Although black students represent 16% of the student population nationally, they comprise only 8% of the student population in gifted programs. Principals can rectify this situation by focusing on teacher supervision and evaluation, staff development, and quality control. Teachers must be held accountable for providing quality learning experiences…

To implement an effective evaluation and instructional supervision program, principals should hold high expectations for teachers, establish mutually agreed-upon performance criteria, improve teacher-administrator relations, conduct unbiased observation conferences, and establish a nonthreatening coaching atmosphere that encourages…

The attempt to reduce teaching to discrete, observable behaviors is impractical. Checklists fail to capture the intangible qualities (sense of humor, enthusiasm, compassion) differentiating an effective teacher from an ineffective one. For skilled supervisors, the ultimate observation instrument is a blank sheet of paper accompanied by informed…

Despite the growing popularity of Madeline Hunter's Program for Effective Teaching staff development model, there is little evidence that student achievement increases after such a program has been implemented. A recent study of South Carolina achievement test data corroborates this assertion. Coaching length and quality may be key factors in…

Critiquing Jean Hill's article in the same "Journal of Curriculum and Supervision" issue from an interpretivist viewpoint, this article uses generic hermeneutics to illuminate instructional supervision as a practice, theory, and field of study. Generic hermeneutics recognizes both dichotomies and complementarities. Hill's article…

Somewhere between easygoing and hardboiled management extremes lies the realm of true leadership. An effective administrator gets results by leading people (not ordering them), learning how to handle them, and discovering what makes each one tick. A true leader captures and holds staff members' confidence, helps them develop needed skills, and…

A principal need not be a musician to supervise a music program. Supervisory emphasis should be on elements of the musical process that can be taught, reinforced, and evaluated. At the core of the instructional program, there should be a method book, behavioral objectives, and a graded course of instruction. (MLH)

New principals need a game plan for an orderly transition. This article outlines a plan organized by seven significant areas of school leadership: administration, curriculum and instruction, professional development and supervision, staffing, student issues, student activities, and communication with important school constituencies. Being…

Presents a four-phase, theoretically based model for supervision co-constructed and shared by members of a professional-development school community and influenced by four bodies of literature. The four phases include building of readiness, directed supervision, reflective supervision, and teacher inquiry. Benefits of collaborative supervision are…

Online learning is growing rapidly as states and districts are creating new online schools, and existing programs are adding new courses and students. The growth reflects the spreading understanding that online courses and programs can serve a wide variety of students and needs. These include: (1) Creating opportunities for small and rural school…

A systematic exploration of the nature of teacher evaluation is presented. After a critique of the widespread impositional (or "dominant") mode of teacher evaluation, two alternative forms of teacher evaluation, referred to as "educative," are proposed. These educative teacher evaluation approaches, "horizontal"…

In clinical supervision, the teacher is helped to identify and concentrate on a limited number of specific skills, the supervisor focuses on a manageable task for data collection, and together they evaluate results. (Author)

Presents the case study of Heidi, a beginning Spanish teacher struggling with self-definition while shifting from content-area expert to friend to caring adult. The technical approach to supervision failed Heidi. To discover Heidi's actual experiences would have required relating to her in ways not encouraged by the existing evaluation system.…

Dispelling the myth that beginning teachers are fully equipped to handle the demands of their professions begins by acknowledging that the first months and years of teaching are full of pain, confusion, loneliness, and often humiliation. Schools can help by fostering beginner peer groups and encouraging early professional development and…

Surveyed 114 teachers regarding their supervisory needs, wants, and expectations. Writing exercises revealed teachers' perceptions of best and worst experiences and of administrator behaviors. Respondents viewed "best" supervision as validation, empowerment, visible presence, coaching, and professionalism vehicle and "worst"…