Leading School Teams

David Horton is a lifelong educator. He has served as an Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services, a K-12 Director of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment; Coordinator of Secondary Mathematics and K-12 Instructional Technology; high school Assistant Principal; and high school math and science teacher. David's area of expertise is building systems and structures of organizational leadership that align mission and vision with practice. He currently teaches as an adjunct professor with two Southern California universities. David has a Bachelor of Science in Biology and Master of Education from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He received a Master of Science degree in Administration from Pepperdine University and earned a Doctor of Education degree in Organizational Leadership from the University of La Verne. David resides in Southern California with his wife and two children.

Acknowledgments About the Author Introduction Sustained Improvement Requires Teams What This Book Is-What This Book Isn't Quick-Start Diagnostic Making a Selection Putting It All Together Activity Guidelines Components of Team Activities PART I. EXAMINATION AND IDENTIFICATION OF THE PROBLEM Chapter 1. Learning Leadership Leaders and Teams The Realities in the Leadership of Learning Application Activity 1.1-Assessing Your Organizational, Team, and Personal Strengths Application Activity 1.2-Effective Learning Leaders Application Activity 1.3-Strong Learning Teams Exhibit Common Characteristics Conclusion Chapter 2. A Problem Worth Solving and the Ideas to Solve It (the Filters) Introduction Ideas Are Fragile-Ideas Are Delicate The Fosbury Flop, Ski Jumping, and Newton Application Activity 2.1-Treating Ideas in a Learning Organization Application Activity 2.2-Ideas That Don't Work: Part of the Process Application Activity 2.3-It Takes Other People Sooner or Later Application Activity 2.4-Who and What You Have Around You Deeper Use of This Chapter (Deeper Dive) Conclusion Chapter 3. Why Solve the Problem That Needs Solving (the Filters) Introduction Application Activity 3.1-What the Result of a Great Decision Looks Like Application Activity 3.2- Reasons to Have the Idea in the First Place Application Activity 3.3-The Problem That Needs Solving: Clear, Concise Application Activity 3.4-The Role of the Leader in Developing Ideas Application Activity 3.5-Harnessing the Forces Around You Deeper Use of This Chapter: Deeper Dives Conclusion PART II-INTROSPECTION, BEHAVIORS, TYPES: THE HOW AND WHO TO SOLVE PROBLEMS Chapter 4. How the Problem Is Solved Introduction Application Activity 4.1- Importance of a Process Application Activity 4.2-Trust Application Activity 4.3-Fear of Conflict Application Activity 4.4-Commitment Application Activity 4.5-Accountability Application Activity 4.6-Attention to Results Application Activity 4.7-Generating Ideas and Action Steps Deeper Use of This Chapter: Reusable Prompts Deeper Use of This Chapter: Deeper Dives Conclusion Chapter 5. The People Who Will Solve the Problem Introduction Application Activity 5.1-Know How to Build and Use People Application Activity 5.2-The Chemistry of the Team Application Activity 5.3-Managing the Creative Team Application Activity 5.4-Handling Conflict in the Ideas From the Team Deeper Use of This Chapter: Deeper Dives Conclusion Chapter 6. The People in the Room (the Types) Introduction The Assessment The Basics Application Activity 6.1-Part 1/Type 1: The Idea Application Activity 6.2-Part 2/Type 2: Organization and Execution Application Activity 6.3-Part 3/Type 3: Forces of Community Application Activity 6.4-Part 4/Type 4: Leadership Capacity Using the Four Types Conclusion PART III. FUNCTIONALITY OF THE TEAM Chapter 7. People, Leadership, Support (the Fuel Sources) Introduction Fuel Source A: The People Application Activity 7.1-Who Application Activity 7.2-What Application Activity 7.3-How (Coaching) Deeper Use of This Chapter: Deeper Dives Fuel Source B: The Resource of Leadership Application Activity 7.4-Keep Things Moving (Management Leadership) Application Activity 7.5-Keep People Moving (Leadership Management) Deeper Use of This Chapter: Deeper Dives Fuel Source C: The Supports Application Activity 7.6-Gather, Collect, Assess Application Activity 7.7-Feedback Application Activity 7.8-Systems and Barriers Application Activity 7.9-Performance Deeper Use of This Chapter: Deeper Dives Conclusion Chapter 8. Team Dynamics, Blunders, Traps, Directions, and Connecting Dots (the Pink Elephants) Introduction Application Activity 8.1-Pink Elephants Application Activity 8.2-Team Dynamics Application Activity 8.3-The Blunders Application Activity 8.4-The Traps Application Activity 8.5-Ideas as Direction Application Activity 8.6-Connect the Dots Deeper Use of This Chapter: Deeper Dives Conclusion Chapter 9. Performance, Feedback, and Other Ways to Support, Maim, or Kill a Team (the Good, the Dangerous, and the Lethal) Introduction Application Activity 9.1-The Good: Selling the Idea: A Picture Is Worth 1,000 Words Application Activity 9.2-The Good: Communication and Frequency Application Activity 9.3-The Good: Ingredients of the High-Performing Team Application Activity 9.4-The Dangerous: Planning Mistakes Application Activity 9.5-The Lethal: Lack of Feedback, Feedback, Feedback Application Activity 9.6-The Lethal: Mistaken Assumptions of People and Meetings Conclusion Chapter 10. Leadership, Support, Structure, and Conclusion Leadership Support Structure-The Overall Structure: The First 15 Minutes, the Next 45 Minutes Conclusion References Index

