Principal leadership matters. While school principals impact student achievement in mostly indirect ways, the cumulative effect of their agency to design the school program, organize teacher and staff interactions and opportunities to collaborate, and make other important decisions that influence the culture of the school meaningfully affects the experience of staff and students. This research into principal leadership has sought to make a contribution to the understanding of what makes principals effective in their work. The existing research into what makes principals effective has consistently found that any single theory of leadership, like "instructional leadership," in isolated application will not be fully effective across all contexts. Rather, an integrated theory of leadership that recognizes the complexity of the principal role, the necessary emphasis on collective responsibility and action, and the significance of the school context is necessary in order to explore and extend the understanding of effective school leadership. Leading from an inquiry stance offers a framework for principal leadership that builds upon this existing research literature about effective school leadership. Therefore, this study sought to understand what leading from an inquiry stance looked like in practice and its impact on the culture of collaboration among teachers. The findings of this research study indicate that leading from an inquiry stance promotes the culture of collaboration among teachers, "anti-inquiry" practices undermine the culture of collaboration among teachers, and relational trust between principals and their teachers is a critical attribute for effective leadership around a shared vision of school improvement.

"This book will demonstrate that when leaders pose previously unnamed problems, and find ways to bring together working groups of students, principals, central office administrators, school faculties, parents, and/or members of the community for joint inquiry, it is more likely that new, effective solutions can be found through participatory processes of rethinking educational practices, categories, policies, and expectations. The argument is that when school, district, and other educational leaders position themselves as inquirers, their leadership can illuminate and improve many aspects of institutional life and create intellectually demanding and rich learning environments - for both adults and children"--

The authors present teachers' own observations and reflections on leadership to demonstrate how teacher leaders can help close the achievement gap.

Teacher Collaboration for Professional Learning contains the essential information, tools, and examples teachers and school leaders need to create, manage, and sustain successful collaborative groups. Designed to be a hands-on resource, this practical guide shows you how to: Advocate for collaborative teacher learning Develop and sustain collaborative research groups Organize and conduct productive research projects Address issues of ethics, leadership, and group dynamics Evaluate and sustain collaborative learning activities Based on data from a major survey, Teacher Collaboration for Professional Learning features extensive case examples from model research communities collaborating within schools, across districts, in partnership with universities, and as online networks. The book also offers a wealth of reproducible templates as well as reflection questions and exercises?invaluable tools for organizing study groups.

Noted leadership coach Jill Harrison Berg offers a comprehensive guide to help school and teacher leaders amplify the power of collaborative inquiry as a means for identifying, interrogating, and addressing instructional inequity. At the center of the book is Berg's i3PD Planning Map, an invaluable tool for enhancing inquiry-based professional development experiences so that they become engines for schoolwide transformation. The map guides teachers to recognize and reform ways their instructional practice may be contributing to inequity, bolsters facilitators' abilities to help their colleagues become more effective agents of their own learning, and cultivates a culture of organizational learning in schools. Berg lays out the process in four parts: 1. Establishing a solid foundation for your improvement cycle with a deep understanding of the three components of your instructional core: content, participants, and facilitators. 2. Attending to the three Rs—relevance, rigor, and relationships—representing the connections among the core components. 3. Designing your improvement cycle and planning it out as a series of session agendas. 4. Planning for impact by thinking through what you will accept as evidence of success and how you will use that information to take your school to the next level. If you're ready to see your school start to work smarter toward instructional equity, and if you're eager to be a part of that change, Uprooting Instructional Inequity provides the design principles and sample tools you need to get the transformation started.

Foster reflective teacher leadership and make real change happen! Teachers are powerful change agents in the on-going process of school improvement. This insightful, must-read guide helps school leaders shape the development of a sustainable professional learning culture. Practical suggestions and in-depth research shed light on your path as you explore the benefits and challenges of adopting authentic teacher collaboration across schools and districts. A follow-up to Jenni Donohoo’s best-selling Collaborative Inquiry for Educators: A Facilitator′s Guide to School Improvement, this book will quickly move you from theory to practice. Learn valuable lessons from leaders’ experiences in the field and discover: A rationale and framework for engaging in inquiry The vital conditions needed to ensure systemwide collaboration Common pitfalls and the four stages of school improvement Included are Cardwork Strategies with explicit actions and phrases to improve professional practice. Use this insightful guide to develop teacher leaders who lead and learn productively! "The concept of collaborative inquiry is increasingly bandied about these days with little precision. In one fell swoop, Donohoo and Velasco change all that with this succinct, hard hitting, complete, powerful, and, above all, accessible book on collaborative inquiry." —Michael Fullan, Professor Emeritus OISE/University of Toronto "Donohoo and Velasco guide readers through an inquiry process that can strengthen every professional learning community. They provide the ‘how’ to teacher collaboration and shine light on the path that will get us all there." —Douglas Fisher, Professor San Diego State University

Leadership, collaborative learning, and student achievement – discover what works! This resource-rich book provides a straightforward, strategic path to achieving sustainable communities of collaborative learners. Research-proven inquiry techniques, vignettes, case studies and action-oriented protocols help you build strong learning relationships for high-impact student achievement. System leaders, principals and teachers learn to: Integrate diverse views and perspectives Build trust and hear every voice Leverage key resources and processes Build students’ cognitive, interpersonal, and intrapersonal skills Use “Assessments-in-Action” to improve, monitor and sustain progress Build a collaborative culture through learning together Use this go-to guide to transform your school from a place of ‘good intentions’ to a center of intentional practice today!