Observation+for+607

607 Observation write up - results on __survey__ on values/mission/culture, communication, empowerment, and conflict.

1. Continuous Improvement, or the processes that are in place in our district to create cycles of improvement, is an important part of any dynamic establishment. How do you manage continuous improvement to ensure that we are always getting better in the things that we do? During the __surveys__, the individuals impression on continuous improvement seemed to be quite varied. Some seemed to grasp the __idea__ of CI as being a continual process to __improve__ oneself, while others focused on CI for procedural and instructional processes. On the personal CI side of things, the following were mentioned: personal responsibility, CI through listening, observing, meeting with other teachers, attending conferences and __classes__. On a more broad approach, district leadership and vision, providing of purposeful learning opportunities, leaders able to establish purpose, and the providing of a __safe__ culture.

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2. How does our district/school mission/values/culture impact what you do on a daily basis and how you make decisions concerning your job?

Again, the responses on this question were widely varied, and I found myself wondering if some of the participants actually knew our mission/value statement. Only one participant actually made any mention of the text used in the mission statement. Another echoed a verbal statement used at our __school__ "Decisions are made based on what is good for kids". The individual who mentioned the district mission statement said that "ALL" played a big part in their decision making decisions. She stated "what we believe connects to what we do and what we expect from __students__ and staff". Two others mentioned that the district/school sets the 'guidelines' and then teachers take this into __account__ and make decisions, one of them mentioned our non written, but often vocalize statement above. Another mentioned that her decisions that she is required to make is always easier to do with our culture of mutual support.

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3. In your own words, summarize our district mission Vision Statement "Littleton Public __Schools__: Extraordinary learning, exceptional community, expanded __opportunity__ and success for all __students__". What does this mean for our __students__, staff, and community? These responses were very consice. To summarize:
 * 1) Set the tone for excellence
 * 2) Community shows their belief by the number of prior __students__ who return to LPS to __educate__ their children.
 * 3) Strive for opportunities for all children, place value on parents, teachers, and __students__.

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4. In your own words, please summarize our district mission statement, "To __educate__ all __students__ for the future by challenging every individual to continuously learn, achieve, and act with purpose and compassion." What does this mean for our __students__, staff, and community? Responses to summarize our mission statement all contained the common thread of continued improvement (though never explicitly expressed). Our mission statement creates an environment that encourages all people to to their __best__, makes __education__ accessible to all students, encourages consistent learning for staff and students, requires all to act purposefully with __education__ while acting with empathy and compassion for the community, and to work together to ensure we meed the needs of all our students.

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5. How do our district mission and vision statements shape our daily workings within our individual workplaces (how do they impact the culture of our environment)? There was quite a bit of difference on this question. Three of the four believe that these statements drive our pursuit for excellence by encouraging hard work. One emphatically states that we do as it says, and that is why our culture reflects our mission/value statements. One individual was less optimistic about the importance of our mission/value statement, saying that there was very little impact on daily workings, rather administration standards were more a factor in shaping daily work routine.

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6. Do you see that our district mission and value statement do not mention something that you feel should be included? What may have been left out and why is that important to you?

Unanimously, all participants felt that our mission/value statements were sufficient.

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7. How do you approach communication in your job? Is it important? In what ways might unspoken communication help or hinder your efforts within your workplace?

Participants provided many relevant comments concerning the importance of communication with their workplace, again mentioning it's impact upon culture
 * 1) Communication fosters clarity and respect
 * 2) When thinking about communication, the following is considered:
 * 3) Who needs to know?
 * 4) What do they need to know?
 * 5) When do they need to know?
 * 6) Why do they need to know?
 * 7) What is the best way to convey the message?
 * 8) Communication needs to be positive, not just negative.
 * 9) Communication mitigates misinterpretation
 * 10) A lack of communication fosters a culture of distrust
 * 11) Transparency is the keep when communication with staff, parents, students.

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8. How do you approach and resolve conflict within your professional role?

All participants focused on collaborative as opposed to authoritative conflict resolution. Importance was placed on valuing the other person and their perspective, being intentional and caring when maintaining relationships, listening first. Face to face conversation was identified as the manner of talking about conflict. One participant admitted that she did not handle conflict well and her first reaction was one of avoiding the situation. She said that she has to be very intentional and deliberate when approaching a situation of conflict, and give herself time to process what was said (sometimes even writing things down after a conversation). Conflict should be dealt with quickly, before it becomes more difficult, and all involved need to be free to add input.

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<span style="background-color: #e6ecc0; color: #333333; display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: left;">9. As a leader in your environment, you oftentimes may have to make decisions using your best judgement. These decisions may contradict opinions held by other coworkers, those who work for you, and the community at large. What sort of factors impact your judgement when you are facing a decision that may be unpopular? When do you make these types of decisions?

Our unwritten __school__ values came through on this one as well. Half of the participants explicitly mentioned that their decisions based on what is best for children. Mention was made that when a difficult decision that may be unpopular with staff or parents arises, thinking that we first work for the children helps (keeping our values in mind during difficult times). Flexibility was also mentioned by half of the participants, they mentioned that decisions sometime have to be changed once they have been set, judgments can change as change is occurring, and it is important to have the courage to make a different decision if the first one is not working out. Leaders must be constantly be evaluating the outcomes of their decisions and have the humility to make a different decision. Other considerations were gathering input from others and viewing a decision from several different perspectives, and to make decisions with the best intentions (for our kids).

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<span style="background-color: #e6ecc0; color: #333333; display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: left;">10. How important is it for you as a leader to empower those around you? What are the costs of empowering others? What are the benefits of empowering others? Are the times when you may more inclined to empower others?

I loved the responses from this question. Three were focused on staff, one on students, but I believe that the principles are shared.
 * 1) Empowering others builds capacity to succeed in all endeavors
 * 2) Leaders should inspire and encourage staff, celebrate and utilize individual and group talents
 * 3) Leaders should create a purposeful environment, have a vision, and know their staff so they can identify areas for empowerment
 * 4) Empowerment is the opportunity to share strengths.
 * 5) During the process of empowerment, one gives up some control, but the short term loss of control pays off in long term success and building a collaborative culture
 * 6) Leaders should know themselves and be humble enough to know their areas of weakness so they are able to identify and utilize the strengths of others.
 * 7) Empowerment of children can take valuable instructional time in class, but pays off in the long run.

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Final Wordle on all questions, what were the hot key terms?

<span style="background-color: #ffffcc; color: #ff0000; font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 17px;">http://www.wordle.net/delete?index=5151091&d=RZUD <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: 0px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; position: absolute; top: 139px; width: 1px;"><span style="background-color: #e6ecc0; color: #333333; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px; text-align: left;">**Continuous Improvement, or the processes that are in place in our district to create cycles of improvement, is an important part of any dynamic establishment. How do you manage continuous improvement to ensure that we are always getting better in the things that we do?**