Propped up by the
support of their
fearless leaders,
teachers and
students can
themselves be free.
Four years ago, the two divisions were
connected by nothing more than an
unkempt and underused interior courtyard, a record of underachievement, a
state mandate to introduce data teams to
guide instruction, and a hodgepodge of
district-imposed initiatives.
Instead of becoming overwhelmed by
these challenges, Rockett viewed them
as possibilities. She decided to unite the
two divisions around research-based
pedagogy. The first structural change
was to combine the two independently
operating data teams from each division
into one overarching vertical data team
for the school. This move symbolically
connected the two divisions under one
vision and one goal.
Because teachers in both divisions
were participating in National Urban
Alliance professional development,
Rockett used our approach to pedagogy
as a second unifying factor. A frequent
question that would surface after examination of data was, What NUA practices
could help students perform better on
these tasks?
Finally, the school won a grant from
the Thinking Foundation ( www.thinking
foundation.org), which enabled them to
explore using thinking maps to guide
conversations during their data team
meetings. Having the data team use
thinking maps demonstrated the power
of these graphic organizers and
increased teachers’ comfort level in
using them instructionally.
These efforts have met with great
success. School achievement is up, staff
members share a common vision, and
students benefit from consistent instructional methodologies. In short, Rockett,
like all good architects, used the materials and conditions at hand to craft a
revitalized and high-functioning education environment.
Leaders as Ministers
The root of the word administrator is
minister, a word that takes personal
© SUSIE FITZHUGH
power out of the leadership equation
and replaces it with service. Ideally,
ministers work on behalf of others in an
effort to achieve a higher good. They are
mediators, people who deliberately
intervene between the individual or
group and the environment (Feuerstein,
1982).
Schools need ministers—people who
look out for the common good, are
devoted to service to the school, and
have the moral influence to improve
conditions for learning and teaching. In
some cases, this mediation involves
political and community advocacy. In
other instances, it involves putting
together the right people and resources
to support the school’s mission. In all
cases, it requires an intimate knowledge
of teachers’ and students’ needs. Mediation, the second pillar of the pedagogy
of confidence, is often behind-the-scenes work.
Principal Martha Davies believes that
rich resources exist in her school’s poor
community. She further believes that it
is her job to bring these resources
together to make a difference in the lives
of students and the community. One of
these resources is the school itself.
Housing approximately 400 students
from one of the poorest sections of a
city in upstate New York, the school is
frequently open from 7:00 a.m. to 10
p.m., offering such on-site services as
