Description
LISTENING . . . THE KEY TO BECOMING A TRANSFORMATIVE SCHOOL LEADER
The Listening Leader is a practical guide that will inspire school, district, and teacher leaders to make substantive change and increase equitable student outcomes. Rooted in the values of equity, relationships, and listening, this luminous book helps reimagine what is possible in education today. Drawing from more than twenty years of experience in public schools, Shane Safir incorporates hands-on strategies and powerful stories to show us how to leverage one of the most vital tools of leadership: listening. As a Listening Leader you'll feel more confident in these core competencies:
- Cultivating relationships with stakeholders
- Addressing equity challenges in your organization
- Gathering student, staff, and parent perspectives as rich data on improvement
- Fostering a thriving culture of collaboration and innovation
The Listening Leader offers a much-needed leadership model to transform every facet of school life, and most importantly, to shape our schools into equitable places of learning. As Michael Fullan writes in the Foreword, "Read it, act on it, and reap the benefits for all."
"This book is a 'must have' for any leader trying to move the needle on equity. Drawing from her lived experience as a principal and leadership coach, Safir offers stories that give insight and practical strategies that get results. It's one you'll keep coming back to."
—Zaretta Hammond, author of Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain
" The Listening Leader immediately changed the way I interact with students, teachers, families and community members."
—Tamara Friedman, assistant principal, Berkeley High School
"Shane Safir has written a brilliant book. As engaging as it is informative and as revelatory as it is relevant. It is a must-read for school leaders and those who aspire to lead."
—Chris Emdin, associate professor of science education, Teachers College, Columbia University; author of For White Folks Who Teach In the Hood and the Rest of Ya'll too
Chapter
Leader‐ful Schools, Not Leader‐thin
Primary Audiences for This Book
Chapter 1: The Transformative Power of Listening
Key Challenge 1: The Persistence of Inequity
Key Challenge 2: Integrity in the Face of Pressure
Key Challenge 3: Dealing With Trauma
Key Challenge 4: Disconnected Data
Becoming a Listening Leader
The Arts Academy Revisited
Chapter 2: The Core Tenets of Listening Leadership
The Leader Who Wanted to Write People Up
The Neighborhoods of the Brain
Tenet 1: Our Brains Are Wired for Survival First
Tenet 2: Our Brains React to Survival Threats Through Fight, Flight, or “Tend-and-Befriend”
Tenet 3: Social Threats Signal Survival Threats to Our Brains
Tenet 4: Every Brain Grows in the Right Conditions
Tenet 5: Organizations Have Core Memories
Chapter 3: Listening for Equity
The Fragility of Trust Across Difference
Tuning in to Structural Racism
Tuning in to Unconscious Bias
Tuning in to Cultural Difference
Lessons Learned: Joy and Wendy
Chapter 4: Getting Ready to Listen
Listening Below the Green Line
Understand Your Living System
The Problem of Rumination
Part 2: Relational Capital
The Fallout of Failing to Listen
Two Types of Listening: Deep and Strategic
Principles of Deep Listening
Deep Listening Stance 1: Attention to Nonverbal Cues
Deep Listening Stance 2: Mature Empathy
Deep Listening Stance 3: Affirmation
Chapter 6: Practicing Strategic Listening
The Impact of the Right Question
Building Capacity Through Listening
Principles of Strategic Listening
Strategic Listening Stance 1: An Orientation to Vision
Strategic Listening Stance 2: Reflective Inquiry
Strategic Listening Stance 3: A Bias Toward Action
Integrating the Six Stances
Chapter 7: Listening to Parents
Navigating Difference With Parents
Flipping the Script Between Parents and Educators
Five Ways to Listen to Parents
Chapter 8: Listening to Students
Listening to Students Tell the Real Story—Even When It’s Hard to Hear
Discarding Well‐Worn Scripts
Five Ways to Listen to Students
Chapter 9: Influencing Complex Change
The Listening Leader’s Landscape
Leadership in a Living System
Diagnose Your Problems and Challenges
Six Steps to Influence Complex Change
Chapter 10: Leveraging Listening Routines
A Staff Meeting with 100% Engagement
Grown‐Ups Need Routines Too
First, Take Your Team’s Temperature
Next, Design Humanizing Routines
Revisiting the Engaged Staff Meeting
Chapter 11: Growing a Listening Culture
A High School Network in Transition
The Four Seasons of a Listening Culture
“Set the Table” with Annual Retreats
Chapter 12: Listening for Liberation
Conversation by Conversation
Appendix A: Listening Leadership Rubric
Appendix B: The Six Stances of a Listening Leader
Strategic Listening Stances
Appendix C: The Instructional Conversation Planning Tool
Appendix D: Additional Resources for Listening to Parents
Resources for Conducting home Visits
Tips for Implementing Focus Groups
A Primer on Community Walks
Appendix E: Additional Resources for Listening to Students
Student Feedback Interview Tool
Essential Elements of a Talking Circle
Talking Circle Planning Tool
Appendix F: Telling the Current-State Story Tool
Appendix G: Tools and Facilitation Steps for Listening Routines
Quick Design Tips for Meetings
Ways to Facilitate Constructivist Listening
Ways to Facilitate Agreements
Ways to Facilitate a Kiva Process
Top Ten TED Talks and Corresponding Prompts
Guidelines for Data-Based Inquiry
Agenda Template (Aligned with the Experiential Learning Cycle)
Applying the Six Stances in a Challenging Meeting
Appendix H: Tools for Growing a Listening Culture
Seasonal Rubric of Group Behaviors
Tips for Creating Simple Rules
Facilitation and Design Tips for Safe-To-Learn Inquiry
The Listening Leader Year at a Glance (Sample Calendar)
The Listening Leader
：Creating the Conditions for Equitable School Transformation
Disclaimer: Any content in publications that violate the sovereignty, the constitution or regulations of the PRC is not accepted or approved by CNPIEC.