"This book provides leaders and teams with a blueprint of how to work through a problem to find possible solutions while valuing each member of the team. This is not an easy task at any level and to have a resource to provide guidance for those tough situations is always welcomed." -- Nicky Kemp, Assistant Superintendent "If you are a school or district administrator with the time, energy, and courage to take on the major concerns of your school/district and are willing to implement a plan with possible systemic change then this book is for you." -- Jim Anderson, Principal "Chapter 4 of Leading School Teams allowed our team to address the lack of processes and the finger pointing and tension that went along with it. It was surprising how quickly the activities and discussion brought out the meat of the issues within our team. It happened in a natural way that it snuck up on the team and we were in the middle of addressing the real issues before we realized what was happening. Additionally, because of the natural manner in which the issues were approached, team members felt respected and accomplished after each session." -- Eric Dahlstrom, Principal "Building effective teams at all levels of an organization is critical for long-term success. Nowhere is this more evidenced than in the principal coaching I do where building vital relationships and high-performing teams transcends traditional content and data and get to the heart of what we value in one another and our collective work. Dr. Horton has laid out a comprehensive-and palatable-approach to teaming that values the individual strengths of each stakeholder and lays the foundation for teacher enthusiasm and learner engagement." -- Dr. Michael Roe, Principal "This year I was faced with the challenge of starting a brand new community day school, changing the paradigm of how we educate expelled and at risk youth, and implementing curriculum and procedures that are truly new and innovative choices for our teachers. As I read through Leading School Teams I saw a few specific topics that I felt were key discussions to have as a fledgling staff, but sometimes folks can be hesitant in truly being honest about difficult topics. One of the best discussions we were able to have was in regard to the following prompt from Chapter 7 of Leading School Teams: 'Do we have a system to collect data on the program or initiative? Is it simple to use and simple to understand? Have results targets been determined before the program launch?' This prompt was able to facilitate a powerful discussion on how we are evaluating our progress, and how effectively we are meeting targets that we set at the outset of the year. As a staff we are looking forward to continuing these discussions using the same format and seeing the growth that will come from vibrant and honest discussions." -- Cristian Miley, Principal "The strategies within Leading School Teams allowed our leadership team to develop a deeper understanding between our members. This enabled our team to create more effective connections with each other, improved our levels of communication, and strengthened our team's bond." -- Jeff Franks, Principal "Whether you are a new leader of a team, an established team in need of trust or a culture shift, a team where not everyone's voice is heard, or a team without established systems, Leading School Teams provides the tools needed to create a highly effective team. This book provides powerful insight to practical activities that can be easily implemented with any team, at any stage, with an end result of productive change. Diagnose your team, engage in the activities and dialogue and watch your team transform." -- Leah C. Davis, Executive Director "In order for any team or change effort to be successful, relational trust is key. In Leading School Teams, Dave Horton offers practical strategies to enhance relational trust in order to transform adult-centered systems into systems that put students at the center!" -- Paul Bloomberg, Chief Learning Officer