Reflection from 6/20

I enjoyed the presentation by your guest speaker. Hearing an honest (maybe too honest) viewpoint from a school leader is quite refreshing. I believe the Q &A session provided a hands-on perspective on day to day operation of a school. Graduate school serves mostly to prepare future leaders with a variety of methods and theories, but at the end of day, they stay as theories. The reality is that in order to be successful leaders, we must take a practical and common sense approach for running a successful school. On a side note (although very relevant) the mutual respect and overall dynamics between professor Monheit and his principal are not the norm and should not be taken for granted. It is imperative for a school principal to be able to develop a trusting relationship with his administration based on mutual respect, loyalty and belief on his immediate staff's abilities. These mutual feelings were very evident during the session.

The Danielson chart appears to be very practical and useful. While relatively concise, it covers all areas of teaching. I am looking forward to familiarizing myself with the entire chart and use it as a guide.