Page 71 - EdViewptsSpring2021

team’s strengths, challenges and the and commitments to parents and
lessons we learned along the way. students. Establishing a unified front Having consistent
One of the most important tools in in which we remained consistent in expectations and
effective schools is consistency. The our collaborative leadership approach practices left the
pandemic magnified our elementary allowed us to achieve great success in
principal team’s need to institute the return to in-person learning for our community feeling
more consistent practices across our elementary students. confident that we were
three K-5 schools. It was imperative Throughout the pandemic we have working together to
that students in our district, no relied on each other for guidance and
matter which school they attended, feedback. Having three educators develop a plan that
would have a similar educational with a wide array of backgrounds in was in the best interest
experience during distance learning. education is a positive that enables
We recognize that each of our schools each of us to grow. As a team, we of our students and
have varying climates and cultures understand that each of us have staff in regard to safety
and unique needs which is why we experiences as a teacher, curriculum protocols and of course
typically enjoy having individual writer, principal, or in other educational
autonomy for our specific school. roles that help provide insight and teaching and learning.
However, being thrust into leadership bring context to our discussions.
during a pandemic we quickly According to John Hilton Harrell has made our tenures as principals
discovered that greater collaboration (2019), “The principals in our that much more rewarding.
and consistency would benefit our communities of practice had different Since the very beginning of the
students, staff, and community. levels of expertise in instruction... As pandemic, working through some
According to educator and author facilitators, we curated resources that of the most challenging issues was
Thomas Sergiovanni (2004), addressed potential learning gaps.” primarily supported by the engagement
“When a school achieves a balance When discussing early childhood, in the many conversations, meetings,
between individual autonomy and one principal may rely on another and decisions we made as a team of
collaborative work, it can harness who taught in early childhood. When elementary school principals. Faced
all of its intelligence, creativity, discussing curriculum, one principal with a barrage of unprecedented
and leadership to solve problems may rely on another who was a issues, we tackled each problem by
and be successful.” Through our curriculum supervisor. This balance of collectively tapping into our team
collaborative team approach, we were experiences have enabled each of us members’ skill sets and experiences.
able to successfully develop and to grow and the perspectives that are We problem-solved, planned, and
implement a robust hybrid elementary shared in discussions lead to positive celebrated together. It seemed
schedule for our phased approach outcomes that help our students. that because we were already an
back to in-person learning. When “Different people, of course, have established team familiar with our
sharing out important information different experiences. And different respective working styles, personalities,
such as the hybrid elementary experiences teach different things. and experiences, we were prepared to
schedule, we chose to collaborate The quality, quantity, and diversity conquer anything together.
on written communications to all of your experiences are important. In an article by organizational
elementary families. Having consistent Also remember that experience goes psychologist Adam Grant (2013), a
expectations and practices left the beyond what’s on your résumé.” study was conducted by researchers
community feeling confident that we (Hallenbeck, 2020) Robert Huckman and Gary Pisano
were working together to develop a As a team with a wide array of about the success of medical
plan that was in the best interest of our educational backgrounds, we have procedures conducted by surgeons.
students and staff in regard to safety depended on each other to add The study indicated that the surgeons
protocols and of course teaching and perspective on topics such as data, did not improve their performances
learning. assessments, student-centered from improving their individual
As a team of professionals, it was initiatives, teacher development, practices, but rather their success was
critical for us to maintain a level and many other topics. In addition, predicated upon their experiences
of consistency that reassured the we have come to understand that it working in their teams. Grant
community that we were truly in this is important to recognize what we concluded that shared experiences
together. Daily decisions were no don’t know and this has enabled us of team members matters more than
longer made in isolation, but rather to become even more collaborative individual experiences. Also, Grant
over quick Zoom calls. Examples as we recognize the strengths of noted that the best groups are not
of our consistent practices included each other and how dependent we the groups with the most stars, but
scheduling, safety protocols, are on each other’s experiences. As they are teams that had previous
assessment practices, school-wide a principal, it is very difficult to know experiences collaborating together.
celebrations, as well as Google everything and having a team of Grant’s description of the study
Classroom expectations for teachers educators with a balanced background highlights an example of research

Educational Viewpoints -69- Spring 2021