This collection is the result of action research carried out by teachers, administrators and professors operating a school-university collaboration. It creates a model of mentoring where guided but flexible structures are used to unleash the creative capacity of the group. The research accounts reveal much about the nature of mentoring organizations, as they are now and how they might be improved. Approaches include the use of lifelong mentoring, synergistic co-mentoring, professional peer networking and the creation of collaborative relationships and teams.

This collection is the result of action research carried out by teachers, administrators and professors operating a school-university collaboration. It creates a model of mentoring where guided but flexible structures are used to unleash the creative capacity of the group. The research accounts reveal much about the nature of mentoring organizations, as they are now and how they might be improved. Approaches include the use of lifelong mentoring, synergistic co-mentoring, professional peer networking and the creation of collaborative relationships and teams.

When it comes to school improvement, there is no silver bullet. Genuine effective school improvement requires leaders and teachers to be part of a broad-based, creative change system that focuses on generating improved teacher practices for enhancing student learning. Based on more than two decades of success with the Whole Faculty Study Group (WFSG) approach to professional learning, this leading-edge guide provides educators with a step-by-step, systemic change creation approach for: Forming action teams to develop teaching and learning approaches that measurably improve student performance Nurturing the right leadership, vision, culture, and relationships within schools for innovation and creativity The companion website includes practical online resources, including templates, checklists, action team assessment forms, and an action team rubric.

The Whole-Faculty Study Group (WFSG) System is a student-centred, teacher-driven process for facilitating major staff development and schoolwide change. When applied properly, it has produced extraordinary results for thousands of teachers and students in schools and school districts across the country. The Whole-Faculty Study Groups Fieldbook is a comprehensive guide to applying the WFSG process. Edited by Dale Lick and Carlene Murphy, this practical manual provides concrete strategies for implementing and sustaining a school improvement process in any environment. Offering extensive experience, each contributor explores a different aspect of Whole-Faculty Study Groups and supplies lessons learned and many first-hand examples of successful school reform and student performance enhancement. Written to complement existing resources or serve as a stand-alone guide, this book will: * Demonstrate how concepts can be applied in a variety of school improvement efforts * Present relevant strategies and activities * Illustrate how to use suggestions in real-world situations * Highlight critical concepts through extensive case examples * Provide helpful tips and lessons learned * Explain how findings can be applied to professional learning communities Offering numerous illustrations of the WFSG System in action and a comprehensive collection of tools for initiating and sustaining successful improvement programs, this fieldbook is an essential resource for administrators, staff developers, and teachers involved with any type of school change process.

Foster a schoolwide learning environment with this action research model! This resource takes a close look at how schoolwide action research can support school change and improved student achievement. The authors discuss steps for implementing the schoolwide action research process, describe what the approach looks like in action, and show readers how: the schoolwide action-research process works in primary, middle or secondary schools; study groups move from discussion to action that improves teacher practice; head teachers and district leaders can support schoolwide action research.

The Whole-Faculty Study Group (WFSG) System is a student-centred, teacher-driven process for facilitating major staff development and schoolwide change. When applied properly, it has produced extraordinary results for thousands of teachers and students in schools and school districts across the country. The Whole-Faculty Study Groups Fieldbook is a comprehensive guide to applying the WFSG process. Edited by Dale Lick and Carlene Murphy, this practical manual provides concrete strategies for implementing and sustaining a school improvement process in any environment. Offering extensive experience, each contributor explores a different aspect of Whole-Faculty Study Groups and supplies lessons learned and many first-hand examples of successful school reform and student performance enhancement. Written to complement existing resources or serve as a stand-alone guide, this book will: * Demonstrate how concepts can be applied in a variety of school improvement efforts * Present relevant strategies and activities * Illustrate how to use suggestions in real-world situations * Highlight critical concepts through extensive case examples * Provide helpful tips and lessons learned * Explain how findings can be applied to professional learning communities Offering numerous illustrations of the WFSG System in action and a comprehensive collection of tools for initiating and sustaining successful improvement programs, this fieldbook is an essential resource for administrators, staff developers, and teachers involved with any type of school change process.

