Dr. Bette Gray’s virtual visit to speak to our class was very informative. It was interesting to see to at least some degree how decisions were made in Alberta Education. She introduced some new terms that will further my vocabulary in this field – “policy entrepreneurs”, “appetite for policies” and “reframing the problem”. I think of the problems that I have encountered over my career. If I had “reframed” the problem differently in order to appeal in a more time relevant way to the agenda of my decision makers, I see how I might have had more success. I am an entrepreneur at heart and I do ‘shop’ my ideas around. I now have a term with which to label that behavior.
She did an excellent job of providing a theoretical framework to help me interpret the realities of dealing with change in the political world. Kingdon’s ‘Policy Streams’ were a very useful tool that I will refer to in the future.
I found her comment that teacher PD without increasing the capacity of principals didn’t work very well. I need some time to process this but I think it has tremendous implications for me in the development of my technology plan.
She carried on the dialogue section of the presentation in a way that made me feel that she was listening to what I was saying. The responses from the group provide a wide range of concerns and suggestions that honestly reflected many of the discussions we have had in class during the last 2 weeks.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Monday, July 13, 2009
Once again I am struck by the importance of experience. Gary Spence has over 20 years experience in leading technology development in his school division. He uses that experience coupled with the collaborative relationships to plan for the future. Planning begins with focus groups leading to the development of shared vision (not the first time we have heard this). The goal is to find a balance between standardization and empowerment particularly in light of real budget constraints.
His belief of the importance of IT is shared by previous presenters – that it is pervasive and as such is a literacy issue. It is not a question of ‘should we be using IT with our students’ but ‘what is the most efficient and effective was can we integrate technology’.
When Gary spoke of characteristics for an IT leader he was much more student centered than previous speakers. I am sure that it was implicit in previous presentations but he was much more explicit and I found that refreshing. He also validated everything we have learned about the characteristics of an effective IT leader so far.
I am drawn to the concept of a ‘learning plan’ rather than a ‘technology plan’. I was also impressed by the fact that they did not he and his division would not apply for grants for software or hardware that didn’t support the goals of improving students learning.
Before this course I was much less of a believer in the importance of standardization as a cornerstone of a division plan but after hearing John speak, I have changed my opinion. I have become a believer. I also agree wholeheartedly with his concept that if the technology is not stable and reliable then teachers won’t use it.
Gary made the comment that an outside researcher was impressed by the consistent answers relating to shared vision from the administration team. I felt the same level of consistency between what Gary and Larry Jacobs said and it is evident from their presentations. I enjoyed the enthusiasm and experience he shared with us and he definitely would be someone I would contact if I needed information or advice.
His belief of the importance of IT is shared by previous presenters – that it is pervasive and as such is a literacy issue. It is not a question of ‘should we be using IT with our students’ but ‘what is the most efficient and effective was can we integrate technology’.
When Gary spoke of characteristics for an IT leader he was much more student centered than previous speakers. I am sure that it was implicit in previous presentations but he was much more explicit and I found that refreshing. He also validated everything we have learned about the characteristics of an effective IT leader so far.
I am drawn to the concept of a ‘learning plan’ rather than a ‘technology plan’. I was also impressed by the fact that they did not he and his division would not apply for grants for software or hardware that didn’t support the goals of improving students learning.
Before this course I was much less of a believer in the importance of standardization as a cornerstone of a division plan but after hearing John speak, I have changed my opinion. I have become a believer. I also agree wholeheartedly with his concept that if the technology is not stable and reliable then teachers won’t use it.
Gary made the comment that an outside researcher was impressed by the consistent answers relating to shared vision from the administration team. I felt the same level of consistency between what Gary and Larry Jacobs said and it is evident from their presentations. I enjoyed the enthusiasm and experience he shared with us and he definitely would be someone I would contact if I needed information or advice.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Larry Jacob’s presentation was very interesting, partly because of the VC experience with the portable VC unit and partly because of being exposed to his management style. He definitely has a wide range of experience and is comfortable putting himself in the position of learner. He was new to VC technology and welcomed the chance to learn by doing. It was obvious that he believed in modeling behaviours that he valued, one of which is “learning for a lifetime”.
Technology is pervasive and ubiquitous reflects his view of the IT philosophy of Wolf Creek school division. He reflected the opinion that IT technology should be invisible and should be used to support the overall learning goals.
