A
program that adopts and customizes
the Southern Regional Education
Board (SREB) instructional training
modules to provide professional
development based on district needs
and the requirements of the Rhode
Island Department of Education.
Links
to Content:
Demonstration Sites:
Smithfield
Public Schools, Central
Falls Public Schools and Rhode
Island College
Target Population:
Building and district administrators and administrative interns
Need and Intent:
The intent was to bring together
two districts that were very different socio-economically and
a higher education teacher training institute to provide professional
development for leaders that was research-based, high quality,
and focused on the specific needs of the districts and the requirements
of the state department of education.
Background:
The
Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) has developed “training
modules that support aspiring principals' preparation and current
principals' on-the-job application of knowledge and practices
that improve schools and increase student achievement, and prepare
trainers to deliver the modules through university preparation
programs, state leadership academies and other professional
development initiatives.” [from
SREB website]
The demonstration sites selected the SREB
modules for their leader development initiative because it was
felt they were the best match for the state and district goals.
“The SREB
modules are a ready-made, highly developed curriculum on leadership.
The materials are current, and they provide a flexible framework
to facilitate each module. SREB
really respects how adults learn. They have 14 research-based
areas that cover what a principal needs to know and focus on.
The real power of the modules is that they can be customized
to the state and district’s goals and priorities. It is
not a canned program!”
– Dr. Donald W. Holder, Assistant Superintendent
Implementation Process:
In Year 1, the districts identified SREB-certified
staff to lead sessions on “Leadership for School Culture”
and “Leadership for Literacy”. The lead team, comprised
of the superintendents of both districts and the associate dean
of the education school at Rhode Island College, adapted and
customized the SREB
modules to make them more RI-specific and in line with the RI
Department of Education’s accountability
framework. In Year 2, more staff became SREB-certified
and RI-focused sessions were held on “Creating a High
Performing Learning Culture”, “Numeracy Leadership”
and “Providing and Sustaining Professional Development”.
There is now a small cohort of administrators who are trained
to facilitate specific leadership areas across the districts,
at the college or in other districts.
A flyer was sent out with the topics of the sessions, the materials
they would receive, and what specifically would be discussed.
In order to build the credibility of (and excitement around)
SREB, examples
of their research papers on literacy and math were distributed.
(The SREB
website allows you to download their research free of charge.)
The Smithfield superintendent also started using SREB
materials in his weekly writings to teachers.
The districts pulled administrators out during the day from
8:00 am to 11:30 am and provided food and all materials (the
SREB binders
contain everything the facilitator needs as well as all necessary
handouts). The sessions were a mixture of lecture, text-based
discussions, small group work, etc. The tasks in the modules
require total engagement and are all job-embedded. The facilitators
combined the SREB
materials with corresponding materials from the
text-based
bibliography as well as from the RI
Department of Education, the National
Association of Secondary School Principals, the Association
for Supervision and Curriculum Development, and Breaking
Ranks.
Following the sessions, the principals bring the materials
and what they have explored and learned back to their schools
and use it in their staff professional development sessions.
In part because of their SREB
experience, these principals are no longer holding business-based
faculty meetings; these too have become professional development
opportunities where staff are looking at student work, test
results, etc.
Tips for Implementation:
- It helps tremendously to have one person who has thoroughly
looked at the SREB
modules, understands the SREB
process and the leaders he/she is working with. This key person
invites participants to the sessions and helps to get them
excited by leading by example and participating themselves.
It is especially important to have this one key person when
multiple districts are involved.
- Make sure there is adequate funding to sustain the project,
especially to send leaders to further SREB
experiences.
- It is better to hold the workshops during the day rather
than after school due to the number of hours needed.
- It worked well to mix the groups with people from each
district.
- Make sure to give copies of all workshop materials to those
principals that can’t come to the sessions (especially
those that have to stay at the buildings to cover).
Case Study: The
Smithfield assistant superintendent spent three days in Nashville
getting SREB
training and certification in a variety of the modules.
He exclaims that it “was one of the best professional
development programs I’ve ever gone through” and
describes SREB’s
approach as “very thorough, very connected, and current.”
In addition to using them for this leadership project, he was
also able to incorporate the modules into the MAT class he teaches
at a local college on what it means to be a professional teacher.
He says: “You could actually develop a degree program
from the modules.”
Since they participated in the SREB
workshops, a number of principals have decided to go to SREB
to be trained and certified to teach additional modules. One
recently retired high school principal is now being asked to
go all over the country to teach the “Numeracy Leadership”
module which he first experienced as a participant in a workshop
from this project when he was a math teacher.
Program Components and Materials:
The demonstration sites broke up the
full suite of SREB modules into those that are most appropriate
for aspiring and new principals and those that are right for
veteran principals. The module areas are also explained as to
what each intends to help the leader understand, know and do.
Click
here to download this document. 
The sites also developed a suggested text-based bibliography
for each SREB
module area.
Click
here to download this document.
According to the sites, three of the SREB
modules demonstrate strong connections with RI Department of
Education priorities: “Leadership for Literacy”
with the
Literacy Policy; “Prioritizing, Mapping, Monitoring
Curriculum” with Grade
Level Expectations and “Providing and Sustaining Professional
Development” with the
Rhode Island Quality Professional Development Standards
and National
Staff Development Council standards.
Contact for More Information:
Name: Dr. Donald W. Holder
Job Title: Assistant Superintendent
Role in Project: Project Manager
Phone: (401) 231-6606
E-mail: dholder@smithfield-ps.org
Address: 49 Farnum Pike, Smithfield, RI 02917