School: The Power of Teacher Leadership and Community Portrait of a Collaborative School: A Professional Learning Community An Image of Reality: Obstacles to Collaboration The Case for Collaboration Moving Toward Collaboration Necessary Conditions for a Collaborative School Teacher Leadership and the Collaborative School The Principal and Collaboration Some Final Thoughts on Collaboration Reflections12. Fueling the Learning Organization Through Professional Development Why Professional Development? Professional Development Defined Standards for Professional Learning Creating a Context Where Professional Learning Thrives: Some Guidelines Leadership Teams and Professional Learning Optimizing the Individual¿s Professional Learning Experience Central Office Support for Professional Learning Final Thoughts on Professional Learning Reflections13. Faculty Meetings: A Tool for Capacity Building Faculty Meetings as Learning Opportunities--Getting Started The School Mission and Faculty Meetings Increasing Teachers¿ Roles in Faculty Meetings Some Successful Faculty Meeting Strategies: Stories of Practice Faculty Meeting Strategies That Work! A Final Thought Reflections14. Asking the Right Questions About Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment: Getting to Know the C.I.A. We Live in Interesting Times Asking the Right Questions Continuing the Curriculum Discussion ReflectionsPart V. Starting Effectively and Staying the Course15. First Days of School Logistical Concerns Beginning-of-the-Year Faculty Meetings Set a Tone Departmental and Grade-Level Meetings Orienting Teachers Who Are New to the School Teacher Time in the Classroom Welcoming Students and Parents Be Visible on the First Days of School Reflections16. Tips: Ideas That Work and Align With the School¿s Mission Organizing Your Time Additional Helpful Ideas to Stay On Task Tips From a Superintendent: What Makes a Successful 21st Century Principal The School Budget: Common Sense Efficiency Tips Based on the Mission Providing Experiences to Celebrate the School¿s Culture Tips on Opening a New School Tips on Using Technology to Enhance a Principal¿s Performance Using Tips in Your Setting ReflectionsPart VI. Embracing Your Constituencies17. Working With Parents and Partnering With the Greater Community Effectively Communicating With Parents Building Bridges With the Parent Community Additional Ways to Bring Parents and Community Members Into School Broadening School Support and Partnerships Community-Based Organizations Seeking School Support Through Educational Grants Reaching Out and Working With the Media A Reflection on Partnering With Parents and the Community Reflections18. Making a Difference for Students: The Heart of the School The Challenge of Excellence and Equality, Social Justice, and School Leadership "Those Kids" and Their Stories The Right to Be a Child and to Make Mistakes Maximizing Opportunities for Students With Disabilities Response to Intervention (RTI) School Discipline: The Principal¿s Role, the Discipline Gap, and Promising Options Broad Disciplinary Guidelines Reducing Bullying Behavior Cyberbullying and Social Responsibility Supporting Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Youth Graduating Americäs Youth: Making Progress on a Long Road Student and Teacher Resiliency Final Thoughts on "Those Kids" ReflectionsVII. The Principal¿s Professional and Personal Worlds19. The Newcomer to the Principalship Problems That Challenge New Principals A Profile of the New Principal Helping Prospective and New Principals Make the Grade Practical Suggestions for Newcomers Final Thoughts on the Newcomer Experience Reflections20. Taking Care of Yourself Achieving Success Over Stress Taking Control of Time Towards Realizing the Vision: A Personal Mission Statement Gaining Perspective by Spending Time With Students Body and Mind: Healthy and Ill Together Reflections21. Keeping the Professional Candle Lit Institutionalizing Professional Learning Reflection as a Tool A Principal¿s Portfolio Other Growth Opportunities Reflections22. Reflections on the Principalship Serving the School Community Where Do We Go From Here? The Good School Take Time to Smell the Roses ReflectionsReferences and Additional ReadingsIndex