Book Review: The Principal as Instructional Leader in Literacy

Book Review: The Principal as Instructional Leader in Literacy

The Principal as Instructional Leader in Literacy, by Dean Pilkington, is a quick and easy read that provides school leaders with a basic understanding of literacy and outlines strategies for leading instruction in their schools.

The author identifies 13 components of a balanced or comprehensive program in literacy instruction and also summarizes the Four Blocks Literacy Model of Patricia Cunningham and Dorothy Hall.  He recommends that a principal establishes with teachers a set of literacy core values, and then follows these steps to develop a literacy plan for a school:

            - Determine where the school is and where it needs to go in literacy instruction
            - Determine where each teacher is on the openness to change continuum
            - Create a collaborative action plan, using Smart goals, for improving literacy instruction

Pilkington emphasizes the importance of involving parents as partners in literacy initiatives and makes a case for shared leadership and a team approach towards literacy instruction improvement.  He also discusses a number of strategies principals can use to support classroom instruction in literacy, including action research, various forms of professional development, teacher self-reflection, and classroom learning walks.

For a book that has literacy as its theme,  it's both surprising and disappointing that The Principal as Instructional Leader in Literacy focuses so little on specific literacy strategies.   Instead, the emphasis in much of the book is on generic strategies and tips for principals for leading any instructional practice.  On the other hand, the book does feature some useful charts, rubrics, and checklists that principals can use to help them in their critical role of instructional leader in literacy.