Sustaining Change in Schools by Daniel P.

Johnson

Daniel P. Johnsons Sustaining Change in Schools is an excellent resource guide for school leaders or others interested in sustaining change by overcoming differences and focusing on quality. Johnson has done extensive research on the issues surrounding change and created a step-by-step questioning process by which change can happen smoothly. Sustaining Change is broken down into six chapters. The chapters are organized as such. Chapter one focuses on understanding what quality is. As well, Chapter one identifies the four Ps of leadership and management. Chapter two focuses on asking quality questions. The next two chapters look at maintaining quality by making it a habit as well as focusing on success. The last chapter looks at nurturing balanced leadership; leadership as a partnership. Johnson introduces a set of strategies or tactics in each chapter and then applies them to a specific school and or district situation. This allows the reader to get an idea of how the strategies would play out in real-life. Johnsons Four Ps, purpose, parameters, principles, and priorities, are analyzed in a variety of situations. As well, Johnson outlines different personality traits associated with each of the Four Ps, so one can determine which P best describes them. Sustaining Change is broken down into six chapters. The chapters are organized as such. Chapter one focuses on understanding what quality is. As well, Chapter one identifies the four Ps of leadership and management. Chapter two focuses on asking quality questions. The next two chapters look at maintaining quality by making it a habit as well as focusing on success. The last chapter looks at nurturing balanced leadership; leadership as a partnership.

Sustaining Change in Schools by Daniel P. Johnson

Chapter 1 Understanding the Quality Profile -Quality is a shifting target defined by peoples perceptions The quality of public schools depends on how much the community values their product. For public schools to sustain quality, school leaders must understand what people value. This is not an easy task, Johnson states. In searching for a proven method to sustain quality in public schools Johnson came across two bodies of research that eventually shaped his four Ps approach. The work of Boleman and Deal indicated that organizational cultures function both for and because of people. (Boleman and Deal 1984, 1997) Keirsey and Bates conducted research that indicated there were numerous cultural factors that inhibit individuals from fully developing their skills and talents. (Keirsey and Bates 1978, 1998) The link between the two aforementioned bodies of research formed the four Ps: purpose, parameters, principles, and priorities. The Four Ps provide a practical lens through which ordinary people can examine how they process information and interact with one another. All people have the ability to operate and make decisions using the Four Ps. Conversely, many tend to emphasize one or two of the Ps over others. To be sure you, as a school leader, are effectively balancing the use of the Four Ps, Johnson suggest asking the following four questions: Do my stakeholders know and trust one another enough to discuss their expectations for quality schools openly and honestly? Have we created mechanisms for individuals and groups to discuss their expectations and to make effective decisions about how to pursue quality schools?

Sustaining Change in Schools by Daniel P. Johnson

Do we align our daily practices with the principles underlying our stated purpose for schools and learning?

Do we act on our priorities or simply talk about them? These questions can be asked when developing a clear picture of quality, when

changing a quality target, when determining how closely current daily practices align with stated principles, or when changing the way communities think about public schools. They can be asked by teachers, administrators, parents, and school board members alike. Johnson notes that there are many different definitions for the world learning. Piaget (1952) describes learning in terms of a reasonably consistent set of developmental stages through which all individuals progress. Skinner (1948, 1968) describes it as a matter of shaping behavior through controlled consequences. Gardner (1993) focuses on both the purpose and the nature of learning, suggesting that educators need to be aware of and intent on developing learners through multiple intelligences. The commonality among these theories is that individuals learn by engaging with their world and drawing connections among their experiences. Since people have different experiences they make different connections. These experiences and connections shape peoples personalities. Humans cannot be simply placed in categories simply based on their personalities; however, they do tend to lead with one of the Four Ps, prior to considering the other three. The first of the Four Ps is purpose. The purpose question asks, Why is this important? It focuses on people. Approximately 10 percent of people approach learning experiences using the purpose perspective. Those who use the purpose

Sustaining Change in Schools by Daniel P. Johnson

perceptive are considered Idealists, or abstract cooperators. Idealists approach each person and or situation the same way and then sense what is important to that person and or situation and creating sustaining connections. The second of the Four Ps is parameter. The parameter question asks, What are the rules of engagement? Approximately 45-50 percent of people approach learning experiences using the parameters perspective. They believe people could exist more harmoniously with one another if they understood and lived by the rules of the game. Those who prescribe to this way of thinking are considered Guardians, in Johnsons model. The third of the Four Ps is principles. The principle question asks How do I make this work? Only about 5 to ten percent of individuals consistently make connections among experiences on the basis of their fit with logical principles. These individuals are also called Rational. They find working with people to be a challenge. They have the ability to remove themselves from personal connections and attend more to ideas and principles that can improve the human condition. The last of the Four Ps is Priorities. The priorities question asks, Will this make a difference? Approximately 35 to 40 percent of people approach learning experiences with this perspective. People with this perspective are Artisans. Artisans approach problems from very concrete perspectives. They value facts and events as opportunities to discover and meet individual needs. According to Johnson, within a given school district almost 95 percent of the educators will approach learning by asking why this program or service is important for students and what are the rules for making decisions about those programs and services? This leaves less than 10 percent of educators asking questions about learning