I was very impressed by the fact that the he is actively involved in teaching teachers. He is leading the 3rd year cohort of teachers and is actually involved in their development as teachers. Like Barry Litun, he is a Transformational learner that draws on the experiences and energies of the people in the division to help set the mission and vision and he tries to make this more than a philosophical exercise. He models collaborative behavior with his administration team and is looking at ways to create a similar model involving students in the individual schools.
Technology is pervasive and ubiquitous reflects his view of the IT philosophy of Wolf Creek school division. He reflected the opinion that IT technology should be invisible and should be used to support the overall learning goals.
I was very impressed by the fact that the he is actively involved in teaching teachers. He is leading the 3rd year cohort of teachers and is actually involved in their development as teachers. Like Barry Litun, he is a Transformational learner that draws on the experiences and energies of the people in the division to help set the mission and vision and he tries to make this more than a philosophical exercise. He models collaborative behavior with his administration team and is looking at ways to create a similar model involving students in the individual schools.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
I really enjoyed John Percevault's presentation today. He and his team have accomplished a tremendous amount of work in 2 years. He even did a great job of providng a wealth of information on their processes, results and future plans.
I believe that people like John are rare and set a very, very high standard. Experience is a great teacher. He taught and worked with technoloy for the last 30 years, basically from the beginning of the advent of technology in schools up to the present. That kind of experience can never be replaced. Others will have to settle for learning what he has experienced first hand.
He has a rare mix of deep educational experience accompanied with technical savvy and the personality that made him take on the challenge of leading technological change in Lethbridge 51. Very impressive.
It is one thing to read about the qualities to which one should aspirie to become a successful technology leader. It is another thing altogether to see what those qualities look like in real life. It was actually quite overwhelming.
I very much appreciated John coming and sharing with us. The resources he left will be of great use in reaffirming the points that have already been raised in our readings and the ISTE documents. When retirement comes I am sure that he will leave big shoes to fill in Lethbridge 51.
I believe that people like John are rare and set a very, very high standard. Experience is a great teacher. He taught and worked with technoloy for the last 30 years, basically from the beginning of the advent of technology in schools up to the present. That kind of experience can never be replaced. Others will have to settle for learning what he has experienced first hand.
He has a rare mix of deep educational experience accompanied with technical savvy and the personality that made him take on the challenge of leading technological change in Lethbridge 51. Very impressive.
It is one thing to read about the qualities to which one should aspirie to become a successful technology leader. It is another thing altogether to see what those qualities look like in real life. It was actually quite overwhelming.
I very much appreciated John coming and sharing with us. The resources he left will be of great use in reaffirming the points that have already been raised in our readings and the ISTE documents. When retirement comes I am sure that he will leave big shoes to fill in Lethbridge 51.
Thursday Catch Up
I must confess that I am not a blogger so this is a learning experience for me. I learned to communicate face to face and through phone conversations but the hectic nature of the workplace necessitates this form of asynchronous interaction so I am glad to have the opportunity to begin developing some skills with this medium.
Barry Litun is clearly a people person and enjoys his job. As an educator he is trying to make a difference in Lethbridge 51 in a way consistent with his personality. I believe he is a Transformational Leader and on first impression at least I think he is someone I would like to work for. When I read Leithwood's article on School Leadership I felt the closest affinity to the transformational style. Conversations with other class members confirm that many of us share the same opinion.
It is difficult to lead change without strong observation skills. He observed that IT is here to stay and whether you have a passion for it or not there is a need to find the most effective way to maximize the use of technology. By his own admission his strength was not in coming up with the creative ideas but in recognizing the ideas that could work and finding ways to make them work. An integral part of his approach is trust. Clearly he is a good judge of character and as he pointed out, hiring is an extremely important part of his job. Hire good people, trust and support them, set clear goals and you can accomplish great things.
He recognized that in order to facilitate change it is important to integrate slowly with adequate provision for professional development for staff. Equitable access to technlology is a key component of the implementation strategy as they move towards creating 21st Century classrooms. In all the readings, and in my experience, having a clear vision like this for a school division's mission is key to success. When it comes to the more specific vision needed to achieve some of the operational outcomes he looks to and trusts the talents of members of his team, like the technology leader that we will meet later in the course.
Planning is extremely important for implementation and evergreening of equipment. Teachers and students come to rely on a stable environment and disruption of service leads to lack of trust and ultimately lack of integration. The 'forklift' approach described allows for a standard platform across the divison with a phased in, school by school, approach that will allow for better support and stability. It requires the ability to have long range approach to funding over several years which validates the importance of a long range vision.
