Leadership in Education
Individual Management / Networking Interview
Natalie Short, MEd and principal license, Educator, 5/6th grade English
Winton Woods Elementary, also taught at Rockdale in Avondale for 2 years.
Pursuing administrative positions, primarily assistant principal positions
Taught for 7 years
Leadership – self, others, example to children
Responsibilities and Position (Teacher and head teacher)
School or Business! Educational system runs on energy similar to how businesses are run and organized! Budget, levels, advancement, agendas…
1)Changes in organization that have occurred, and how handled. What would you have done differently?
Changes – you have to become highly qualified, get masters, prove you can teach
No child left behind law changes what one teaches daily
Budgets affect teachers being laid of “riffed”, you get evaluated based on test scores, state mandated testing.
Government directly affects organization.
Changes would be to increase the 3% - 7% funding comes from government, yet 100% of that is based on what is aligned with the state rules and government the funding should be able to be controlled by the schools and state.
Too many mandates from the federal government with small pay.
Would appreciate the government leaders to participate more in the schools
Require leaders who control funds to be more in tune with what’s going on with education , culture, society, and the day to day activities that go on.
2)Tech and interpersonal skills/examples:
Tech – Email has become mainstream, faster, documented, efficient
Online services, power point, computer classes, online grading, communication with parents and teachers through email and computers. Accessible 24 hours.
It’s become somewhat less personal, but more things are not able to be hidden.
The internet is utilized more.
Grading is easier due to the faster “value added” scores from “algorithms” that determine measures of importance from tests and information that is combined to judge the adequacy of programs and tests.
3)Creativity, innovation, and skills measured? Who guides and directs this? Discussions?
Yearly evaluations are determined primarily by the averages of test scores. The way students are performed determine the competency of the teacher.
If a school is not testing well, the funding decreases for that location.
It also relates to how people vote on levies, taxes, charter schools, hire, lay off, performance, the state report card, adequate yearly progress (AYP), state control, and if people change schools/move.
The scores have been really affected by school achievement tests.
A teacher is deemed “creative and innovative” by the scores.
4)Diverse?
A larger focus has been placed on diversity.
The goals of the leaders and teachers is to close the gap between the minority students and increase their position on the “adequate yearly progress”. Teachers are made to detail a plan for these groups, and take action to assist them on the testing.
More equality is placed on creating sub groups, pull the sub group, and prove you’re reaching “all children”, “no child left behind”, every student shall pass and have detailed plans for that group or student. A sub group is defined by race and income. It’s almost like affirmative action for students.
Uniforms have been mainstream to create similarities between a person of higher and lower income families, and create an environment that is equal.
Hiring motivated and quality staff, leadership, and teachers would facilitate success. NCLB, no child left behind, but seems government makes things appear good on paper, but then leaves the schools and riffs teachers behinds
Diversity is important, needed, and emphasized. This relates to how students interact, what they see, how they’re taught, and learning different perspectives from different people.
5)Problems and benefits encounter with diversity?
The benefits are that it’s wonderful for students, but sometimes there can be difficult when you may be a minority staff member.
You can feel “outnumbered”, take on more stressors, benefit the students with different perspectives, but with staff it’s a “different ball game”.
It’s great if you’re open to it, but not if your team is not open. The people around you need to be open, accepting, diverse, caring, and acknowledge others ideas, work, and opinion no matter ethnicity or background.
6)Diversity training? Describe
It’s discussed in terms of the sub groups and testing, but there has been no “formal” training for diversity or a sensitivity class. It’s a personal and individual thing. There needs to be more development in this area
Categories are now defined as “MR”, multi racial, and you’d have 100’s of categories if you based your decisions on how you label someone.
We’re coming up with better ways to define and take action with students that need more help and testing. A lot of it has to do with the upbringing and individual ideas and thoughts of the teachers too, which is affected by classes and where one is from, but not “trained”, it has to arrive from within.
7)Teams? Who and when use? +’s and –‘s.
There are grade level teams and subject area teams. These are utilized to converse about students and the programs. Enough time needs to be allocated for better lesson plans for the classrooms and students. Time is usually an issue. They’re primarily for teachers to benefit the students.
So many meetings are required, documented, formats followed, and filed with the school for required union requirements.
