We hate to interrupt your summer… but now is the perfect time to start planning for the next school year, which will be here before you know it.
If you want to make the next school year the best it can be—and we know you do—here are five tips that you can follow as an administrator to ensure that your teachers and students start the new year right and finish it strong:
- Reflect on the past year. Look at what worked and, more importantly, what didn’t. What did you spend way too much time working on or fixing? What suffered from a lack of your attention? Then, investigate different processes to help accomplish your goals and clear away some unnecessary meetings, procedures, and mental clutter. And don’t forget to review what went well.
- Review assessment data. Not in a “how did we do” way (although that’s good too), but take a hard look at what data you actually have. Do you have the data you need to make decisions on instructional methods and to back up the decisions that you’ve made? What data are you lacking, and is there a way to find that data with the tools you currently use? If you find gaps in your data, now is your opportunity to find the tools that help fill them to get the full picture of how well, what, and how much your students are learning and progressing in time for back to school. Getting an early start on reviewing this data can be vital in closing achievement gaps for your students.
- Get new processes—and everything else—in place. Now that you’ve looked back at the past year and have determined what needs fixing make a plan to fix it. Whether you need new time management tools, new instructional products, a new org chart, or better desk chairs, now is the time!
- Plan training and professional development for new tech. There’s a learning curve with pretty much everything—including new instructional tools. If your planned improvements involve new education technology for teachers and/or students, make sure you have the time and resources available to get your staff up to speed and ready to start the school year confident in their new tools.
- Get that growth mindset going. A new school year is a fresh start. Whatever the last few years have brought (hint: too much), make Fall the inclusive semester everyone needs and deserves. Make your school a safe space for learning for everyone. Listen to your teachers—encourage and support them, and recognize, praise, and reward your student’s hard work and effort.