Please answer the questions at the end of this case study with…

Question Answered step-by-step Please answer the questions at the end of this case study with… Please answer the questions at the end of this case study with explanation!!! Case Study: Leadership for Improvement  BackgroundThe Sigma Pi District School Board has an enrolment of 20,000 students from diverse backgrounds including both rural and urban communities. The senior leadership team is made up of five supervisory officers of education each with their own portfolios and family of schools. The director of education is new to the school district having been hired only a few months earlier. The supervisory officer responsible for programs presented the Board’s EQAO results to the board of trustees at the September meeting. For the past several years, the Board has performed very well in EQAO compared to its statistical neighbours1, except for flat results in the area of mathematics. This year’s results show continued improvements in literacy but a dramatic drop in all levels of achievement in mathematics and, for the first time, the board is well below the provincial standard. The local paper published a full-page article outlining the board’s dismal results and even provided opinions on how mathematics should be taught. The trustees are not happy. The director of education believes in empowering his senior leaders, and wants to support the supervisory officer responsible for programs. Following the meeting with the board of trustees, the director of education meets with the supervisory officer and explains the challenge to be resolved: find strategies for improving results in mathematics. Present Situation The supervisory officer has strong problem-solving skills and knowledge of effective school and classroom practices but is not strong in all areas of the mathematics curriculum. The supervisory officer understands the need to move the system forward by improving student achievement and would like the senior leadership team to share the belief in the strength of working together. The supervisory officer recognizes the need for an intensive focus on professional development for all staff in mathematics and, within the current budget, has struggled to find the funds to ensure teachers receive the professional development they require. To make matters worse, earlier that budget year, there was a reduction in the number of program coordinators and consultants who provide instructional support to teachers. The supervisory officer is concerned about how principals will respond to potential complaints from parents, given the news articles published by the local media. The supervisory officer has observed during school visits and in district reviews, an inconsistency in teaching practices, low student engagement, and general apathy. Staff confidence to provide strong mathematics instruction is a barrier. After reviewing the Board Improvement Plan for Student Achievement and Well-being, the supervisory officer calls an emergency meeting with program coordinators and consultants in order to develop a strategy to address professional development in the area of mathematics instruction. The supervisory officer meets another challenge: not all shares the sense of urgency. At the next senior leadership meeting, the supervisory officer requests support from the senior administrative team to reallocate funds from other budgets, as there are insufficient funds for system wide professional development at this point. The team remains silent. The supervisory officer responsible for Information Technology suggests that the focus be on the enhanced computer resources that were recently placed in the schools. No other supervisory officer offers suggestions. The supervisory officer responsible for presenting the plan for improving math EQAO results feels isolated. He is annoyed and disappointed that the team does not recognize the consequences of attaining results below the provincial standards of EQAO math results and that they are not helping with the situation. The supervisory officer responsible for programs remains silent as the director moves to the next item on the agenda dealing with parking space allocations.  The supervisory officer responsible for programs is frustrated by the lack of support from his colleagues and the director. He is at a loss personally and at a professional level, is not used to not being able to find solutions more easily and collegially. The question that is posed is how to get through this and how to generate a sense of urgency around the issue of EQAO mathematics results. The supervisory officer reflects on how he will deal with this situation.  Questions  1. How would the supervisory officer engage the senior leadership colleagues to develop a system solution?  2. As team leader, how might this supervisory officer approach program staff to engage them more fully in the solution ensuring accountability and collaboration?  3. Since this supervisory officer is fully accountable for the outcome, in what ways can the supervisory officer engage the director of education in fostering a sense of collective responsibility and accountability?  4. As the newly appointed director how might the supervisory officer nurture productive working relationships with and among staff and stakeholders?  5. What role does the director have in collaborative implementation of the Board Improvement Plan for Student Achievement and Well-being? Business Management Human Resource Management LEADERSHIP 711 Share QuestionEmailCopy link Comments (0)