Case Study #6
A school administrator is an educational leader who promotes
the success of all students by understanding,
responding to, and influencing the larger political, social, economic, legal
and cultural context.
Key Questions
1. In what ways does the school administrator have knowledge and understanding of
models and strategies of change and conflict resolution as applied to the larger
political, social, cultural, and economic contexts of schooling?
2. How does the school administrator foster the importance of diversity and equity in
a democratic society?
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to identify key factors that demonstrate that the school administrator has an understanding, responds to and influences the larger political, social, economic, legal and cultural context.
Description and Explanation of the Situation
Clementine Middle School has a 95% African-American population. Of those 95%, 62% are receiving free or reduced price lunch. Clementine has qualified to be a Title I school and therefore receive extra money. At this time, the county office has not completed the necessary paperwork to declare Clementine an official Title I school.
The racial equity among teachers is such that the administrator has been informed she can not hire any more African-American teachers. The staff at the school is predominately African-American reflecting the ethnic make up of the students. The school it self is situated in an area that has become largely African-American. This was not the case seven years ago. The school has seen a shift in demographics. In 1999, the school’s largest ethnicity was Caucasian. Within three years, the school population took a dramatic turn. The school is under a 1972 court order to keep integration within a certain range.
With the change in ethnicity came a whole new set of problems. White, middle class teachers were having a difficult time understanding the black, lower income families. The values of African-Americans are different from the values of Caucasians. The divorce rate among African-Americans is significantly higher than Caucasians in the same area.
Along with the issues of ethnicity, Clementine is faced with not having met Adequate Yearly Progress for the last seven years. This fact has created a lot of stress among community stakeholders. All stakeholders have vocally expressed opinions of whether or not the education is the same in the majority African-American school as in the predominately Caucasian school across the county.
Answers to Questions
1. In what ways does the school
administrator have knowledge and
understanding
of models and strategies of change and
conflict resolution as
applied to
the larger political, social, cultural, and economic contexts of
schooling?
The assistant principal at Clementine recognized the challenges of operating a school with one ethnicity being the majority by an overwhelming amount. She understands that African-American children are reared differently than Caucasian children. This assistant principal sought out resources to aid the teachers in providing strategies to help in conflict resolution. She discovered, through her research, that Ruby Payne explores the differences in education for children living in poverty. Unfortunately, most of African-American families in the area are living in poverty or close to it. Through this training, teachers have begun to understand why certain children act as they do.
This administrator is committed to the importance of continuing dialogue with other decision makers affecting education. She frequently meets with other assistant principals and discusses issues that affect the education of students in subgroups as defined by No Child Left Behind. One of those subgroups has been special education. She has worked tirelessly to incorporate special education students in the regular education classroom. This administrator seeks out advice and strategies that will help this subgroup achieve Adequate Yearly Progress.
Through the collaborative efforts of this administrator, teachers see that she “practices what she preaches”. She tells her grade level that she may not know the answer but she knows how to ask the question that will lead to the answer. Her willingness to admit that she doesn’t know everything lessens fears on the part of her teachers. They aren’t afraid to ask questions.
2. How does the school administrator foster
the importance of diversity and
equity
in a democratic society?
I recently got to watch this administrator council a student about being “bullied”. The student felt she was being bullied by another young lady. The administrator questioned the child in a nonconfrontational manner. The young lady shared that the girl in question was talking about her and she didn’t like it. The administrator stated that the girl was probably jealous and was reacting because of this. The administrator didn’t stop with only talking to the child reporting the bullying. She also spoke with the accused. While the young lady accused is a “tough” girl, she received the same treatment that the 1st young lady did. Both were treated equally with respect and firmness.
Another way that this administrator fosters diversity and equity is that she recognizes each teacher brings unique gifts to the classroom. Some of the teachers in the grade level are veterans with more than 20 years in field while two are brand new to the field of education. This administrator treats each with a great deal of respect. She frequently can be heard touting the skills of new teachers.
The assistant principal is actively engaged in ensuring the school community works within the framework of polices, laws, and regulations enacted by local, state, and federal authorities. An example of how she meets this occurred when an academic coach wanted teachers to post individual student results to a benchmark test in the hallways of the school. The assistant principal recognized this action as a violation of confidentiality and as such was able to stop the academic coach from making this mistake.
This administrator actively seeks community partners to support the school. The business partners she has recruited range from grocery stores to car dealerships. She has even attempted to get some of the local clothing stores that cater to the student population to join the school as a partner. The administrator actively seeks input and involvement by a wide range of members in the community.
This case study shows the administrator as being a developing educational leader who promotes the success of all students by understanding, responding to, and influencing the larger political, social, economic, legal, and cultural context. The assistant principal in this case study is willing to step out of her comfort zone in order to pursue the information she needs. She meets many of the key dispositions of standard 6 from Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium but, not enough to convince me that the administrator is proficient.