Blazing New Trails - Connexions

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238 CRITICAL ISSUES IN SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT Roles in the organization, ability to communicate, personal motivation or agenda, and resource control were the most prevalent factors in the study of change to the TLT model that altered levels of power and influence or shaped perceptions. For this reason, additional examples and further explanations of each factor connected to the research study were the next part of the structural description. Roles in the organization. The concept of roles in the organization had a significant bearing on my learning in this research as I attempted to navigate the politics of the organization and work within the established parameters of my own position. These hierarchical levels within CRISD impacted the change in the TLT model at every incident. Though literature suggested that alternative leadership styles are becoming more prevalent and are replacing those historic top-down organizational views (Danielson, 2007), it seemed that in this change effort, our district was pre-historic. Roles within the organization, whether formal or informal, consistently determined who would be involved in the change of the TLT trainings, what I could or could not do in relation to the timeline or budget, and how the process would be presented to other stakeholders. I often wrote about the number of informal roles that I was required to play in order to move the change process in one direction or another. I was feeling that there was a lack of clarity from the district level about what Teacher Leaders’ professional development should look like, and vastly different opinions were communicated by multiple people at the district office. Danielson (2007) and Donaldson and Sanderson (1996) explained that informal leadership roles also surfaced on school campuses with teacher leaders. Certain teachers hold a level of respect from their colleagues and though specific job responsibilities are not defined within these informal roles, they often have a significant amount of influence over the faculty or staff (Danielson, 2007). My personal experience with informal roles in the district compared to communications from my teacher leaders about their informal roles. Even though they were identified on campus formally, they were functioning in many informal roles for those they served. I was forced to look critically at who I most needed to listen to in order to determine my next step in the change process (Danielson, 2007). In most cases, the formal role in the organization made that determination. In essence, the more elevated in the hierarchy, the more power over the change process one had. The TLT meetings at this point were not listed on the district level meeting agendas and, therefore, were viewed as a success so far. However, it was evident from this exchange that there was some surprise that the training was being looked upon favorably. Because the model was “off of the respective district radar,” I was able to move more smoothly within the change of the TLT trainings for the second semester. Informal connections with people and inside information allowed me to navigate effectively and get things to progress more quickly (Danielson, 2007). This navigation exemplified when it was time to plan trainings during the spring semester that would require the help of some alternate departments. My informal role and personal relationships with members of certain departments allowed me to schedule trainers very quickly wherein if I had utilized the formal communication process, I would most likely still be waiting for those trainings to be scheduled. Personal connections or relationships that were built informally eased the lines of communication necessary to make decisions quickly and efficiently. Clearly, the informal roles in the organization had a significant impact on the TLT training. Oftentimes, in the course of the study, the formal or informal role in the organization was
Navigating the Politics of Change in a Suburban School District: A Phenomenological Study 239 determined by one’s ability to communicate within the district. The second factor in the change process identified as a sub-theme in this research was the ability to communicate. Ability to communicate. The need for effective communication and collaboration within this effort to change training for teacher leaders was imperative and often helped or hurt the process as a whole. Through the course of change to the TLT model, it was apparent that communication was a foundational element to the success or failure of my vision. In the beginning stages of my experience, I learned that communication with stakeholders around the Teachers Leading Teachers model had been a concern. In researching further on the unrest with campus administrators and central office staff, I learned that it was always important to pay close attention to the who, what, and how within my communication efforts. My reflective journal demonstrated that who I had the opportunity to communicate with, how I engaged in that communication, and what I chose to communicate about changed the course of my work in many instances. Some positive examples gave me great hope for the change effort. However, it became evident quickly that my ability to communicate was impacted by others and their communication with me. Through the approval process to implement certain changes to the timing of training or additional support at the campus level, I wrote “… my passion for the area of teacher leader professional development is not shared by my superiors….It takes weeks to get a response from executive leadership on requested action items” (Reflective Journal, October 12, 2008). The inability to communicate within our organization was paralyzing at times when I expressed that impending approval or disapproval, requirements posed as questions, and the information I was given or not given made massive transformations to the formulated plan. Fullan (1999) explained that “isolated cultures” do not effectively value the vast resources of knowledge available in the organization and have no way of “mobilizing the competencies and motivation of organizational members” (p. 16). During much of this study, it seemed that district personnel were operating in this isolated style because they were not communicating with each other. Within my own circle of ability to communicate, I attempted to be as open as possible so that these same challenges were not occurring because of me. During the course of the research, many teacher leaders approached me to discuss areas of concern or celebration relating to their roles at the campus level. Often, my answer or response was that I was working on the issues they had addressed, but I did not have an effective way to solve the problems right away. In my journal, I related that one teacher leader explained that she heard others talking about their roles and responsibilities on their campuses and that she was frustrated because she had no administrative support or understanding of what she should be doing (Reflective Journal, November 14, 2008). I brought the general issue to the whole group at the January meeting, and we had a discussion about ways to work with the campus administration and effective communication techniques that had been successful on other campuses. In this situation, my ability to communicate centered on how I addressed the issue, not that I had the answers. The teacher leaders knew my motivation and that I really wanted to help, and they recognized that they could help each other more than I could help them. In open communication, we were able to make small changes for the good of the group. This collective focus and attempt to improve the model for the district as a whole was a motivating factor with the teacher leader group. The progression of the established teacher leader model in CRISD brought forth many differing motivations of stakeholders within the district. Personal motivation or agendas were the next factors that emerged in the change process.
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20 NCPEA 11 BLAZING NEW TRAILS: Pre
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NCPEA EXECUTIVE BOARD 2010-2011 Pre
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NCPEA HONOR ROLL OF PRESIDENTS, 194
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TABLE OF CONTENTS Contributing Auth
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Betty J. Alford, Stephen F. Austin
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xii Yearbook Reviewers Kenneth Rasm
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INVITED CHAPTERS PART 1
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4 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE (3) The fed
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Shadows and Images II 7 LIVING LEGE
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Shadows and Images II 9 see little
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Shadows and Images II 11 settings,
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Shadows and Images II 13 into the m
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16 INVITED CHAPTERS Purpose of the
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18 INVITED CHAPTERS do not recogniz
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20 INVITED CHAPTERS Research Proced
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22 INVITED CHAPTERS Political maneu
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24 INVITED CHAPTERS CONCLUSION This
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26 INVITED CHAPTERS Johnson, R. B.,
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Complexities in the Workload of Pri
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47 CRITICAL ISSUES IN SHARED LEADER
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Professional Learning Communities:
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Special Education Director Burnout
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Superintendent Decision-making and
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CRITICAL ISSUES IN CRITICAL ISSUES
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Administrative Functions The Admini
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The Administration of Special Educa
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CRITICAL ISSUES IN PROMOTING ACADEM
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The Effective Practices and Beliefs
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Creating Shared Meaning in High Per
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Experiences with PTELL in Six Illin
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Part 5 CRITICAL ISSUES IN EDUCATION
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Service to the Profession: The Forg
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