Start off the new year with support from a large selection of new, free tools from Public Impact. Whether you are leading a teaching team or leading a school—especially one attempting a turnaround—you’ll find tools based on research and the practices of the best Opportunity Culture teacher-leaders and principals nationally.
Tools for Multi-Classroom Leaders (and all accountable teacher-leaders!)
Co-plan and monitor schoolwide goals, with support from your principal and colleagues:
- Priority Dashboard–Turnaround Version. Any school can use this tool to track success.
Take the right steps, and clarify roles:
- Multi-Classroom Leader Action Planner—All Schools (to see each season in its own document, click on the following links: Summer; Fall; Winter; Spring)
- Organizational Chart Template—Multi-Classroom Leader Teams
Lead your team to ensure a culture of instructional excellence:
- Instructional Excellence Resources
- Multi-Classroom Leader Team Meeting Sample Agenda—Analyzing Student Work
- Multi-Classroom Leader Team Meeting Sample Agenda—Data Analysis
Improve yourself and your team:
- Training for Opportunity Culture educators
- Selection and evaluation toolkits: kits include job descriptions and competencies for success
- Multi-Classroom Leader Competencies Self-Assessment—rate yourself on the competencies an MCL needs to understand areas you can develop
See more for teachers and teacher-leaders here.
Tools for Principals
In typical schools, principals must be instructional leaders for dozens of teachers. Only a small portion of principals are able to lead schools to excellence with this wide span and numerous administrative duties. In addition, too few principals learn to be great leaders in advance, and too many of the best move up by moving out of schools, into the central office.
See tools and resources for principals here.
For Turnaround Principals
Identify and track goals and methods for successful, sustainable turnarounds:
- Goal Setting Worksheet–Turnaround Version. Any school can adapt this planning tool.
- Priority Dashboard–Turnaround Version. Any school can use this to plan and track success.
- School Turnaround Plan. This tool keeps your plans linked in one place for sharing.
- Turnaround Principal Action Planner
- Standing Meeting Agendas
Use these updated principal competencies and actions for turnaround success:
- Two-page checklists of turnaround principal actions and competencies.
- School Turnaround Leaders: Competencies for Success: Updated guide provides a summary of turnaround principal actions, definitions of competencies, and detailed descriptions of increasing levels of effective competence, plus examples of principal actions and competencies, including ones gathered from Opportunity Culture turnarounds.
- Self-assessment: Turnaround Leader Competencies: This self-assessment allows turnaround principals to reflect on current strengths and areas for leadership development.
- Self-assessment: Turnaround Leader Actions: This self-assessment allows turnaround principals to reflect on current strengths and areas for leadership development
- Coaching and Developing Turnaround Leader Actions professional learning moduleDistricts and states, hire great turnaround principals and support them:
- School Turnaround Leaders: Selection Toolkit
- Recruit, Select, and Support: Turnaround Leader Competencies professional learning module