Leading through change and creating an effective data culture with Principal Amanda Hennie
TeachFX sat down with one of our partners, Principal Amanda Hennie from Memphis Street Academy in Philadelphia. This important fireside chat focused on creating an effective data culture and leading through change with teachers.
Instructional Leadership
Amanda, you have been Principal at Memphis Street Academy now for two years, and I know that you have made some incredible strides in that time, including leading your team through the challenges of a pandemic, a pivot to virtual learning, and most recently the reopening of your school campus. Could you tell us what it means to be an instructional leader at your school during this most unusual year?
Putting rigorous high-quality instruction stays a top priority through all contexts
How have you evolved or changed as a leader since you first became the Principal at Memphis Street Academy?
Flexibility is key. I’ve become more understanding and flexible about what motivates individuals as people
Meeting through change: Have to put empathy in front of your mind when making decisions. For example, create a stakeholder empathy map of all the individuals who will be affected by change, ask what motivates them, what do they have to lose by the change, and what can you do to inspire them given what you know about them?
People don’t change because they don’t want to. They don’t change because they don’t know how to. Try to provide as many tools to support them.
How do you think about leadership when you can’t be in the room?
Protocols for analysis of data: note, notice, next? Then they set a goal based on their data.
Dedicated time to review data.
Professional Learning
Some call it PD for professional development, others call it professional learning. Whatever term you prefer, can you share what it has looked like at your school this year--especially how it has been different--for teachers?
I wanted to focus on the development of teachers and their knowledge of instructional strategies. Teachers actually have had more time to think about instruction.
I have heard a lot of people using a phrase: know each student by name, strength, & need. That seems like it would fit with this mindset.
High expectations and high support
Data Culture
I know one of the important shifts at Memphis Street in some ways this year was how you all collect and examine data together during your PLC time. Maybe we can use the “How it started/ How it’s going” framework for a minute together: How did data analysis go for your teachers at the beginning of your term as Principal?
When I started it was focused on standards. People couldn’t get past surface-level reteaching of standards. Have to reteach the standards with no rhyme or reason to how it was being taught and how you’re going to reteach it differently.
The data we look at in the past - we only looked at assessment data.
And how is it going now? What changed, and how did you lead your teachers through this process of change together?
Focusing more on inputs rather than outputs!
How do you look at depth in discourse?
Quality vs. quantity of talk time. Look at transcripts for evidence
Wait time: Teachers aren’t doing enough of that.
Sustainable Change in Our Schools
We’ve talked a lot about how change isn’t the hardest part--it’s that the important and meaningful changes we help teachers navigate, like learning new instructional practices, actually endure. How do you work to ensure the changes you foster as an instructional leader are sustainable?
Can you share specific examples of how you support your teachers to see these changes as long-lasting and meaningful--especially when our teachers are suffering burn-out and some are even considering leaving the profession due to lack of autonomy and feeling valued?
Accountability is crucial to sustaining change.
School culture has to be synergistic with instructional goals. Big on restorative practice.
Want to learn more about TeachFX at your school? Let us know!