An effective leadermleads from within the classroom
At Ashfield Public School, the principal and other school leaders are also instructional leaders. As instructional leaders they are required to continuously improve the process of education so that every student is given and is able to benefit from a wide range of opportunities that 1) develop their skills, knowledge and understanding and 2) give them the confidence and motivation for continued learning success.
At Ashfield Public School instructional leaders are responsible for the school wide collection of data in numeracy and literacy as per NSW Department of Education school targets and the School Excellence Framework. Examples of data collected across the school are the Writing Band Tool, Essential Assessment and Star Reader Reading Age.
Instructional leaders analyse whole school data to identify priority areas in numeracy and literacy and then plan how to allocate resources, such as scheduling interventions for individual students and student cohorts. For example, based on the results from a Reading Age assessment, instructional leaders might assign a Learning Support teacher to implement an intensive reading program across a term.
It is also the job of instructional leaders to monitor the effectiveness of these interventions by analysing the data that has been collected during the implementation of a particular intervention. This enables the instructional leaders to understand the impact of resource allocation on student progress and plan for where to next.
Another task for instructional leaders is to plan, scaffold and facilitate professional learning based around the priority areas in numeracy and literacy. This is about student need driving teacher development.
This professional learning is varied and might include for example, the instructional leader teaching a demonstration lesson, co-teaching a lesson, making lesson observations, supporting teachers to analyse and respond to data, or assisting with classroom management and effective programming.
It is important that instructional leaders maintain a strong presence in the classrooms so as to create a strong improvement agenda for the school which is grounded in evidence and can be expressed in terms of measurable student outcomes.
By working alongside teachers and having a deep understanding of student need, instructional leaders are able to plan and implement strategies and actions that support and strengthen teaching and learning quality.
At Ashfield Public School instructional leadership is about sustaining and growing a culture of high expectations that results in measurable growth for every student, and an overall whole school improvement. It involves the rigorous collection and analysis of data so as to identify and respond to priority areas and to hold all teachers accountable for the impact of their teaching on student outcomes.
Damien Moran
Principal
Clarity. What matters most in learning, teaching, and leading. (2019) Lyn Sharratt
National School Improvement Tool. (2012) Australian Council of Educational Research
https://www.weteachnyc.org/approach/instructional-leadership-framework
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