Transforming a school is a long, hard, and often lonely task. Some people want change, others don’t, and some simply aren’t prepared to wait for results to show. As a school leader sets off on this journey, how do they know what to do, when to do it, who to listen to, and how to manage critics along the way?
Research: How the Best School Leaders Create Enduring Change
Based on a study of 411 leaders of UK academies.
September 14, 2017
Summary.
Transforming a school is a long, hard, and often lonely task. But an eight-year study of the actions and impact of 411 leaders of UK academies offers some insight in what to do. The best leaders took several key steps over three years, in a particular order. The first step is to prove your commitment to the community: lay out a 10-year plan and stay for at least 5 years, and work to engage the parents in your district. Second, commit to your students: expel less than 3%, and focus on attendance rates before you worry about test scores. Expand your school to teach students who are younger; you’ll be able to instill good habits early. If staff are sub-par, let them go, and challenge the remainder to improve their own attendance. Manage the board’s expectations: they’ll want to see test scores rise right away, but you’re not going after quick fixes and they need to know that — in the study, 90% of the best school leaders were almost fired in their second year. The schools that improved the most in the long term didn’t see test score improvements until year three, and continued to get better through year five and beyond.