Leading Mathematics in Urban Districts

Opportunities and Challenges

Cathy Seeley

Charles A. Dana Center

The University of Texas at Austin

February 4, 2009

Leadership

• Communicating a Vision

• Using the Power of People

• Pacing Yourselves

Communicating a Vision

STANDARDS

All students doing meaningful mathematics

using appropriate tools

All students doing meaningful mathematics using appropriate

tools• Equity and access

• Engagement

• Important mathematics

• Resources

• Learning

Customizing the Vision

• State and federal mandates

• Community issues

• How big? How many?

• Where the schools are in the process

• Resources available

Using the Power of People

Using the Power of People

• It’s not just your job.

• If/when you’re gone, who will be left?

• What will make it sustainable?

Using leadership networks

• Give them opportunities

• Arm them

• Support them

• Trust them

Pacing Yourselves

Things I have learned about life as a leader and change facilitator…

• Opportunities rarely present themselves in ideal circumstances.

• They probably aren’t going to retire or die any time soon, so you might as well find a way to work with them.

• One reason you probably are still an educator is because you care whether, what, and which students learn.

Staying the course

• Patience

• Perseverence

• Public Relations

Can we do what do we ask of teachers?

• Don’t tell everything

• Focus on developing problem solving and thinking

• Talk with your students and listen to what they say

• Help students learn to reflect on their own and their

fellow students’ work

• Encourage, nurture, support students

Can we do what do we ask of teachers?

• Don’t tell everything

• Help teachers act from a professional knowledge base

• Talk with your students and listen to what they say

• Help students learn to reflect on their own and their

fellow students’ work

• Encourage, nurture, support students

Can we do what do we ask of teachers?

• Don’t tell everything

• Help teachers act from a professional knowledge base

• Talk with your teachers and listen to what they say

• Help students learn to reflect on their own and their

fellow students’ work

• Encourage, nurture, support students

Can we do what do we ask of teachers?

• Don’t tell everything

• Help teachers act from a professional knowledge base

• Talk with your teachers and listen to what they say

• Help teachers learn to reflect on their own and other

teachers’ work

• Encourage, nurture, support students

Can we do what do we ask of teachers?

• Don’t tell everything

• Help teachers act from a professional knowledge base

• Talk with your teachers and listen to what they say

• Help teachers learn to reflect on their own and other

teachers’ work

• Encourage, nurture, support teachers

• What is one other thing we ask

of teachers that you can

ask of yourself as a leader

with teachers?

Can we do what do we ask of teachers?

CHALLENGES…

Challenges we (all) face…

• Not enough community support

• Not enough administrative support

• Not enough resources

• Not enough trained teachers

• Too much pressure about THE TEST

• Politics

Issues and Challenges

• For your school, district or region, identify

a challenge (an obstacle) to improving

mathematics teaching and learning.

• Choose one challenge from your table.

What is something that you’re

pretty sure won’t work to address

that challenge?

Leading for Results

• Effective Leadership

• Efficient Leadership

• Getting Results

Effective Leadership

Actions/Interventions that – are appropriate—what they

need when they need it– are personal– take the long view– are strategic

Efficient Leadership

Actions/Interventions that don’t

– waste time (yours or teachers’)

– waste energy (yours or teachers’)

– waste resources (yours or teachers’)

Efficient Leadership

Doing a good intervention at the wrong time or with the wrong

people is inefficient.

Efficient Leadership

Investments vs. Expenses

Investments

• Building relationships is always an investment.

• We need to spend the time to let things happen.

Leadership for Results

Leadership to get– what you want

– what your community demands

– what your teachers and students need

What does it take from you?

• Courage

• Action

• Personal Leadership

Courage

• Changing what you do is hard and scary.

• Changing what you believe is

harder and scarier.

• Changing what others believe is

even harder and scarier.

31

Action

• One thing you will do by

Monday

• One thing you will do

long-term

32

Personal Mastery

• Telling the truth

• Personal Vision

Peter Senge, The Fifth Discipline, 1994

Personal Mastery

• Telling the truth

• Personal Vision:

– What’s important to you?

– What do you care about?

– What drives you, motivates you?

– What are you passionate about?

– Why do you put up with all that stuf?

Personal Leadership

• to seek out knowledge about what works

• to imagine what is possible

• to advocate high quality mathematics learning for every student

• to actively reach out beyond your classroom, institution, or school system

Your Leadership• Helping teachers develop their personal leadership• Being an effective change agent/facilitator• Being …

Your Leadership• Helping teachers develop their personal leadership• Being an effective change agent/facilitator• Being sensitive, perceptive, persistent, politically

savvy, inspirational, visionary, hard-working, invisible, smart, trustworthy, selfless, respected, courageous, enthusiastic, committed, provocative, compassionate, patient, accepting, challenging, creative, tactful, versatile, professional, provoking, enabling, encouraging, resourceful, goal-focused, insightful, assertive, organized, pleasant, truthful, strategic, effective, efficient …

Sometimes it just takes a match…

Sometimes it just takes a match…

You can make it happen…

You’re a leader.You’re a leader.

You can make it happen…

E-mail me for a link to a pdf of the slides or to get information on the

book: cseeley@austin.rr.com

Check out my website on Burkina Faso:

http://csinburkinafaso.com