3I: Beyond Heroes: Building Systems for Instructional Improvement through Indirect Leadership

The dominant paradigm for instructional leadership encourages leaders to drive improvement through direct observation and feedback to teachers, one teacher at a time. This managerial paradigm is deeply embedded in our school systems, but rarely produces lasting improvement to instructional practice. Research suggests we should instead pursue a model of indirect instructional leadership focused at the system level: orchestrating the teams, processes, and organizational conditions that enable teachers and coaches to drive the actual work of improving instructional practice. Participants will engage with emergent learning and key ideas behind the Beyond Heroes Instructional Leadership Incubator, our network of 20 school leaders shifting from direct to indirect instructional leadership by testing specific behavioral strategies to model improvement processes, reverse the typical flow of feedback, and create conditions for teacher-driven instructional improvement.