Transforming Education and Changing School Culture

An increasing number of schools and districts are building a common language of instruction and collaborative structures for instructional problem solving through the use of instructional rounds. Pioneered by Richard Elmore and colleagues at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, instructional rounds build on the model of medical rounds used in teaching hospitals and engage teachers and administrators in data collection and analysis around a school-wide problem of practice. This case study examines the experiences of the Simpson County Schools in Franklin, Kentucky, where one of the authors formerly served as a district administrator. In 2009, the district initiated a multi-school effort to implement instructional rounds. Many districts adopting instructional rounds initially involve only administrators, but the Simpson County Schools invited classroom teachers to participate and play key leadership roles in the process. The case study describes the instructional rounds process, the decisions made by district leaders to involve a wide array of stakeholders in their instructional rounds initiative, and the overall effects. Teachers in the district readily embraced the instructional rounds protocol, and administration and facilitation of the rounds process has now evolved into having classroom teachers serving as primary leaders. Implications for school culture and change leadership are discussed

Global Pathways: Cultural Competence Curriculum Module

The College of Education and Behavioral Sciences (CEBS) received funds to create a task force to determine the best strategies to ensure that students have an opportunity to understand their discipline in a global context. The CEBS Global Pathways Initiative Committee created a generic module on globalization principles that can be integrated into any course in all program areas. These curriculum materials provide a basic introduction to existing knowledge regarding cultural competence. They are designed to provide instructors with accurate information that can easily be integrated into existing undergraduate and graduate-level courses, including courses in psychology and education. In so doing, it is hoped that these materials will enhance the quantity and quality of globalization and the cultural competence framework content in existing courses, so that students can be better prepared for the intellectual and societal challenges facing an increasingly diverse society