Click on a quadrant of the graphic to learn more about that particular tool.
The Principal Supervisor 360 is a suite of tools to support the growth of principal supervisors. We recommend chief academic officers use these tools as the basis for their principal supervisor evaluations to ensure that the evaluations focus on principal supervisors’ growth. Principal supervisors themselves may use these tools to track their own progress. Tools may be used alone or in combination.
Please contact Lydia Rainey at lydiar@uw.edu for more information about accessing and using the PS360.
Principal Supervisor 360
Annual Survey of Principals (ASP)
DL2 developed and validated the Annual Survey of Principals (ASP) to provide districts with information important to supporting the success of their principal supervisors. The ASP, as well as the Annual Survey of Principal Supervisors (ASPS), can give principal supervisors formative feedback on their work with school principals—and other district leaders can use the findings to better understand if principal supervisors are receiving necessary supports.
When districts use these surveys, they increase the chances that the information they generate will be highly relevant to their principal supervisors’ work and positive outcomes for schools. Specifically, the surveys are uniquely design to provide districts with:
Research-based, reliable, and valid data: The surveys have been through a rigorous development process. First, DL2 identified research-based practices that successful principal supervisors use to contribute to positive school outcomes and consulted with experts and practitioners to develop survey items for each practice. Then, we piloted the surveys in 19 districts over three years and, using these data, we conducted various statistical tests to confirm item and index reliability and validity.
Data to anchor standards-based feedback: The ASP and ASPS aim to generate timely feedback linked to clear standards, specifically those in DL2’s “Principal Supervisor Performance Standards v. 2.0,” the Council of Chief State School Officers’ (CCSSO) “Model Principal Supervisor Professional Standards,” and other standards that emphasize the principal supervisors’ central role in helping principals lead for excellent teaching and learning for each and every student.
Data to track progress: Professionals accelerate their own growth when they have tools and data to help them track their progress. Principal supervisors may use the findings to lead their own learning.
Data to support principal supervisors: Survey findings can help Chief Academic Officers and others understand the current state of principal supervision in their districts.
Sample items include:
- At the start of this school year, how would you rate your capacity to engage in instructional leadership?
- During an average week in August to December of this school year, approximately what percentage of your time did you spend on activities you consider related to instructional leadership?
- To what extent do you agree that working in [name of principals meeting facilitated by the principal supervisor] has strengthened your ability to identify high quality teaching?
- To what extent do you agree that your Principal Supervisor: Modeled for you how to have conversations with teachers about the quality of their instruction?
- To what extent do you agree that your Principal Supervisor: Helped you develop and use your calendar to protect your time for instructional leadership?
- To what extent do you agree that you contributed to the planning of principal meetings?
- To what extent do you agree that your Principal Supervisor used evidence related to your instructional leadership practice when providing you with feedback?
Annual Survey of Principal Supervisors (ASPS)
DL2 developed and validated the Annual Survey of Principal Supervisors (ASPS) to provide districts with information important to supporting the success of their principal supervisors. The ASPS, as well as the Annual Survey of Principals (ASP), can give principal supervisors formative feedback on their work with school principals—and other district leaders can use the findings to better understand if principal supervisors are receiving necessary supports.
When districts use these surveys, they increase the chances that the information they generate will be highly relevant to their principal supervisors’ work and positive outcomes for schools. Specifically, the surveys are uniquely design to provide districts with:
Research-based, reliable, and valid data: The surveys have been through a rigorous development process. First, DL2 identified research-based practices that successful principal supervisors use to contribute to positive school outcomes and consulted with experts and practitioners to develop survey items for each practice. Then, we piloted the surveys in 19 districts over three years and, using these data, we conducted various statistical tests to confirm item and index reliability and validity.
Data to anchor standards-based feedback: The ASP and ASPS aim to generate timely feedback linked to clear standards, specifically those in DL2’s “Principal Supervisor Performance Standards v. 2.0,” the Council of Chief State School Officers’ (CCSSO) “Model Principal Supervisor Professional Standards,” and other standards that emphasize the principal supervisors’ central role in helping principals lead for excellent teaching and learning for each and every student.
Data to track progress: Professionals accelerate their own growth when they have tools and data to help them track their progress. Principal supervisors may use the findings to lead their own learning.
Data to support principal supervisors: Survey findings can help Chief Academic Officers and others understand the current state of principal supervision in their districts. The ASPS specifically asks principal supervisors to report if they are receiving the types of supports that research shows are important.
The ASPS includes a series of items that as principal supervisors to report on the perceived outcomes of their work with principals from the previous year, the extent to which they engaged in teaching practices research associates with improved outcomes for principals, and the supports they received for their work with their principals.
Sample items include:
- Thinking about the quality of your work at the start of this school year, how would you rate your capacity to help principals grow as instructional leaders?
- Thinking about your principals at the start of the year, how would you rate their capacity to engage in instructional leadership?
- How frequently did you work with other central office staff on behalf of your principals?
- To what extent would you agree that you created opportunities for your principals to provide feedback to each other during principal community of practice meetings?
- How frequently did you use evidence gathered from your observations of principals when making decisions about how to support your principals?
- Thinking about the school you visited most frequently over the past year, approximately how many times per month did you visit it between August to December?
- How frequently did your supervisor observe you working with principals?
- To what extent do you agree that your professional development focused on how to differentiate my supports to principals based on their capacity for instructional leadership?
- To what extent do you agree that the staff in the Human Resources department were effective in meeting your principals' needs?
Peer Observations
Observation-based feedback is a powerful tool to help professionals improve the quality of their work. DL2 recommends that each principal supervisor collect detailed observations of their own practice from their peers and their own supervisor at least three times a year. We designed the Whisper Application to support the kinds of observations that can serve as an enduring record of data for assessment of growth especially over time. We encourage districts to use Whisper or an observation platform with similar functionality.
Supervisor Observations
Observation-based feedback is a powerful tool to help professionals improve the quality of their work. DL2 recommends that each principal supervisor collect detailed observations of their own practice from their peers and their own supervisor at least three times a year. We designed the Whisper Application to support the kinds of observations that can serve as an enduring record of data for assessment of growth especially over time. We encourage districts to use Whisper or an observation platform with similar functionality.