So many after school conferences and communication is mandated. The union and contracts define these guidelines, teachers are a union. Created for teachers by teachers
8)what skills matter most in forming teams and high level positions?
It is based on the ideas and opinions of the principal.
The superintendent and school board controls the principals, who controls the teachers. Requirements to be on the school boards are that you have to be 18.
It’s more political than anything.
Relationships and interacting with people are important factors in forming these types of teams.
Leadership, integrity, honesty, budgeting, financial, just like anything a normal boss that needs to lead and manage, how to do both, have a good mix, and good decision making abilities.
9)Skills, attributes, characteristics that enjoy in favorite leaders?
People who empower your staff to move on, displace personal goals and create administrators, people skills that allow to instill qualities and capabilities to progress to the next level.
Create an internal dynasty so to speak.
Discover the needs of people, listen, take time, interact, support, and guide people on their teaching journey.
10)Conflict management, how handled, process…
You go through the union, file grievances, then to school board, and if action isn’t taken in a manner you want, you can hire an attorney.
Take minor issues to the principal, discuss with the person you have an issue with, but if it’s serious, the board and union needs to support and direct you.
Issues go to the judicial system if it becomes a criminal case and if it goes out of the realms of the school board and union.
Union rep, individuals, mediation, meetings, school board, union, and courts are means to solving issues. A book of rules and regulations are created
*goals, how obtained?
Goals are to provide each child with best education possible, for all students, find academic needs, enjoy learning, life skills, be life learners, pay learning forward, enhance quality of life, have energy and integrity, instill inspiration, form path, enjoy journey
Be a professor of education to help students get the best teachers who are focused on, and help everyone be successful.
This is done through continuing to learn, being open, having energy, having passion, practicing what one preaches, professional development, and loving what one does. Having passion, drive, and caring about what you’re doing really reflects on how the students will learn, and if they will be open and have a passion for learning. If you’re excited, they’ll be excited.
You have to explain the bigger picture, get involved, and be an integral part of their lives the short time you’re going to be in their lives, and affect it forever.
Do the right things for the right reasons, not just to have summers off, not do a 9-5 job, benefit others, not just self, have balance, harmony, and truly enjoy enhancing and providing knowledge, as well as being open to learning yourself., and continually developing ones self and others around them.
Natalie Short, MEd and principal license, Educator, 5/6th grade English
Winton Woods Elementary, also taught at Rockdale in Avondale for 2 years.
Pursuing administrative positions, primarily assistant principal positions
Taught for 7 years
Leadership – self, others, example to children
Responsibilities and Position (Teacher and head teacher)
School or Business! Educational system runs on energy similar to how businesses are run and organized! Budget, levels, advancement, agendas…
1)Changes in organization that have occurred, and how handled. What would you have done differently?
Changes – you have to become highly qualified, get masters, prove you can teach
No child left behind law changes what one teaches daily
Budgets affect teachers being laid of “riffed”, you get evaluated based on test scores, state mandated testing.
Government directly affects organization.
Changes would be to increase the 3% - 7% funding comes from government, yet 100% of that is based on what is aligned with the state rules and government the funding should be able to be controlled by the schools and state.
Too many mandates from the federal government with small pay.
Would appreciate the government leaders to participate more in the schools
Require leaders who control funds to be more in tune with what’s going on with education , culture, society, and the day to day activities that go on.
2)Tech and interpersonal skills/examples:
Tech – Email has become mainstream, faster, documented, efficient
Online services, power point, computer classes, online grading, communication with parents and teachers through email and computers. Accessible 24 hours.
It’s become somewhat less personal, but more things are not able to be hidden.
The internet is utilized more.
Grading is easier due to the faster “value added” scores from “algorithms” that determine measures of importance from tests and information that is combined to judge the adequacy of programs and tests.
3)Creativity, innovation, and skills measured? Who guides and directs this? Discussions?
Yearly evaluations are determined primarily by the averages of test scores. The way students are performed determine the competency of the teacher.
If a school is not testing well, the funding decreases for that location.
It also relates to how people vote on levies, taxes, charter schools, hire, lay off, performance, the state report card, adequate yearly progress (AYP), state control, and if people change schools/move.
The scores have been really affected by school achievement tests.
A teacher is deemed “creative and innovative” by the scores.
4)Diverse?
A larger focus has been placed on diversity.
