Supervision
Final Paper
Leave it to a physical education teacher to say this, but, being a school administrator is based on teamwork, no one individual can run an entire school. To me, the idea of creating a collaborative culture simply means getting your staff, students, parents and community on board with your philosophy. Since the buck stops with the principal, it is important for his/her staff to be on the same page. In order for a principal to foster this kind of environment, they would have to utilize a variety of supervisory styles and techniques. The most important leadership characteristics designed to achieve this goal are:
1. Determining who your key people are on all levels within the
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The only reason we were successful was that we identified some influential members of our staff who were on board with our idea and were able to get the rest of the staff on the same page.
I think that this strategy is the best way to go about implementing a change that will affect a large mass of people. By utilizing this core group, and bringing them on board from the outset, they can take ownership of the idea, and when the change is implemented, will work hard to make sure that there is a smooth transition. When the staff knows that they are a part of the decision making process, they will be more likely to give a solid effort to see that “their” idea works.
To gain insight into my staffs knowledge and concerns, and to have any kind of rapport with them, I need to be approachable. Any member of the school community needs to know that they can speak with me, whether it is a tenured teacher, a school aide, a student, or a parent. If an individual in my building thinks that something is not being handled properly, or has an idea for a change, they need to understand that they can and will be heard. Does this mean that everyone can just stop by at all hours of the day, come into the office and unload whatever they’ve been thinking about? No. However, the office door should be opened, and if I am unable to sit down with the person right away, I can tell them when to come back or let them know that they can make an appointment so that I can sit
Supervision is a mechanism that allows the supervisor to support, discuss and develop the knowledge and skills of each employee. It is the process in which a supervisor is able to encourage and support the employee to complete their role effectively.
Supervision theories and practices began emerging as soon as counsellors started to train other counsellors (Bernard & Goodyear, 2009). Several different theoretical models have developed to clarify and support counselling supervision. The focus of early models of supervision had generally been based on counselling theories (such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Adlerian or client-centred), but these orientation-specific models have begun to be challenged as supervision has many characteristics that are different to counselling. Competency as a counsellor does not automatically translate into competency as a supervisor, and when supervisee/supervisor orientations differ, conflicts may arise (Falender &
The more active the participants are in the planning, the less resistance there will be later (Sullivan & Decker). If staff does not trust leadership, does not share the organization's vision, does not buy into the reason for change, and aren't included in the planning, there will be no successful change, regardless of how brilliant the strategy (Goman, 2000). How people react to change is important to understand. Change takes an emotional toll on people, some more than others. It is important not to underestimate that toll and understand who will have a harder time adapting to change. Fear of change has many roots. Those roots can be a lack of trust, fear of failure, fear of loss of income or a belief that the change is unnecessary (Sullivan & Decker). By understanding the reason for the resistance a manager can help the employee overcome his or her fear and become a supporter of the change. The last two steps are to provide feedback mechanisms to keep everyone informed of the progress of change and evaluate the effectiveness of change (Sullivan & Decker). People need to be kept informed of the change process to minimize anxiety. Sometimes there are unexpected consequences to the change, and it is important to have a system in place for those consequences to be discussed and if needed more changes made in order to accommodate those consequences.
The intensive supervision programs are very similar to those programs utilized within standard probation and parole (Latessa & Smith, 2011). The difference is mainly the amount of control, supervision, as well as the application of the programs. The use of intensive supervision programs began in the mid-1900s in California with an emphasis on the rehabilitation of the offenders. In the 1980’s the programs become widely used to reduce prison populations with a shift in the focus away from rehabilitation to deterrence, control, and supervision taking the forefront (Lowenkamp et. al., 2010).
Effective supervision requires establishing different levels of supervision in order to know which offenders need closer supervision from those who require less supervision (Alarid & Del Carmen, 2012). Generally, the supervision of offenders is categorized into three or four levels: maximum, medium and minimum or maximum, high, standard, and administrative (Alarid & Del Carmen, 2012). The administrative level is for probationers or parolees who have committed minor offenses, satisfied financial responsibilities, and been in compliance for two years (Alarid & Del Carmen, 2012). Probationers and parolees on the administrative level do not require a personal visit or personal contact with the officer (Alarid & Del Carmen, 2012). Individuals on the administrative level are required to call in and leave a voicemail or mail in a residence verification and employment document (Alarid & Del Carmen, 2012).