Sustaining Change in Schools by Daniel P. Johnson

issues in terms of priorities or principles. This unbalanced approach is what leads to educators spending more time defending programs than analyzing effectiveness. It is also why change comes so slowly in public schools. Chapter 2 Asking Quality Questions -If you want to find out what people value. Ask them. Their answers may surprise you. Johnson begins by pointing out that quality is not equivalent to luck. It is achieved when people connect random acts of effectiveness into consistent patterns of success across groups and communities. The first step towards creating quality schools is to recognize that stakeholders define quality in different ways. The second step is realizing these differences as assets rather than obstacles. Connected learning communities are those in which there is a commitment to a shared purpose, equal access to information, collaboration and reflection, and leadership facilitation. Johnson suggests using the following four questions to create a connected learning community amongst stakeholders to help them develop a common definition of quality: Purpose: What should students know and be able to do as a result of their school experience? Parameters: What will staff need to know and be able to do in order to create programs and services that address students needs? Principles: Who will monitor, align, and adjust, programs and services so that all students are successful?

Sustaining Change in Schools by Daniel P. Johnson

Priorities: How will the school board identify and support quality programs and services? These questions need to be asked and revisited as goals and situations change. It

is important to ask each of the four questions for each situation each time. If not what happens is individuals tend to structure questions and interpret answers from their own frame of reference. This means only the purpose questions are asked and applied. The Idealist in individuals tend to take over when its time for questioning. However making the following questions a necessity force Idealists to ask balanced questions: What evidence do we have that our programs and services actually make a difference for students? For which students or groups of students do they work? What are the conditions under which success occurs? Where do we go from here to ensure success for all students? The above questions help shift the focus from what we want to what is working for various groups of students. Once these critical questions have been answered they need to be reframed. For example a district may answer these questions on a district level and then reframe these critical questions on the elementary, middle, or high level; at the building level; within each term or department; and within each classroom. A question for the classroom level might look like this, How can we, at the classroom level, frame our common expectations for what students need to know and be able to do?

Sustaining Change in Schools by Daniel P. Johnson

Individuals want progress but not change. This often times leads to a division between those that want a change to occur and those that do not. Asking clarifying questions to clarify the definition of success for a particular goal is a way to get away from this division. Answering the following questions help paint a clear quality target throughout district, schools, classrooms, etc. What was the old standard? What goal(s) was this standard designed to achieve? What examples of success do we have relative to this goal? How might existing goals and instructional strategies be limiting our interpretation of this data? Johnson speaks of access questions. These are questions asked to be sure success is being made available for all students in the school, not most. Critical questions can be designed to set criteria to gauge when it is time top move a target rather than argue about who will decide when the target should be moved. This saves time in the end and again helps to clarify the goals of the district. Collaboration and reflection questions need to be asked as well. These questions get at not how much data the district has but what theyre doing with the data they have. Reflection questions such as the ones that follow help stakeholders create valuable and effective assessments as well as effect ways to use the data: Why is the assessment necessary? What forms of assessment are most appropriate given this purpose? What will we do with the assessment information once it has been collected?

Sustaining Change in Schools by Daniel P. Johnson

How will the assessment information be reported and stored in ways that benefit students?

Chapter 3 Making Quality a Habit -A school district that cannot learn cannot teach People expect public schools to keep pace with change; they just dont want the school itself to change. Even when society moves the target outside the existing playing field people forget to change the rules of the game inside the school walls. For quality to be sustained over time and across groups, stakeholders need to align their stated goals with their daily practices. Making quality habitual requires asking questions that deal with honesty and integrity. According to Bennis (1989), honesty comes from setting a goal and trying to follow it (walking the talk). Integrity comes from being honest about what you are actually doing (talking the walk). Many times individuals fall short on the latter. Johnson makes the point that it is not enough to ask the right questions if you will not respond appropriately to the results of your investigations. The challenges schools face when trying to make quality a habit is that one 85 to 90 percent of active stakeholders are guardians or idealists and arent comfortable when something they value doesnt work or when the people around them are unhappy and two letting go of old habits is hard. Johnson suggests that since so many stakeholders have already mastered two of the Four Ps, purpose and parameters, they just need to balance those habits with principles and priorities. Becoming accountable for results also helps to make quality a habit. Collaboration and focused reflection requires a common understanding of roles and

