Professional in-service training for teachers is critical, but it is not enough. Real and lasting change must be systemic in nature, or the result of supportive school environments with the active participation of all who oversee this process. Teachers cite lack of knowledge or participation by administrators as the single biggest roadblock to change. Unless administrators are able to understand, nurture and guide the very process they are asked to support, there is a limit to what can be accomplished, resulting in surface change that is only temporary.
An administrative level seminar would involve principals, supervisors, reading specialists and special education coordinators in a one or two day session with a full day lecture and optional follow-up session. Follow-up sessions occur the day after the lecture, allowing each school administrator to sign up for individual conferences with Mary Howard to use the learning from the previous day to pose personalized questions in an informal setting. Administrator seminars address:
