Guide to System Leaders

The System Leaders (shortened as “Leaders”)are the last-but-not-least entities who are responsible for the direction and success of the programs; all other stakeholders including School Boards and the Academic Department take responsibility for reporting to the system leaders.

In the context of Vinschool, “system leaders” refer to the CEO, DCEO, or Director of the education sector – depending on the temporary responsibility division in the system. The duties of the system leaders mainly consist of:

• understanding the design and requirements of the ESL program;
• directing and approving principles of management, ensuring professional focus is always prioritized;
• orienting the road map to upgrade the levels of the ESL implementation team.

Understand the design and requirements of the ESL program In an endeavor to promote a remarkable development of the ESL program at Vinschool, the entire management system must coordinate smoothly throughout the implementation process. Therefore, Leaders must have a firm grasp of the principles, designs, task checklists, and the division of responsibilities. Only with a thorough understanding of this information can leaders design effective top-down management regulations, achieve consistency with subordinates' job requirements, and create favorable conditions for successful implementation. a) Leaders’ Management roles: Be firm with enhancement and upgrade orientation: In order to effectively manage human resources, Leaders need to have a firm grasp of the general direction of the Program targeted at Teachers and School Boards, understand what the ESL Program requires from this team and how these requirements are aligned with Vinschool’s upgrade orientation. Manage the implementation process: School managers will take on most of the responsibilities for managing the implementation process. However, Leaders need to know the milestones of the ESL Program to be able to anticipate the upcoming events  and require the campuses to plan accordingly and systematically. Manage teaching & learning: School managers will take on most of the responsibilities for teaching and learning quality management. However, Leaders need to be aware of the specific requirements for teachers, as well as the Curriculum Framework and the resources available for the teachers. From this understanding, Leaders can determine where to focus. Manage the implementation team (School Boards and Academic Department): Leaders need to understand the scope of responsibilities the program requires from the School Boards and Academic Department. Then, new leaders can ensure that the implementation team optimizes their professional competence without having to bear the burden of off-center tasks. b) Leaders’ Improvement Orientation roles: Evaluate and reflect on the program’s success: Prior to improving the Program, Leaders and Academic Department must evaluate the quality of ESL implementation and reflect on the areas that need improvement most. Since everything always starts with a goal, Leaders will have to understand the role of ESL in Vinschool's enhancement mission. Then, Leaders will evaluate the success of the Program based on those criteria. Optimize Academic Department: The Academic Department takes primary responsibility for reforming and updating the ESL Program. Leaders will have to understand the task checklists of the Academic Department during the year, especially those related to research and program development, in order to set the most effective and realistic reforming goals. Implement program improvement: When improving the program, Leaders should focus on the core elements of the program, identify which aspects need the most attention, and implement the long-term enhancement plan proposed by the curriculum writers. This is to ensure the system gets closer to its end goal without wasting manpower, time, and resources on unplanned things. After each implementation phase, the program must be evaluated and improved in order for Vinschool to get closer to the goal of upgrading its education. However, leaders should also be aware that innovation which is not based on clearly defined goals or which exhibits sudden changes deviating from the theoretical basis can lead to a waste of resources, time, resources, and a decrease in system consistency.

Prioritize professional focuses in management To be able to effectively manage the implementation of a program in a large system like Vinschool, all information, discussions and reports must revolve around some professional focus, to avoid getting preoccupied with obvious operational details or fruitless reviews. Below are the key points that should be clearly stated and explained in the reports or review sessions. The Program Department will be consulted about setting agendas for these sessions. Some areas need to be reported periodically while the others are reported only when there are changes. a) Focuses in reports from School Boards # Support for the implementation process Guiding questions 1 Systemized implementation of assessments and gathering of learning evidence -         Were the responsibilities for Formative Assessments and Summative Assessments clearly understood by the teachers? -         How did the ESL department at the campus implement assessments? -         Were the teachers at the campus able to plan for collecting learning evidence? -         How to report to the managers?  -         How did School Boards ensure teaching and learning adjustments based on analysis of learning evidence? -         Was there any system to store, track and control the evidence/learning process? 2 Teacher Support provided by School Boards, Department Heads and Coordinators -         How did School Boards ensure that teachers understand the teaching content and requirements of the Program? -         Did School Boards orient to organize professional activities (ESL meeting, demo, workshop, etc.)? -         How do School Boards plan to give feedback and organize coaching at the campus? -         Did School Boards grasp the important milestones of the Program and have a plan to prepare for teachers and students? -         How did School Boards monitor and respond to the training needs of ESL teachers? 3 Communication plan to ensure the flow of information to teachers, students and parents -         What is the communication plan for the implementation of ESL in the campus? -         Are parents invited to join the class? -         How is the collaboration with the PR - MarketingDepartment? -         How are learning materials or documents about the student learning process displayed? Quality control Guiding questions 4 Learning quality management -         What are the results of the current formative assessment? (i.e. overview of learning, goal-based and evidence-based) -         What are the strengths/weaknesses of students on campus? Can they follow the program? Is there any plan to help students who are “drowning” and challenge excellent students? -         How are School Boards controlling the level of achievement in the ESL lessons? Based on what evidence? 5 Teaching quality management -         How did School Boards grasp and disseminate program standards for ESL teachers? -         How are School Boards controlling the lesson plans? -         How do School Boards carry out observations? 6 KPIs proposals -         Which ESL KPIs does the campus propose for this academic year? -         Recommendations: the percentage of the teachers who are competent; the percentage of high achievers; GPA of each semester; the number of teachers who continue to teach next academic year; parent satisfaction score, etc. b) Focuses in reports from the Academic Department # Supporting and managing implementation process Guiding questions 1 Developing and handing over the program -         What is the progress of handing over the program? -         What's the next deadline? -         Are the products delivered in time for the School to use? (Products to track: Curriculum framework, resources, assessment guidelines, assessment rubrics, etc.) 2 Report on support and collaboration in ESL program implementation at campuses -         How has the process of investigating and managing the teaching and learning quality progressed? -         How has the Program Department supervised the process the School Boards prepared for and managed the important milestones (student and teacher assessments, reporting dates, etc.)? Any recommendations? 3 Training plan and recommended materials -         What needs is the training plan based on? -         How has the training plan been implemented? -         Do SBs have any recommendations for the Program Department to supplement any training/documents? Research and Development Guiding questions 4 The Program Department is responsible for continuous research and development, aiming at promoting the ESL program and the implementation team according to international standards. -         What are the key aspects of the program to conduct research on? -         Any proposal for research and development? What are the goals of these projects? -         What is the status of ongoing research and development projects? 5 At the end of each implementation phase, the Program Department will have to evaluate the achievement of the key objectives, and update the program. -         What are the key objectives? What are the success criteria? What is the evidence? -         Which goals need improvement? Recommended method? -         Which goals were achieved? How to duplicate the good practices across the system? -         What are the next steps to improve the program? Action plans for innovation? Which focus is prioritized in reports/ review sessions depends entirely on the implementation phase: In the early stage of the implementation process, leaders will have to pay more attention to setting up the basic apparatus and mechanism (working regulations, professional management plans, etc.). Prior to the important assessment milestones, the reports will focus more on the organization plan and the levels of teachers’ and students’ readiness. When the program implementation has been stabilized, the leaders will expect the review and evaluation of the learning and teaching quality, and will ask for specific data and evidence with a focus on observations and coaching practice. At the end of each period (typically 1 semester), the leaders will request an overall evaluation, based on the program's key expectations for students and teachers. They will require reflection and develop action plans for the next phase. Throughout the implementation process, the leaders need to be informed of the communication plan.