Tools

The Change Leadership Group has developed a portfolio of tools, diagnostics, skill-building exercises and rubrics to support teams as they work with the Ecology of Change framework of system-wide district improvement. These resources are especially useful in engaging leaders and practitioners in novel conversations about current improvement efforts and the creation of more effective strategies toward systemic change.

A complete set of these tools and resources for using the Ecology of Change components will be included in our book, Change Leadership: A Guidebook to Transforming Education, scheduled for publication in late 2005. In the meantime, we invite you and your colleagues to try out one of these exercises below.

Featured Tool: 7 Disciplines Diagnostic

Central to the Ecology of Change model is the belief that improving instruction – the practice of teaching all kids new skills – must be addressed in order to increase student achievement. While this may seem a straightforward objective, our experience in working with district teams over the last four years indicates that change efforts rarely focus primarily on the improvement of classroom teaching. We believe that developing the instructional skills of all teachers and leaders in a school system provides significant leverage in raising student performance, and preparing students for the higher learning standards required for future learning, work, and citizenship in a knowledge society.

What are the design principles of school networks or districts where everyone is continuously improving their practice? We find seven practices (the 7 Disciplines for Strengthening Instruction) to be at the heart of successful systemic instructional-improvement efforts:

• Urgency for improvement around real data
  
• A shared vision of good teaching
  
• Meeting content and processes focused on good instruction
  
• A shared vision of results
  
• Effective supervision
  
• Professional development
  
• Diagnostic data with accountable collaboration

What is the current quality of instruction in your district, and what kinds of leadership are in place that effect its improvement? Take the 7 Disciplines Diagnostic to generate a discussion about your systemís vision for creating and supporting excellence in classroom instruction and student performance.

- How to Use the 7 Disciplines Tool
- 7 Disciplines for Strengthening Instruction Diagnostic