Administrator as a Change Leader: Concept @ Work

Five Middle Schools Participate in a Mentoring Program

A Principals Leadership Consortium initiated a Middle School Teachers Academy for implementing a support system for new teachers with the goal of improving student achievement through the delivery of developmentally appropriate instructional strategies in a student-centered learning environment. The project involved five middle schools working with a school improvement consultant from an area agency and funded by Goals 2000 grant.

Implementation: Monitoring the Process

The Stages of Concern was used as a guiding dimension when planning training and follow-up support for new teachers and mentors. Three instruments were used during the first year of the project: Stages of Concern Questionnaire (concerns of new teachers), Change Facilitator Stages of Concern Questionnaire (concerns of mentors), and Change Facilitator Style Questionnaire (perspectives of principal by new teachers and mentors).

First Year Results

The results from the Stages of Concern Questionnaire indicated that 10 new teachers were at Stage 0, Awareness (31%), 9 new teachers were at Stage 1, Informational (28%), and 6 new teachers were at Stage 2, Personal (19%). The majority of the new teachers (78%) had awareness or self concerns about implementing developmentally appropriate instructional strategies in a student-centered learning environment. The specific concerns focused on availability of resources, exciting students in their use of instructional strategies, and knowing how this approach affects student learning.

Table 1 identifies the peak Stages of Concern for new teachers at each school.

Table 1. Number of New Teachers at Each Stage of Concern




	Stage 0	Stage 1	Stage 2	Stage 3	Stage 4	Stage 5	Stage 6	Total




School A	2	1	1	0	1	1	0	6



School B	0	5	0	1	0	0	0	6



School C	1	0	3	0	0	0	0	4



School D	1	1*	0	0	1	3*	0	5*



School E	6	2	2	0	0	0	1	11



Total	10 31%	9* 28%	6 19%	1	2	4*	1


*Indicates a dual peak at Stage 1 and Stage 5. (n = 32)

The results from the Change Facilitator Stages of Concern Questionnaire indicated that 13 mentors were at Stage 0, Awareness (57%), 5 mentors were at Stage 1, Informational (22%). The majority of teachers (79%) were just becoming aware of their role as mentors. The specific concerns related to facilitation skills and developing working relationships with the administrator and other teachers to facilitate the mentoring program in their school. Table 2 identifies the peak Stages of Concern for the mentors at each school.

Table 2. Number of Mentors at Each Change Facilitator Stage of Concern




	Stage 0	Stage 1	Stage 2	Stage 3	Stage 4	Stage 5	Stage 6	Total




School A	3	1	0	0	0	1	0	5



School B	3*	2*	0	1	0	0	0	5



School C	2	0	0	0	0	3	1	6



School D	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	4



School E	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	3



Total	13* 57%	5* 22%	0	1	0	4	1


*Indicates a dual peak at Stage 0 and Stage 1. (n = 23)

Results from the Change Facilitator Style Questionnaire indicated that one principal was an Initiator, two principals were Managers, and two principals were Responders.

The results indicated that the mentors and new teachers had similar perspectives about the principal as a change facilitator. The patterns that emerged overall with high scores for three of the five principals include one dimension in each of the three clusters, which include Concern for People, Organizational Efficiency, and Strategic Sense:

	Scale 2		Formal/Meaningful: discusses school problems in a productive way and takes the lead when problems must be solved.
	Scale 4		Administrative Efficiency: procedures and rules are clearly spelled out, efficient and smooth running of the school is his priority, is skilled at organizing resources and schedules.
	Scale 6		Vision and Planning: knows a lot about teaching and curriculum, uses many sources to learn more about the new program/innovation, sees the connection between day-to-day activities and moving toward a long-term goal, and has clear picture of where the school is going. (Hall & George, 1999)

Many of the frustrations expressed throughout the first year are typical for identified Stages of Concern for both mentors and new teachers. The importance of a support system is to make appropriate interventions based on the identified needs/concerns of the teachers. The principal, as a change leader, makes a difference in how successful teachers will be implementing the innovation (Hall & Hord, 2001).

Continuation

		Figure 1: Stages of Concern Matrix

		Figure 2: IC Map

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As the result of data collection, two instruments were developed to guide interventions and monitor growth. A Stages of Concern Matrix was developed to provide guidance for future training and support sessions and to address identified concerns both at the individual and school level. Figure 1 identifies the Stages of Concern Matrix. Five components needed to create a support system for new teachers were identified as leadership, community of learners, allocation of time, professional development, and teacher development. Different variations of these components were developed in an IC (Innovation Configuration) map to be used to give direction toward institutionalization of the mentoring program. Figure 2 identifies the IC Map for creating a support system for new teachers.

Administrator as a Change Leader

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