Leaders of Learning ─ How District, School, and Classroom Leaders Improve Student Achievement

For many years, the authors have been cotravelers on the journey to help educators improve their schools. As Dr. DuFour has focused on bringing the professional learning community process to life in schools, he has relied heavily on Dr. Marzano's vast research on effective teaching and effective leadership. Both have come to the conclusion that the best environment for great teaching and leading is a powerful PLC. In their first coauthored book, Dr. DuFour and Dr. Marzano have combined their passions to articulate how effective leaders foster continuous improvement at the district, school, and classroom levels. The book focuses on district leadership, principal leadership, and team leadership, and addresses how individual teachers can be most effective in leading students—by learning with colleagues how to implement the most promising pedagogy in their classrooms. The authors argue that no single person has all the knowledge, skills, and talent to lead a district, improve a school, or meet all the needs of every child in his or her classroom. Instead, it will take a collaborative effort and widely dispersed leadership to meet the challenges confronting schools.

Richard DuFour, EdD, was a public school educator for 34 years, serving as a teacher, principal, and superintendent. He served as the principal of Adlai Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, Illinois, from 1983 to 1991 and as superintendent of the district from 1991 to 2002. During his tenure, Stevenson became what the United States Department of Education (USDE) has described as “the most recognized and celebrated school in America.” It is one of three schools in the nation to win the USDE Blue Ribbon Award on four occasions and one of the first comprehensive schools designated a New America High School by USDE as a model of successful school reform. Stevenson has been repeatedly cited in the popular press as one of America's best schools and referenced in professional literature as an exemplar of best practices in education.