Support from administrators and teachers is very important since the technology team is changing the tools in the toolboxes they use everyday. If the administrators are not supportive then the teachers will be resistent. Administrators need to feel a sense of ownership for the project and that requires the technology leader to collaborate with them and make them part of the process. Listening to Barry it sounds like their leader was very effective in this regard.
It was interesting to see and hear validation for many of the points made in the readings relating to the qualities necessary to be an effective leader in general and more specifically, a technology leader.
Barry Litun is clearly a people person and enjoys his job. As an educator he is trying to make a difference in Lethbridge 51 in a way consistent with his personality. I believe he is a Transformational Leader and on first impression at least I think he is someone I would like to work for. When I read Leithwood's article on School Leadership I felt the closest affinity to the transformational style. Conversations with other class members confirm that many of us share the same opinion.
It is difficult to lead change without strong observation skills. He observed that IT is here to stay and whether you have a passion for it or not there is a need to find the most effective way to maximize the use of technology. By his own admission his strength was not in coming up with the creative ideas but in recognizing the ideas that could work and finding ways to make them work. An integral part of his approach is trust. Clearly he is a good judge of character and as he pointed out, hiring is an extremely important part of his job. Hire good people, trust and support them, set clear goals and you can accomplish great things.
He recognized that in order to facilitate change it is important to integrate slowly with adequate provision for professional development for staff. Equitable access to technlology is a key component of the implementation strategy as they move towards creating 21st Century classrooms. In all the readings, and in my experience, having a clear vision like this for a school division's mission is key to success. When it comes to the more specific vision needed to achieve some of the operational outcomes he looks to and trusts the talents of members of his team, like the technology leader that we will meet later in the course.
Planning is extremely important for implementation and evergreening of equipment. Teachers and students come to rely on a stable environment and disruption of service leads to lack of trust and ultimately lack of integration. The 'forklift' approach described allows for a standard platform across the divison with a phased in, school by school, approach that will allow for better support and stability. It requires the ability to have long range approach to funding over several years which validates the importance of a long range vision.
Support from administrators and teachers is very important since the technology team is changing the tools in the toolboxes they use everyday. If the administrators are not supportive then the teachers will be resistent. Administrators need to feel a sense of ownership for the project and that requires the technology leader to collaborate with them and make them part of the process. Listening to Barry it sounds like their leader was very effective in this regard.
It was interesting to see and hear validation for many of the points made in the readings relating to the qualities necessary to be an effective leader in general and more specifically, a technology leader.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Assignment 2
My father was a watchmaker. His prices did not change in 20 years. He and his generation were not wired to relate to a chaotically changing world like the one I experience every day. Change is not only constant but it is becoming more and more complex. Leading this change requires a new type of leader. The question is, what does this new leader look like? In order to find answers, researchers and writers have directed their focus to studying as Fullan (2001) puts it “leadership in times of change and complexity”.
Leaders that I respect have embraced change. A cornerstone of their approach has been collaboration. Someone once said “It is easy to get people to do what they don’t want to do. The art of leadership is to get them to do what they don’t want to do AND LIKE IT!” I have been impressed with a leader I currently work with who understands the power of collaboration and uses it effectively to operationalize and institutionalize meaningful change.
Alberta Distance Learning Centre (formerly the Correspondence School) is transforming itself from a print organization to a provider of digital age programming to almost 30,000 students in the province. In addition, we are experiencing rapid growth. Like all teachers in the province, we are also dealing with what seems to be never ending curriculum changes. Having people that can cope with change is not a luxury, it is a necessity.
The leader in charge of Program Development for ADLC is responsible both for the allocation of resources and providing a vision that leads both course development and course evergreening. He recognizes what Fullan (2001) stated identifying that “good ideas come from talented people working together “. Digging deeper and looking at more detailed descriptors, again from Fullan (2001) but quoted by Hollingsworth and Mrazek (2004), where he described an effective change leader is described as
“a) leading with a sense of moral purpose, b) understanding, c) knowledge of building relationships, d) knowledge creation and sharing as a social process, and e) coherence making. “
I have seen lip service paid to collaboration too many times by ineffective leaders. Failure occurs because of lack of attention paid to relationship building and the importance of action plans that rely on accountable, selective and committed ownership of the implementation of the solution. His style of leadership is Participative Leadership as described by Leithwood and Duke (1999) and he relies on the model as referenced below to address these issues and get positive results.
