Reflections on Principal Leadership and Writers in the Schools

Abstract

In this chapter, we discuss how an outside writing program was able to assist the stakeholders at a local middle school and the story behind the leaders involved in the process. This program was part of a larger system of “interventions” geared toward improving student success and teacher efficacy. Traditional interventions (after-school tutorials, grouping by state assessment scores, test-taking strategies) were viewed as lacking when it came to their impact on the campus's mostly students of color. Knowing the potential impact of a solid reading and writing program on urban youth, the faculty on the campus teamed with a Writers in the Schools (WITS) writer who proposed several promising practices. The contributions of a professional writer, real-world examples, and ongoing teacher professional development with support contributed to creating a knowledge community of writers that, in addition to creating more scholarship for students and staff, manifested itself in more minority students performing at the highest levels on the state accountability assessments.

Citation

Curl, M. and Craig, C.J. (2021), "Reflections on Principal Leadership and Writers in the Schools", Auzenne-Curl, C.T. and Craig, C.J. (Ed.) Developing Knowledge Communities through Partnerships for Literacy (Advances in Research on Teaching, Vol. 37), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 61-77. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1479-368720210000037004