Updated Edition of Bestseller! Foreword by Shirley Hord 'Planning is an important thing. What Whole-Faculty Study Groups has done for us is to ensure that we never forget that implementation is the only thing' - Jack Ernst, Superintendent , Springfield Public Schools, Springfield, MO 'This third edition from Murphy and Lick is a superb resource and a must read for all educators involved in the improvement of education. It should be in the hands of individuals from the state department of education to the classroom teacher, for it speaks to all layers of the system, and to the role that each person must play to assure successful learning for all students' - from the Foreword by Shirley Hord, Scholar Emerita , Southwest Educational Development Laboratory One of the most successful and exciting approaches to staff development, school reform, and systemic change in education today! Used by hundreds of schools and school districts in the US, the Whole-Faculty Study Group (WFSG) System is a student-driven, holistic process for facilitating major staff development and schoolwide change. While providing a step-by-step methodology for the development and implementation of successful WFSGs, this newest edition of Murphy and Lick's groundbreaking bestseller incorporates the most current theoretical concepts on change, the latest refinements to change management procedures, and a wealth of new experiences from more than two thousand individual study groups. Other significant revisions to this edition include: - Three additional chapters: the research foundation for WFSGs, how to recognize and understand school culture, and fourteen key findings - A reorganization of chapters to make the book even more reader-friendly - New material on timely topics such as 'learning communities' and 'learning teams' - An increased focus on assessment of student results - Updated sets of resources and illustrations in the appendix WFSGs are a proven way to successfully reform, improve, and change schools to meet tomorrow's needs. Filled with real-life examples and illustrative cases, this book provides both the practical knowledge and the theoretical foundation necessary to negotiate the societal, organizational, and cultural barriers affecting education. This new edition is essential for advisors, teachers and staff in schools, as well as LEA staff, teacher trainers , and anyone interested in increasing student learning.

Foster a schoolwide learning environment with this action research model! This resource takes a close look at how schoolwide action research can support school change and improved student achievement. The authors discuss steps for implementing the schoolwide action research process, describe what the approach looks like in action, and show readers how: the schoolwide action-research process works in primary, middle or secondary schools; study groups move from discussion to action that improves teacher practice; head teachers and district leaders can support schoolwide action research.

Updated Edition of Bestseller! Foreword by Shirley Hord 'Planning is an important thing. What Whole-Faculty Study Groups has done for us is to ensure that we never forget that implementation is the only thing' - Jack Ernst, Superintendent , Springfield Public Schools, Springfield, MO 'This third edition from Murphy and Lick is a superb resource and a must read for all educators involved in the improvement of education. It should be in the hands of individuals from the state department of education to the classroom teacher, for it speaks to all layers of the system, and to the role that each person must play to assure successful learning for all students' - from the Foreword by Shirley Hord, Scholar Emerita , Southwest Educational Development Laboratory One of the most successful and exciting approaches to staff development, school reform, and systemic change in education today! Used by hundreds of schools and school districts in the US, the Whole-Faculty Study Group (WFSG) System is a student-driven, holistic process for facilitating major staff development and schoolwide change. While providing a step-by-step methodology for the development and implementation of successful WFSGs, this newest edition of Murphy and Lick's groundbreaking bestseller incorporates the most current theoretical concepts on change, the latest refinements to change management procedures, and a wealth of new experiences from more than two thousand individual study groups. Other significant revisions to this edition include: - Three additional chapters: the research foundation for WFSGs, how to recognize and understand school culture, and fourteen key findings - A reorganization of chapters to make the book even more reader-friendly - New material on timely topics such as 'learning communities' and 'learning teams' - An increased focus on assessment of student results - Updated sets of resources and illustrations in the appendix WFSGs are a proven way to successfully reform, improve, and change schools to meet tomorrow's needs. Filled with real-life examples and illustrative cases, this book provides both the practical knowledge and the theoretical foundation necessary to negotiate the societal, organizational, and cultural barriers affecting education. This new edition is essential for advisors, teachers and staff in schools, as well as LEA staff, teacher trainers , and anyone interested in increasing student learning.