Teachers Bringing Out the Best in Teachers

Jo Blase is a professor of educational administration at the University of Georgia, and a former public school teacher, high school and middle school principal, and director of staff development. She received a Ph.D. in educational administration, curriculum, and supervision in 1983 from the University of Colorado at Boulder, and her research has focused on instructional and transformational leadership, school reform, staff development, and principal-teacher relationships. Through work with the Beginning Principal Study National Research Team, the Georgia League of Professional Schools, and public and private school educators with whom she consults throughout the United States and abroad, she has pursued her interest in preparation for and entry to educational and instructional leadership as it relates to supervisory discourse. Winner of the W. G. Walker 2000 Award for Excellence for her coauthored article published in the Journal of Educational Administration, the University of Georgia College of Education Teacher Educator Award, the University of Colorado School of Education Researcher/Teacher of the Year, and the American Association of School Administrators Outstanding Research Award, Blase has published in international handbooks and journals such as The Journal of Staff Development, The Journal of Curriculum and Supervision, Educational Administration Quarterly, and The Alberta Journal of Educational Research; her eight book editions include Empowering Teachers (1994, 2000), Democratic Principals in Action (1995), The Fire Is Back (1997), Handbook of Instructional Leadership (1998, 2004), Breaking the Silence (2003), and Teachers Bringing Out the Best in Teachers (2006). Blase has authored chapters on becoming a principal, school renewal, supervision, and organizational development; her recent research examines the problem of teacher mistreatment. She has published over 90 academic articles, chapters, and books, and she also conducts research on supervisory discourse among physicians as medical educators and consults with physicians in US hospitals and medical centers. Joseph Blase is a professor of educational administration at the University of Georgia. Since receiving his Ph.D. in 1980 from Syracuse University, his research has focused on school reform, transformational leadership, the micropolitics of education, principal-teacher relationships, and the work lives of teachers. His work concentrating on school-level micropolitics received the 1988 Davis Memorial Award given by the University Council for Educational Administration, and his coauthored article published in the Journal of Educational Administration won the W. G. Walker 2000 Award for Excellence. In 1999 he was recognized as an elite scholar, one of the 50 Most Productive and Influential Scholars of Educational Administration in the world. Blase's books include The Politics of Life in Schools: Power, Conflict, and Cooperation (winner of the 1994 Critic's Choice Award sponsored by the American Education Studies Association), Bringing Out the Best in Teachers (1994, 2000, 2008); The Micropolitics of Educational Leadership (1995), Empowering Teachers (1994, 2000), Democratic Principals in Action (1995), The Fire Is Back (1997), Handbook of Instructional Leadership (1998, 2004), Breaking the Silence (2003), and Teachers Bringing Out the Best in Teachers (2006). His recent research (coauthored with Jo Blase and Du Fengning, 2008), a national study of principal mistreatment of teachers, appeared in The Journal of Educational Administration. Professor Blase has published over 120 academic articles, chapters, and books.

Foreword by Edith Rusch Acknowledgments About the Authors Preface 1. Teachers Helping Teachers: The Case for Peer Consultation Introduction How Teachers Learn to Teach The First Source of Teacher Help: Principals as Instructional Supervisors The Second Source of Teacher Help: Lead Teachers and the Move Away From Top-Down Administrative Control The Third Source of Teacher Help: Naturally-Occurring Informal Peer Consultation Our Study of Peer Consultation Among Teachers A Portrait of Peer Consultation Questions to Consider Suggested Reading for Further Learning 2. Peer Consultation Skill #1: Building Healthy Relationships by Communicating, Caring, and Developing Trust Communication as the Key Four Types of Peer Consultation Peer Consultants' Communication Style Peer Consultants' Caring Peer Consultants' Building Trust Summary Activities for Teachers and Administrators Suggested Reading for Further Learning 3. Peer Consultation Skill #2: Using the Five Guiding Principles for Structuring Learning Experiences Teachers' Knowledge Base The Educational Productivity Research and the School Effects Research From Knowledge to the Development of a Professional Learning Community Peer Consultants' Guiding Principles for Structuring Learning Experiences Summary Implications for Practice Suggested Reading for Further Learning 4. Peer Consultation Skill #3: Planning and Organizing for Learning Teachers' Professional Development Meta-Themes of Planning Getting Organized for Instruction Elements of Lesson Planning Teacher Tips The Dark Side of Planning and Organizing for Learning Summary Reminders and Questions Suggested Reading for Further Reading 5. Peer Consultation Skill #4: Showing and Sharing Showing: Three Kinds of Lessons The Power of Learning by Observing: A Special Form of Showing Sharing: A Bounty from Colleagues Summary Implications for Practice and Questions Suggested Reading for Further Learning 6. Peer Consultation Skill #5: Guiding for Classroom Management Nine Guiding Principles of Classroom Management Setting Up and Maintaining Classroom Routines Summary Questions for Discussion Among Faculty and Administrators Suggested Reading for Further Learning 7. Unleashing the Hidden Potential of Peer Consultation Introduction Capitalizing on the Power of Peer Consultation An Element of Academic Leadership Revealed Teachers Teaching Teachers: Peer Consultants at Their Best How Peer Consultation Supports the Development of a Professional Learning Community Semi-Formal Collaboration Among Teachers and Its Effects Conclusion: The Challenge for Teachers, Administrators, and Professional Learning Coordinators to Unleash and Sustain Peer Consultation Resource: Research Methods and Procedures References Index

"A great contribution to the field. Excellent examples of communication styles. The scenarios and short vignettes that demonstrate concepts are interesting and on point." -- Gwen Gross, Superintendent of Schools "This book definitely represents a new niche in instructional improvement, offering the integration of prior research, key literature, and strategies for implementation and action." -- Edith Rusch, Associate Professor, Department of Educational Leadership "School leaders can use this book as a tool to promote a culture that encourages professional growth and development." -- PsycCRITIQUES, August 2007, Vol. 52(33)