A desperate need existed for leadership training and leadership experience to align their components according to the ELCC standards to improve effective teaching and learning that will intensify student achievement more quickly. The 2008 ISLLC, which were adopted by the National Policy Board for Educational Administration (NPBEA), consisted of…

Effective school leaders focus on identifying the changes needed to improve student learning. However, school improvement is often reduced to a checklist of compliance activities, and, consequently, achievement gaps continue to stay the status quo, or even widen. This paper reports on a qualitative case study analyzing how professional learning…

Graduation rates for high school students across the country have long been a focus for educators and policy makers. More specifically, graduating students with disabilities has consistently been a greater challenge for school districts. School leadership is complex and special education presents school leaders with an even greater challenge in an…

Background/Context: Little research has directly examined whether principal leadership can increase the degree to which teachers work together regularly in focused ways around content. Prior research has shown that reform efforts seeking to alter the process of teaching can be successful if teachers collaborate to build capacity and improve…

Almost daily, residents of Michigan read newspaper headlines announcing another school district laying off principals and teachers to address the ever-shrinking available funds from state government to fund public education. Schools are feeling the direct impact of the mix of financial tsunamis that have hit the Michigan economy. The state has…

Researchers have frequently found that leadership plays a key role in the successful and effective implementation of technology in K-12 school districts (Meltzer & Sherman, 1997; Schiller, 2002; Bliss & Bliss, 2003; Anderson & Dexter, 2005). A key component of the Michigan Freedom To Learn (FTL): One-to-One Learning initiative…

"Education Matters" is the monthly newsletter of the Association of American Educators (AAE), an organization dedicated to advancing the American teaching profession through personal growth, professional development, teacher advocacy and protection. This issue of the newsletter includes: (1) 21st Century Retro: For All the Emphasis on…

This book presents information from a 5-year research project on teacher leadership which offers evidence that the answer to school vitality lies largely in the redefinition of traditional leadership in education and in the elevation of the perception, status, and role of classroom teachers. The research involved interviews with teachers and…