As a management group the first thing to tackle is building awareness of the problem and providing a clear attainable goal. The second obstacle is making sure all your staff understands how they directly affect the results. Without these initial steps, staff would be disengaged because they don’t understand the problem or feel that they have no effect. There is a lot prep work that needs to be completed before communication is sent out amongst the department. The worst thing for a management team to do is provide an unclear message or provide different messages amongst management.
Furthermore, I feel confident in asserting that Park Middle School represents many, if not all, of the aspects expected from a collaborative culture. Overall, when reviewing the School Culture Typology Activity and protocol described by Steve Gruenert and Todd Whitaker, statements with the survey that reflects a “collaborative culture” certainly resonated with me. There were two components of the survey that caught my attention. First, there is certainly an openness amongst staff as well as administration. We are committed to openly discussing our practices and working together to make decisions that improves our practice. Secondly, our school promotes and provides opportunities for professional development, not only outside of school but every
Collaboration between teachers is a key component to professional development that will lead to higher student achievement. There is a need for schools to set up time for teachers to be able to collaborate together. This allows for teachers to help each other, matchup content, teach each other new and best practices, troubleshoot student issues just to name a few of the areas that collaboration time can help foster within a school. The key is to build time for teachers to be able to collaborate during the school day or week. This collaboration time needs to be between grade levels, departments, and cross curricular when needed. For many schools this is an afterthought to the school schedule or a fleeting thought after the master schedule is completed. A principal needs to keep an open mind to any strategy that will enable the teachers to be able to collaborate for the good of the students and the school.
“Educators have known for quite some time that building a collaborative culture in which people work together interdependently to fulfill their shared purpose and achieve their common goals is an essential strategy for sustained school improvement,” (DuFour & DuFour, 2008, p. 173). ISLLC Standard 1, working toward a shared vision is an exemplified in this process; and Sorenson & Goldsmith note that encouraging people to collaborate is a one of the ten most wanted strategies for school a positive school culture (p.
The following is my philosophy of command was created in hopes of providing a clear vision of where I want Battery K to be at the end of my tenure as Commanding Officer. This will serve as the guiding document of where I will focus my energies and the energy of the Battery to make things happen.
Many organizations and establishments have philosophies in how an organization is to be functioning and which positions are necessary to execute the plan. One of the crucial positions that make the establishment function is that of a Supervisor. The term supervisor is a word with Latin roots which means “to look over,” however, a supervisor is viewed as a person who is an immediate overseer to an employee at a workplace. The supervisor is the person an employee would directly report to for any work related situation. A supervisor plays an essential part of the management team that gives an organization purpose and leadership by being responsible for employees’ progress and productivity (Bittel & Newstrom, 1992).
An administrator has to include school staff in the decision-making process and creates a positive school culture that centers on the shared vision. Positive school culture builds trust and respect which many times helps faculty and staff feel valued. Distributed leadership helps support the school organization, distributes workload, and creates efficiency. An administrator is responsible for fostering leadership and helping support faculty and staff to become
During my second preclinical experience at Westview Hills Middle School, I learned the importance of cooperation and collaboration among teachers at a school. I was able to observe team and department meetings during this experience. It became clear that it is important for teachers to work together in order to provide a positive atmosphere at a school and in a specific department. Although it became obvious that personalities and teaching styles were different throughout the school, the teachers still acted professionally and used each other as resources in
The authors were successful on this step by creating a valuable and diverse team that complimented each other, which was a necessity to ensure they had mixed points of views and opinions. Next, the team must create the approach they are going to take, and to be sure each team member has a clear understanding of the benefits for the future of everyone involved. This step was evident by the group meetings. Fourth, it is imperative for the team to demonstrate impeccable communication skills and the ability to influence others to comprehend the significance of the change (Kotter and Rathgeber 2006).
In any collaborative environment, an open-line of communication is a critical factor. Communication is a two way interaction of listening and speaking in turn. One speaks while the other listens for true comprehension is a key factor. One must get an understanding before the vision can be implemented within any leadership role. The presence of collaboration in schools are the result of principals, educators, parents, and administrative leadership in working as a team. The purpose of this essay is to explain the importance of teacher leadership, the principal 's role in developing teacher leaders, and their connection to the development of a collaborative culture in schools.