New School Administration Change Plan

Case Study: The Case of the New Hire
Q1. If you were Valerie Rizzo, what steps would you take in the first 30 days of your incumbency as the middle school principal to introduce the previously mentioned change-related issues while establishing effective human relations with your building staff?
According to Vroom (1964), motivation to achieve a goal is grounded in the perceived desirability of the goal, the perceived ability to exhibit the necessary behaviors to achieve the goal, and the perceived ability to attain the goal (Razik & Swanson 2010). In this instance, faculty members, despite having tenure, must be convinced of the desirability of making needed changes in the curriculum to improve student results. Rizzo must create a sense of urgency for change; for example, underlining the need for the district to meet state-mandated standards of student performance. To maintain effective human relationships, it is important not to do this in a hostile or threatening manner, but it is still necessary to stress the need to move forward. “Motivating people to work smarter means encouraging them to think and work creatively” (Razik & Swanson, 2010, p.111). In the case of educators, almost inevitably the focus is upon the need for smarter work, given that educating students is not like producing more widgets in a factory.
It is also important to provide a plan with specific steps to reach specific goals, such as offering teachers with struggling students additional instructional materials and resource room staff to allow for greater differentiated instruction in the classroom and support. The steps taken to improve results should have a clear link to the final goals. Additionally, teachers should learn how these new innovations will help them as educators, given the need to motivate individuals based upon positive ideas (such as doing a better job and giving back to students) versus negatives (such as threatening tenure or sanctioning students due to a failure to perform).
Q2. How will you approach the previously mentioned issues with your administrative peers across the district?
On a district basis, there should be regular communication of student and teacher levels of performance, so it can be determined where there are areas of growth as well as weakness. These performance measures should be based as much as possible on objective, professionally-accepted standards of performance, to avoid allegations of favoritism and bias. A regular conversation with administrative peers will ensure that there is understanding that things are moving forward, even if the path is not always a linear one to student excellence.
Q3. What model(s) of human needs and leadership discussed in this chapter will you use to guide you in your new role? Why?
Theory X/Theory Y theory is one of the most compelling models for organizational motivation. This theory suggests that rather than being reluctant to work and solely needing transactional motivational strategies to produce, workers flourish best when they are motivated by intrinsic motivation, or a motivation to be excellent at their jobs. Workers seek responsibility if they can use such responsibility in a creative fashion. Particularly in the context of education, a profession that people often enter into with an idealistic mindset, despite its many challenges, this can be a valuable way of ensuring people are enthusiastic about their work. Stimulating “imagination, ingenuity, and creativity” is necessary to inspire teachers to seek new and better ways to convey knowledge and teachers must feel as if they are encouraged and supported by the leadership to use their expertise to do so (Razik & Swanson, 2010, p.106). Theory Y suggests that being able to act creatively and at the full level of one’s professional expertise is itself a reward, and teachers often thrive upon such trust, particularly given they are already functioning independently in the classroom.
The strength of using intrinsic rather than extrinsic rewards is particularly manifest in a school district where many teachers have tenure and financial resources are scarce. There are limited ways to use “sticks” or sanctions when teachers legally have tenure, unless they show gross incompetence. There are also a limited number of “carrots,” given that there are few financial rewards to use in abundance. But creating a collective growth mindset can motivate teachers
Q4. Prepare an action plan for yourself for the first half year that will allow you to begin the job, operate your school, and initiate appropriate changes. Be prepared to discuss the means by which you will motivate your staff to meet the challenges to come and explain why you are selecting those particular means.
First and foremost, the plan must identify the specific goals for the first half of the year. Goals should be SMART: specific, measurable, actionable, realistic, and timely. If it cannot be measured, it is not a goal. Secondly, staff members must agree upon such goals, and the goals’ urgency. If there is flagging motivation to reach these goals or a lack of agreement that they are worthy, they will not be achieved. Teachers should be presented with concrete evidence regarding the need to meet such goals and the consequences if the goals are not met for students and the district (which is different than simply stressing the punishments that will be meted out to teachers if achievements fall short). Finally, teachers must be assured of the support and resources they will have to achieve the goals, so the staff as well as the leadership is convinced of its ability to be implemented. Motivation must also be stimulated by offering additional responsibilities to teachers, including the ability to provide input into how to improve the plan.


References
Razik, T. & Swanson, A. (2010). Fundamental concepts of educational leadership and
management, (3rd ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.