“authority and influence are available potentially to any legitimate stakeholder in the school based on their expert knowledge, their democratic right to choose, and/or their critical role in implementing decisions”
We have meetings that are focused and productive. Dialogue precedes discussion and consensus is sought. Action plans then flow and outcomes become the willing responsibility of committed participants. When I am involved in collaborative discussions I take ownership of the problem but when I have a role in implementation I take ownership of the solution. I believe that the sense of ownership cultivated by our Program Coordinator is key to the success of the collaborative approach. The collaborative approach is key to making him a successful leader and it allows him to build greater capacity in the organization and thereby improve student learning.
REFERENCES
Fullan, M. (2001). Leading in a Culture of Change. San Francisco: Wiley & Sons. p. 1-
135.
Hollingsworth, M., Mrazek, R., Steed, M., Spence, G., Balding, P., Percevault, J. (2004).
Information Technology Leadership in Education: An Alberta Needs Assessment.
An Alberta Learning funded research project. pp. 1-52. Retrieved April 28, 2009
from http://people.uleth.ca/~m.hollingsworth/itl/itleadership.htm
Leithwood, K. & Duke, D. (1999). Chapter 3: A Century’s Quest to Understand School
Leadership. In Murphy, J. & Louis, K (Eds). Handbook of Research on Educational
Administration. Jossey-Bass: San Francisco, CA. pp. 45-72.
Leaders that I respect have embraced change. A cornerstone of their approach has been collaboration. Someone once said “It is easy to get people to do what they don’t want to do. The art of leadership is to get them to do what they don’t want to do AND LIKE IT!” I have been impressed with a leader I currently work with who understands the power of collaboration and uses it effectively to operationalize and institutionalize meaningful change.
Alberta Distance Learning Centre (formerly the Correspondence School) is transforming itself from a print organization to a provider of digital age programming to almost 30,000 students in the province. In addition, we are experiencing rapid growth. Like all teachers in the province, we are also dealing with what seems to be never ending curriculum changes. Having people that can cope with change is not a luxury, it is a necessity.
The leader in charge of Program Development for ADLC is responsible both for the allocation of resources and providing a vision that leads both course development and course evergreening. He recognizes what Fullan (2001) stated identifying that “good ideas come from talented people working together “. Digging deeper and looking at more detailed descriptors, again from Fullan (2001) but quoted by Hollingsworth and Mrazek (2004), where he described an effective change leader is described as
“a) leading with a sense of moral purpose, b) understanding, c) knowledge of building relationships, d) knowledge creation and sharing as a social process, and e) coherence making. “
I have seen lip service paid to collaboration too many times by ineffective leaders. Failure occurs because of lack of attention paid to relationship building and the importance of action plans that rely on accountable, selective and committed ownership of the implementation of the solution. His style of leadership is Participative Leadership as described by Leithwood and Duke (1999) and he relies on the model as referenced below to address these issues and get positive results.
“authority and influence are available potentially to any legitimate stakeholder in the school based on their expert knowledge, their democratic right to choose, and/or their critical role in implementing decisions”
We have meetings that are focused and productive. Dialogue precedes discussion and consensus is sought. Action plans then flow and outcomes become the willing responsibility of committed participants. When I am involved in collaborative discussions I take ownership of the problem but when I have a role in implementation I take ownership of the solution. I believe that the sense of ownership cultivated by our Program Coordinator is key to the success of the collaborative approach. The collaborative approach is key to making him a successful leader and it allows him to build greater capacity in the organization and thereby improve student learning.
REFERENCES
Fullan, M. (2001). Leading in a Culture of Change. San Francisco: Wiley & Sons. p. 1-
135.
Hollingsworth, M., Mrazek, R., Steed, M., Spence, G., Balding, P., Percevault, J. (2004).
Information Technology Leadership in Education: An Alberta Needs Assessment.
An Alberta Learning funded research project. pp. 1-52. Retrieved April 28, 2009
from http://people.uleth.ca/~m.hollingsworth/itl/itleadership.htm
Leithwood, K. & Duke, D. (1999). Chapter 3: A Century’s Quest to Understand School
Leadership. In Murphy, J. & Louis, K (Eds). Handbook of Research on Educational
Administration. Jossey-Bass: San Francisco, CA. pp. 45-72.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)