As the lead Regional Educational Laboratory for educational leadership, LSS
has identified three focus areas that will result in a cross-disciplinary
program of applied research, development, and dissemination activities.
First, educational leadership requires capacity building at all levels to
promote student learning and higher performance. LSS aims to advance
procedural "know how," but focuses on providing technical assistance and
evaluation support at the state and district level to develop policy
initiatives, refine existing practices, and assess the impact of reform on
teaching and learning. At the school-site level, the work of the LSS
Services to the Field Unit will greatly expand the knowledge-based
professional development and outreach program in the region and nationally.
Secondly, widespread consensus on outcome-based accountability has
created new challenges for educational leadership. Policymakers and
practitioners have yet to agree on a common strategy to transform
low-performing schools into high-performing learning communities. LSS
focuses on leadership development through principals and small learning
communities that focus on content knowledge and pedagogy that promote
student learning success. These advances include the use of best practices
in curriculum and instruction from early childhood through high school;
broadening parental and community engagement to foster a supportive learning
environment for at-risk students; as well as strategies to raise student
engagement, reduce apathy, challenge their academic interests, and
facilitate ongoing support for teachers' knowledge development and collegial
exchange.
Finally, as public education enters the 21st Century, the public
increasingly looks for more efficient and equitable ways of providing
schooling services that meet their high expectations. In some locales, city
and state governments have taken over the public schools. System-wide
sanctions and support strategies are applied to hold schools and students
accountable for their performance. In other states and cities, charter
schools within the public sector have been encouraged. Parental preferences
and school autonomy are seen as the driving force to improve low-performing
schools. Regardless of one's position on these emerging alternatives, there
is an urgent research need to find out whether and how these new strands of
service delivery are working. LSS aims to synthesize the existing knowledge
base on these reforms and gather firsthand information on the design and
implementation of alternative governance practices. |
