Shannon Anderson

EA 754
Webster Case

I would guide the principal to assess the staff by first observing them, before
seeing any previous evaluation data. I would like the principal to have an unbiased
opinion of them before comparing them to their evaluations and other information. The
evaluation of a staff member should be half gut and half science. The impression that a
principal has about their staff from seeing them in action is just as important as the
statistical data. Once those observations have been completed then I would create a
chart which displays educator effectiveness with student achievement. I also think that
it would be effective to get the students impressions of the staff members and how they
feel they are doing. Ultimately the staff is serving the students, so their input is
important.

I think that this school is in a rut, it is no longer serving its current population. It
is serving its population from ten years ago. The school has not adapted to meet student
needs. I think that a hard look needs to be taken into what the needs of the students
are and how the staff is meeting those needs. If there is a mismatch or not a direct
correlation, then that is the first item that needs to be addressed. The purpose of the
school is to serve the students and the way they are being served needs to be
addressed.

1. The new principal should make a list or have an idea of what they expect from an
effective staff member. To have gotten to this level they themselves will have both been
an effective teacher and seen many effective teachers at work. I would ask the principal
to create a list of the traits that they believe make an effective staff member and then
rate the current staff on that scale. I would look for strengths and weaknesses of the
staff. The next step would be to look for ways to address the weaknesses through the
strengths that they have. This method is very similar to how you would approach
addressing student needs as a teacher. The areas that the current staff is lacking would
be the areas that need to be improved.

2. I think that the staff needs to get training on how to meet the needs of students who
are second language speakers. They also need to know how to approach students from
low income families. Finally, I would look for some sort of curriculum or technique shake
up to get everyone invested and involved in doing something new to enhance the
learning experience. It is easy for staff members to get complacent, especially if they
have been teaching in one area and in one specific building over time. To combat this
fatigue, a principal needs to continuously challenge and push the staff to improve.


3. Working with the parents is vital. I would encourage the principal to meet with parents
on an informal basis to get to know them, their challenges and their expectations.
Parental buy in is very important. They are expecting a school to help raise their child
and they want to have a voice in that. Schools are also seen as extensions and
reflections of the community. The best way to get parents on board or to get their buy
in is to ask them what they want and what their expectations are. That does not mean
that you are going to meet all of these requests, but it is important to know what those
requests are and to understand their mindset.

4. I think that the landmine issues are dealing with the older established staff members
who are not very motivated. They need to be involved in improving the school and need
to be re-energized. They are sucking the life out of the other staff members and creating
a negative climate. This is a very typical and common issue. It is important to continue
to challenge these staff members so that they stay engaged and serve as good examples
to the younger or newer staff members.

5. The indicators I would use would include: Student Achievement Scores, Participation in
PLCs, Personal PD, a metric for Student Satisfaction, a metric for Parent Satisfaction and
community involvement. I think that this criteria allows you to see how involved the
staff members are, how they are improving their craft, what their results are as teachers
and how they are perceived by many of the schools stakeholders.


6. The biggest challenge will be the older staff members and getting them motivated to
meet the needs of the current student population without having them poison the more
enthusiastic staff members. Once they are on board and working to meet the needs of
the current student population then all other issues will become minimal.