Blazing New Trails - Connexions

Distinguishing Practices for Administrators 203
findings with numerous documents, and discussing findings with individuals who were
knowledgeable of the lab settings. The preponderance of data indicated to the researcher the
story of each lab setting (Merriam, 2009). Through rich analysis, a cohesive story that
outlined the organizational and instructional practices implemented in the lab settings and
their importance was verified. After the themes for each lab setting were noted, the researcher
analyzed the data across lab settings to note the organizational and instructional distinguishing
practices that were consistent over the years.
FINDINGS
Analyzed data gathered from the documents and interviews of the administrators,
teachers, parents, and students from each of the lab settings painted a vivid picture of the
organizational and instructional practices implemented consistently over time. The
distinguishing organizational and instructional practices that emerged from the analyses were
as follows: aligned practices to a clear, focused mission; implementation of proven,
constructivist-based instruction; planning and assessment with a purpose; realization that
learning never ceases; leadership alongside the experts; establishment of a family-like
atmosphere; embracing market needs and desires; and capitalizing on available resources.
Each of these distinguishing practices will be further discussed.
Align Practices to a Clear, Focused Mission
A single articulated mission was always the beacon leading the way for the lab
settings. From 1923, when the demonstration school opened its doors to the present lab
settings of the Charter School and Early Childhood Laboratory, this clearly verbalized
mission was shared by the College of Education administration, the Elementary Education
Department faculty, and the administration, faculty, staff, and parents of the lab settings. A
former dean of the College of Education expressed the mission in an interview conducted in
2009.
The mission was to demonstrate an exemplary program in Early Childhood Education
to our students who planned to become teachers, to give them hands-on experiences in
working in a setting that was exemplary and to provide high quality education for
future teachers. A secondary interest was to offer the children a good program.
Each interview and all documents that were studied supported this aligned mission
consistently as a parent from the charter school expressed, “The primary interest from the
university was that it was a great teaching tool for its students.”
Implement Proven, Constructivist-based Instruction
Documents and interviews revealed that constructivism was the grounding philosophy
of the lab settings’ instructional program. The belief that learning is an active, contextualized,
social process where children construct knowledge based on their personal experiences and
surroundings was evident beginning with the nursery school. John Dewey (1935), noted
philosopher, believed that school curriculum should be based on everyday life and encompass
the needs of the child. Adherence to Dewey’s beliefs is displayed by a document which
illustrated the curriculum offered at the nursery school: