By Dr. William Zielke
Educators make decisions all the time, every day. Some are small, some large. Some are easy, some complex. Some involve a few people, some involve the entire school. Some respond to daily issues and some to long term goals.
In response to the No Child Left Behind Act, accountability for student achievement and growth are a focal point for school and district planning and decision making. In the article entitled, “Making Better Decisions” published in the Harvard Business Review (November 2009), Thomas Davenport notes four steps in making better decisions: Identification, Inventory, Intervention, and Institutionalization. While each step ought to be given honest consideration when making decisions, it’s the first step, identification, that caught my eye and engaged my mind. I could envision a clear crosswalk from business to education.
In my work with many schools and districts to help them develop their road map for school improvement, I realized that some suffer from an over abundance of improvement goals, also known as the “kitchen sink” syndrome. Davenport has a simple and uncomplicated method to help decision makers whittle down their list of goals. It’s the generic “Top Ten” list. What if school and district improvement teams had to limit their selection of improvement goals to no more than 10?
Below is a list of examples of educational goals that are spun off of Davenport’s business goals. These may provide ideas for schools to develop Top Ten lists.
Step I: Identifying Priority Decisions
Critical decisions to be made:
“Top 10 strategies required to make Adequate Yearly Progress”
“Top 10 actions to implement those strategies with fidelity”
Highly strategic decisions to be made:
“Top 10 strategies to make Safe Harbor and close the achievement gap for AYP subgroups”
Deciding how to Decide:
“Decision-making process to improve student attendance rates”
When faced with the task of developing a school or district improvement plan, consider the Top Ten List as a tool to decide which goals are critical and have the greatest potential for improving student learning and achievement results.
Dr. Zielke is a retired principal who currently works at the Professional Development Alliance in Joliet, IL as a School Improvement consultant.
