pages 27-33 of This We Believe

The second group of characteristics to create “successful schools” for young adolescents is leadership and organization. In this grouping the NMSA things teachers need to possess a shared vision, committed leader (ship), courageous and collaborative leader (ship), professional development and organizational structures. When teachers bounce ideas off each other it forms this community bond where each person is a leader in their own way and they essentially are the building blocks to a “successful” school. I found it interesting that “mission statements” were brought up in this section because I always thought they were more administrative than on a teacher level, yet, the NMSA made a good point by saying, “the mission statement takes into account the district philosophy and goals as well as relevant official guidelines,” (27). Although I don’t agree with mission statement solely falling on the teachers back, I find it excellent placement for the “mission statement” being placed in the subset of leadership and organization because the “mission statement” sets up a school, it is the rules, and regulations everyone must follow to ensure success. These mission statements include the learning each student needs to achieve, the very best knowledge that we have about the human growth and development of youngsters ages 10-15 and the accepted principles of learning. Our vision must be uplifting and idealistic across the board. Across the spectrum as a whole (core knowledge and growth) we must introduce the outside components inside the school. We need parent involvement as well as community interaction. After all, our job is to create well-to-do citizens so why isolate them from the community? Collaboration and organization is the key component to leadership. The NMSA made it clear about how we should teach and learn effectively to boost the morale of the middle school team as a whole.