Instruction as a key focus for the academic leader.

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Why is instruction such a key focus of the academic leader?

1. Due to the current climate of school reform, principals are held more accountable for student success making school leadership even more critical (Levine, 2005).
2. The principal is the individual best positioned within the school to evaluate the curriculum and evaluation process (Parkay, Hass, & Anctil, 2010).
3. This requires that the principal become deeply engaged in the school's instructional program (Hallinger, 2005).
4. "The emphasis placed on the leadership role of the principal has changed during the past 30 years (McEwan, 2003). Today's leader is expected to be the "chief learning officer," an individual who is responsible for developing and supporting a collaborative school culture focused on teaching and learning (Green, 2010).
5. Accountability for student achievement is incumbent upon the instructional leader."

First Source:
A Principal's Dilemma: Instructional Leader or Manager
Volume 8 Issue 3 Summer 2010
Posted On Tue, Aug 24 2010 12:47:00
Authors: Bettye Grigsby , Gary Schumacher , John Decman , Felix Simieou III

Introduction
A quality curriculum and effective instruction are key elements to ensure successful teaching and learning on a campus. Due to the current climate of school reform, principals are held more accountable for student success making school leadership even more critical (Levine, 2005). The principal is the individual best positioned within the school to evaluate the curriculum and evaluation process (Parkay, Hass, & Anctil, 2010). This requires that the principal become deeply engaged in the school's instructional program (Hallinger, 2005).Traditionally, principals were expected to set clear goals, allocate resources to instruction, manage the curriculum, monitor lesson plans and evaluate teachers (DiPaola & Hoy, 2008). Today, the principals' responsibilities include a deeper and broader involvement in the mechanics of teaching and learning, the use of data to make decisions, and prescribe and participate in meaningful and innovative professional development (King, 2002). As a result, principals must find a way for managerial and instructional responsibilities to complement and support each other instead of being in constant competition (Shellard, 2003).

"The emphasis placed on the leadership role of the principal has changed during the past 30 years (McEwan, 2003). Today's leader is expected to be the "chief learning officer," an individual who is responsible for developing and supporting a collaborative school culture focused on teaching and learning (Green, 2010). Instructional leadership refers to the knowledge and skills principals possess to effectively support the academic program (Shellard, 2003). In other words, instructional leadership is anything leaders do to improve teaching and learning by gathering evidence of student achievement that demonstrates improvement (King, 2002). Instructional leaders must be prepared to focus time, attention, and effort on changing what students are taught, how they are taught, and what they are learning (Bottoms & O'Neill, 2001). Ultimate accountability for student achievement is incumbent upon the instructional leader."

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http://www.academicleadership.org/article/A_Principal_s_Dilemma_Instructional_Leader_or_Manager
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Why is instruction such a key focus of the academic leader?

Instructional leadership can be defined as "those actions that a principal takes, or delegates to others, to promote growth in student learning." In practice, this means that the principal encourages educational achievement by making instructional quality the top priority of the school and brings that vision to realization. The role of an instructional leader differs from that of traditional school administrator in a number of meaningful ways. Whereas a conventional principal spends the majority of his/her time dealing with strictly administrative duties, a principal who is an instructional leader is charged with redefining his/her role to become the primary learner in a community striving for excellence in education. As such, it becomes the principal's responsibility to work with teachers to define educational objectives and set school-wide or district wide goals, provide the necessary resources for learning, and create new learning opportunities for students and staff.

Second source:
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http://www.e-lead.org/resources/resources.asp?ResourceID=14
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Why is instruction such a key focus of the academic leader?

1. Educational accountability has changed nearly everything. Superintendents and local school boards no longer can be satisfied with principals who simply place teachers in the classroom, provide textbooks and get students to attend school. Increasingly, schools and school leaders are being judged on their progress in teaching most students to the standards that only the "best students" were expected to meet in the past. This means that future school leaders must have in-depth knowledge of curriculum, instruction and student achievement.
2. School leaders need to understand about curriculum and instruction.
3. School leaders need to know about instructional practices.
4. School leaders need to know about organizing a school for greater student learning.
5. School leaders need to know about supporting teachers with continuous opportunities for growth and development.
6. School leaders need to balance the pressing need for ongoing school improvement with the heavy demands of non-instructional issues and emergencies.

Third Source: ...