This case was developed for use with future school leaders in an educational setting. There are several topics of discussion that can be developed, including but not limited to policy implementation, the efficacy of professional learning communities, and improving student learning outcomes. The setting is a solidly performing middle school in the…

Sustainability practices that lead to greener schools are often overlooked in leadership preparation programs and in school improvement efforts. An urban middle school principal recognizes the potential to build community, foster a healthy learning environment, and redefine her school through focusing on sustainability practices in a collaborative…

After being involuntarily transferred from a suburban middle school near his home to an urban school facing many challenges, this case describes a series of events that led to a veteran teacher's termination. Upon claiming he was wrongfully terminated, the case narrative ends just prior to the teacher's hearing before the board of education, where…

Principal Vanessa Sanchez assumed leadership of a high-need, high-poverty urban school with a mandate from the district superintendent to change the school culture and to build an instructional team aligned to the principal's theory of change. The central dilemma of the case is how to lead organizational change while managing interpersonal…

"Double Standard" was created by the actors who appeared in the accompanying video in spring 2014, as part fulfillment of the requirements for a master's-level class highlighting ethics in education for future educational administrators. A double standard comes into focus as an incoming middle school principal establishes procedures she…

Students tend to respond academically when they believe their teachers and administrators are taking a positive personal interest in their education. Many principals and educators often employ motivational stunts as rewards and as learning tools for their K-8 students as one sure way of motivating academic achievement. Frank Sennett's…

A middle school principal describes her school's exemplary hands-on science program. (PR)

Suggests that schools must catch up with their students' knowledge of computers and insist on engagement with the technology of learning. Presents four major areas in which technology can help educators shift the classroom focus from compliance and obedience to effectiveness and collaboration. (ET)

Even in elementary school, students suffer from bullying and harassment at the hands of other students. Often, educators resort to using stricter forms of behavior modification to stop bullying. But usually this fails to solve the problem while threatening the student-teacher relationship. Chosen by the National Bullying Prevention Campaign for…