Sustaining Change in Schools by Daniel P. Johnson

responsibilities. It is derived from a shared purpose and is dependent upon equal access to information. Chapter 4 Focusing on Success -Success begins with a change in expectations. It is sustained with a change in attitudes. School communities are successful when stakeholders expect all children to learn and when they understand that children learn in different ways. Being that everyone has a different personality, individuals do not all have the same perspective in regards to who can learn. Changing peoples personalities is extremely hard if not impossible; however you can help them change their attitudes. Using the following skills and tactics can help stakeholders find a balance by seeing different avenues to success. Tactics like strategic thinking, data driven decision making, collaboration and reflection, and leadership and facilitation. Johnson mentions conflict to point out that it is a natural part of effective decision making. Education is a democracy. It requires leaders to consider the political context in which decisions are made. If conflict is managed effectively it can give way to critical thinking and creativity. Chapter 5 Managing Tasks and Leading People -Managers do things right. Leaders do the right things. Johnson considers different ways to manage various tasks throughout school districts in order to lead to evolutionary change. Success in a public arena requires balanced leadership that manages tasks and leads people. It is far easier to change the way you organize a task than it is to change a people. In other words when you want to

Sustaining Change in Schools by Daniel P. Johnson

change something it is extremely important to have a plan, but it is equally important to adjust or reorganize tasks to meet others expectations. Johnson also makes the point that change is frightening. To this point stakeholders are more likely to build a commitment to a shared purpose if the following principles are introduced and reinforced: That all individuals have inherent value as contributing members of the organization That the fundamental purpose of change is to create an organizational structure that makes the most of everyones talents That organizational success depends on individual success In order to manage tasks effectively administrators should conduct task analysis in which they determine the goals of said task and place educators that can most effectively meet the goal of that task. As well leadership should depend more on influence than authority. If your ultimate goal is to make quality a habit and incorporate the Four Ps in a balanced approach, you will need your stakeholders to cooperate with you. Requiring temporary behavior changes is bound to happen, but constantly asserting authority with/over stakeholders will not get people on your side. Another thing to keep in mind when trying to lead people is that coordinating the information flow is key. Communication failure is often cited as the key factor in failed change attempts. Clarifying the goals and retuning to the Four Ps is a way to ensure communication. Chapter 6 Nurturing Balanced Leadership - Lead, follow, and get out of the way

Sustaining Change in Schools by Daniel P. Johnson

As a school leader you must be able to provide pathways for all stakeholders to become successful. Since all stakeholders are different and have different potential that means providing multiple pathways. Senge and colleagues (2000) suggest the following five skills to provide these necessary pathways: Personal mastery articulating your own coherent vision for schools Shared vision creating a common purpose Mental models developing reflection and inquiry skills Team learning conducting dialogue and skillful discussions System thinking understanding the interdependencies of schools and communities. Modeling balanced leadership requires the leader to be knowledgeable about their own leadership strengths and liabilities. It is important when nurturing balanced leadership that the leader sets the same expectations across all organizational structures within a school. They must understand the quality profile outlined in chapter one, ask quality questions, make quality a habit, focus on success, and manage tasks, not people. To maintain balanced leadership leaders must provide opportunities for stakeholders to study and practice the Four Ps. Johnson says practice them until they arent awkward anymore. Conclusion Overall, I found this book to be a great resource. When thinking of my current principal I can see many instances where this book could have made a situation better. I can envision myself utilizing the Four Ps when I become a school leader. Change is a process and is not something that happens overnight and with any process their need to

Sustaining Change in Schools by Daniel P. Johnson

be well thought out steps for the process to run smoothly. Too many times, change is made in hasty situations and the proper agreed upon protocol is not followed, resulting in failed change. Lunenburg and Irby (2006) say that there is a human tendency to resist change, because it forces people to adopt new ways of doing things. To cope with this recurring problem they suggest that leaders must understand why people resist change. I could not agree more. If it is a known fact that people are going to resist change then why not try to put something in place to meet the opposition as opposed to just changing things and expecting everyone to get on board Many of the tactics and strategies associated with change seem to be common sense. Yet, too often it seems that things that should be easy or common are not. Change deserves the same amount of preparation as curriculum, contracts, community relations, decision making, communication, etc. Change that is unplanned or poorly planned usually fails. A negative criticism I do have is that while Johnson gave very concrete strategies on how to sustain change there were some suggestions that seemed to be for ideal situations only. I found myself saying, quite a few times, Yeah right this will work in an urban school setting. This is a sentiment I often have when reading books like this one. I know that strategies are adaptable, but sometimes I just can not see them being helpful in my current situation.