Evaluating Instructional Leadership
Recognized Practices for Success
- Julie R. Smith - Corwin Author and Consultant
- Raymond L. Smith - Educational Consultant
Foreword by John Hattie
Even with great teachers, student achievement hinges on an effective principal. Behind every high-quality principal is an airtight system of leadership evaluation that consistently rewards excellence and remedies deficits.
While teacher evaluation methods have improved, instructional leadership evaluation has often stood still—and student learning and achievement have paid the price.
This book identifies the major problems in this process and articulates clear solutions. The result is a blueprint for ensuring the best person for the job is occupying the principal’s chair. Content includes:
- Extensive data, presented in a user-friendly manner
- Clear connections to the new ISLLC Standards for School Leaders
- A suite of interactive tools including sample self-assessments, mid-year and final evaluation forms, and professional growth plans
"This is a practical and comprehensive look at how principal evaluation can be used as a continuous improvement tool for schools as well as the principal. The rationale and research behind the design of this evaluation and improvement tool are presented in a concise and easy to read manner."
"I truly enjoyed reading this book. The resources are exactly right for the challenges we are facing. It is a practical resource for present day leadership. The authors guide leaders in effectively using these strategies to bring about change in their environment. "
"The authors provide a great synthesis of current research and current issues in education to bring light to a problem that has not been addressed . . . It would be excellent for aspiring principals to read this book because it really breaks down for them the components of effective leadership."
"This book clearly articulates leadership qualities that impact schools. The authors do an excellent job of using effect size and research to support the qualities. The examples provide real world experiences and show how these qualities translate to classrooms and schools. This book is an essential guide for school leaders to reflect on their practice and how that translates to student achievement."
"After reading this book, you'll truly understand what it takes to grow as a lead learner. We can always get better. Status quo is never an option. Strong leaders possess certain qualities that promote student success. This book provides quality insight on strategies that will make good leaders great."
“The authors present a current and coherent approach to growth and evaluation that is balanced and manageable in contexts where we are all asked to continually do more. It has applications for fine tuning existing evaluation systems as well as informing the creation of thoughtful new systems from scratch.”
"Ray and Julie Smith have spent decades working at every level of K-12 education as teachers and leaders. In addition to their own vast experience with leadership evaluation, they have worked with, and learned from, some of the best minds in education. All of that experience has gone into writing an excellent resource which focuses on providing leaders with the effective feedback they need to grow. This is a must read for school leaders who want to be effective in their position."
“This book not only highlights the key messages about the role of the leader, but it is does so in a way that is engaging, practical, and reflects the Smiths’ long history of being school leaders, teaching school leaders, and seeing the effects of their teaching. I have seen the Smiths in action, separately and together, and they know how to lead and how to teach, they have a strength of purpose they do not waver from, and these attributes come through in this book.”
"Passionate principals committed to maximizing their impact on the world will devour this book."
"This book puts it all together for a principal who want to leave a legacy of an ever increasing impact on student learning and is willing to engage in self-monitoring in order to measure his or her own impact."
"Superintendents committed to helping principals measure their own leadership impact on student learning will want to implement the practical advice in this book with every principal in their district."
Concord Community Schools is in the third year of a new administrator evaluation model. The research and additional background knowledge provided by these two authors in their new book will be very beneficial to the revision process we will undertake in the near future. A special thanks to Julie and Ray for sharing their expertise with our district.
