10 Ways School Leaders Can Stay Close to Learning
- Dr. Sharla Horton
- Feb 24
- 5 min read
When I was a school leader, the classroom was my favorite place in the school building. The cafeteria was a close second! When I was in classrooms, I could see what students and teachers needed, and move the work of exemplary teaching and learning forward – something that just can’t be done from the office. The truth is, the farther leaders move from the classroom, the easier it is to lose sight of what matters most.
This week’s Tuesday Ten is for school and school district leaders who want to lead for learning and want their leadership to be visible and impactful.
Schedule consistent, protected, and purposeful classroom visits. Showing up matters. But showing up with purpose and intention matters even more. Intentionally calendar time to spend in classrooms every day. For every classroom visit, set the primary purpose: Am I here to support student learning? To encourage a teacher? To see how the new curriculum is being implemented? To conduct an evaluative walkthrough? To observe, coach, and help strengthen student discourse? Just to spend time with students? And once you set it, say it! Tell the teacher what you’re there for and what you’re observing today.
Follow up on what you see. When a teacher’s instruction is effective, celebrate it. Tell them what you observed and the impact it had on student learning or engagement. And when you see opportunities for improvement, coach them. Pro-tip: Coaching is not just a note left on the desk or written feedback in the file. It is taking time to help a teacher understand the opportunity, why it matters, and helping them practice the skill or behavior until they are proficient. People often complain that coaching takes time, but a lot can happen in just a few minutes of thoughtful and intentional engagement with a teacher. Just 10 minutes can be the difference between elevating instruction from ineffective to good or good to great.
Always be on the lookout for student thinking – not just teacher moves. It’s really easy to over-index on what the teacher is doing when you’re observing instruction. It’s also easy to get stuck on what students are doing. But what’s even more telling than teacher moves and student activities is how students are thinking. Look for how they are explaining, justifying, defending, and extending their thinking. Deep learning is most evident in how students are thinking about their academic tasks and the teacher moves that got them there. Pro-tip: You don’t have to do an observation to see student thinking. Student thinking is everywhere! Hallways, walls, work samples, and more! Look for it every day, everywhere. When you see it, acknowledge it. When you don’t, well…keep reading!
Ask students what helps them learn. We make a lot of instructional decisions for students without students. When you see students in class, in the hall, or in the cafeteria, ask them about their learning and what more their teachers and school leaders can do to support their learning. What do you enjoy most when learning? What helps you learn? What gets in the way of learning? What do you need more of?
Join teacher planning conversations regularly. Show up for PLCs and individual planning. Hear their thinking about their lessons. Ask questions about what and how students are learning. Look at student work. Be part of the process. Offer support to improve the student experience and outcomes. Even if you aren’t the content expert, find ways to be a resource to your team – even if it’s just with your presence.
Notice patterns across classrooms, not isolated moments. Sometimes there is an issue in a classroom, and that can be addressed through coaching and feedback. Other times, though, it’s a systemic issue that needs a systemic solution. Are students across classrooms overly reliant on technology? Are teachers across classrooms doing more “teacher talk” than is ideal? Are students across classrooms having the same misconceptions? Are classrooms across the campus being interrupted by non-essential phone calls or classroom visits that disrupt learning? Seeing what’s happening tells you where your leadership is needed.
Share every win. Everybody loves a win and people want to be part of wins. When winning teachers and students are celebrated, they will do more of the winning things. When others hear and see what winners are doing, they will do winning things, too! Why? Everyone wants to win!
Connect resources directly to instructional needs. We have more needs than resources these days. Your budget is finite. Your FTEs are finite. Your time is finite. But at times, it feels like the needs are infinite. Making resource decisions that meet instructional needs is critical. Of course you should still direct resources to things like staff and student culture, but you should always prioritize things that will have a direct impact on student learning. This way, you are communicating a clear value around student success.
Keep student experience at the center of every decision. The more you are in classrooms, the more data you have to drive your decisions about your school. Ask yourself regularly, “How are my students experiencing school?” Then, do more of what’s going well for them, and less of what’s not. And most importantly, put an immediate end to anything that may be adversely affecting their school experience. School is for your students. Make sure everyone knows it!
Let classrooms – not calendars – set your priorities. When you are in classrooms, you will clearly see what students and teachers need. So, let's prioritize classroom visits so you can know what to prioritize in your leadership decisions – not the school calendar. Your classrooms will tell you what matters. Listen.
One of the worst things we can do as school and district leaders is make uninformed decisions about students and teachers. And one of the easiest ways to be informed is to be present.
How often are you spending time in classrooms right now? How far is that from your goal?
What surprised you the last time you visited?
What leadership decisions this week could be better informed by student experience?
School and district leaders, don’t just lead this week - lead well.
About Me | My name is Sharla Horton, and I am a speaker, strategist, and leadership expert. I help people work well, lead well, and live well. My work centers on one central conviction: when people expand their sense of possibility and lead with purpose, courage, and joy, meaningful and lasting transformation becomes not only achievable, but inevitable.
Through inspiring keynote addresses, thoughtful team retreats, and engaging professional learning experiences, I guide leaders, teams, and organizations across sectors and industries to reclaim their joy and take bold, transformative action in their personal and professional lives. With a career spanning education, nonprofit leadership, organizational strategy, and culture change, I bring deep expertise and strategic clarity to my work and blend it with emotional intelligence, humor, transparency, and an undeniable and contagious energy to create empowering and impactful experiences that audiences remember long after the moment ends.
If this week’s Tuesday Ten resonates, I’d love for you to share it with your team, organization, or community. Let’s connect!
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