The goals of the leaders and teachers is to close the gap between the minority students and increase their position on the “adequate yearly progress”. Teachers are made to detail a plan for these groups, and take action to assist them on the testing.
More equality is placed on creating sub groups, pull the sub group, and prove you’re reaching “all children”, “no child left behind”, every student shall pass and have detailed plans for that group or student. A sub group is defined by race and income. It’s almost like affirmative action for students.
Uniforms have been mainstream to create similarities between a person of higher and lower income families, and create an environment that is equal.
Hiring motivated and quality staff, leadership, and teachers would facilitate success. NCLB, no child left behind, but seems government makes things appear good on paper, but then leaves the schools and riffs teachers behinds
Diversity is important, needed, and emphasized. This relates to how students interact, what they see, how they’re taught, and learning different perspectives from different people.
5)Problems and benefits encounter with diversity?
The benefits are that it’s wonderful for students, but sometimes there can be difficult when you may be a minority staff member.
You can feel “outnumbered”, take on more stressors, benefit the students with different perspectives, but with staff it’s a “different ball game”.
It’s great if you’re open to it, but not if your team is not open. The people around you need to be open, accepting, diverse, caring, and acknowledge others ideas, work, and opinion no matter ethnicity or background.
6)Diversity training? Describe
It’s discussed in terms of the sub groups and testing, but there has been no “formal” training for diversity or a sensitivity class. It’s a personal and individual thing. There needs to be more development in this area
Categories are now defined as “MR”, multi racial, and you’d have 100’s of categories if you based your decisions on how you label someone.
We’re coming up with better ways to define and take action with students that need more help and testing. A lot of it has to do with the upbringing and individual ideas and thoughts of the teachers too, which is affected by classes and where one is from, but not “trained”, it has to arrive from within.
7)Teams? Who and when use? +’s and –‘s.
There are grade level teams and subject area teams. These are utilized to converse about students and the programs. Enough time needs to be allocated for better lesson plans for the classrooms and students. Time is usually an issue. They’re primarily for teachers to benefit the students.
So many meetings are required, documented, formats followed, and filed with the school for required union requirements.
So many after school conferences and communication is mandated. The union and contracts define these guidelines, teachers are a union. Created for teachers by teachers
8)what skills matter most in forming teams and high level positions?
It is based on the ideas and opinions of the principal.
The superintendent and school board controls the principals, who controls the teachers. Requirements to be on the school boards are that you have to be 18.
It’s more political than anything.
Relationships and interacting with people are important factors in forming these types of teams.
Leadership, integrity, honesty, budgeting, financial, just like anything a normal boss that needs to lead and manage, how to do both, have a good mix, and good decision making abilities.
9)Skills, attributes, characteristics that enjoy in favorite leaders?
People who empower your staff to move on, displace personal goals and create administrators, people skills that allow to instill qualities and capabilities to progress to the next level.
Create an internal dynasty so to speak.
Discover the needs of people, listen, take time, interact, support, and guide people on their teaching journey.
10)Conflict management, how handled, process…
You go through the union, file grievances, then to school board, and if action isn’t taken in a manner you want, you can hire an attorney.
Take minor issues to the principal, discuss with the person you have an issue with, but if it’s serious, the board and union needs to support and direct you.
Issues go to the judicial system if it becomes a criminal case and if it goes out of the realms of the school board and union.
Union rep, individuals, mediation, meetings, school board, union, and courts are means to solving issues. A book of rules and regulations are created
*goals, how obtained?
Goals are to provide each child with best education possible, for all students, find academic needs, enjoy learning, life skills, be life learners, pay learning forward, enhance quality of life, have energy and integrity, instill inspiration, form path, enjoy journey
Be a professor of education to help students get the best teachers who are focused on, and help everyone be successful.
This is done through continuing to learn, being open, having energy, having passion, practicing what one preaches, professional development, and loving what one does. Having passion, drive, and caring about what you’re doing really reflects on how the students will learn, and if they will be open and have a passion for learning. If you’re excited, they’ll be excited.
You have to explain the bigger picture, get involved, and be an integral part of their lives the short time you’re going to be in their lives, and affect it forever.
Do the right things for the right reasons, not just to have summers off, not do a 9-5 job, benefit others, not just self, have balance, harmony, and truly enjoy enhancing and providing knowledge, as well as being open to learning yourself., and continually developing ones self and others around them.
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