PDK International | Publications | Leading Through Learning

		Leading Through Learning by Dennis Sparks
		These thoughts and ideas from Dennis Sparks, emeritus executive director of the National Staff Development Council, will be published on the website twice a month from October through May. They are free to any website visitors.		Photo by Pam LeBlanc

Dennis Sparks is an “itinerant teacher” who assists leadership teams in developing their capacity to continuously improve teaching and learning in all classrooms. He is emeritus executive director of the National Staff Development Council, where he served as executive director from 1984-2007. He can be reached at thinkingpartner@comcast.net.

Current Issue
Cultivate the Problem-Solving Abilities of Others
Vol. 1, No. 16, May 27, 2008 — View PDF
The good news is that the given the right conditions,teachers can solve the vast majority of their own problems.

Past Issues
Focus Attention on High-Impact Activities — Vol. 1, No. 15, May 12, 2008
Setting Goals at Which You Cannot Fail — Vol. 1, No. 14, April 28, 2008
Managing "Next Actions" — Vol. 1, No. 13, April 14, 2008
Creating Cultures of Interpersonal Accountability — Vol. 1, No. 12, March 24, 2008
Match Words With Deeds to Establish Trust — Vol. 1, No. 11, March 10, 2008
Leaders’ Energy Essential to Organizational Motivation — Vol. 1, No. 10, February 25, 2008
The Leader’s Role in Cultivating Positive Emotions — Vol. 1, No. 9, February 11, 2008
Serving Students Through Values-Guided Leadership — Vol. 1, No. 8, January 28, 2008
When Leaders Speak Their Truth — Vol. 1, No. 7, January 14, 2008
Cultivating Clarity of Purpose — Vol. 1, No. 6, December 17, 2007
The Power of Leaders’ Authentic Voice — Vol. 1, No. 5, December 10, 2007
Find the Core of an Idea — Vol. 1, No. 4, November 26, 2007
What It Really Means to Learn — Vol. 1, No. 3, November 12, 2007
Leaders Write to Learn — Vol. 1, No. 2, October 29, 2007
Leaders First Change Themselves — Vol. 1, No. 1, October 15, 2007

Other PDK Publications by Dennis Sparks

Changing Organizations Begins with Changing Ourselves
EDge Magazine: September/October 2007

Leaders' thoughts and actions shape the culture of their organizations and set the tone for the professional learning that will improve the performance of the organization.

Read the Executive Summary
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Purchase the print version

The Looming Danger of a Two-Tiered Professional Development System
Phi Delta Kappan, Vol. 86, No. 04 (December 2004): 304-306.

A two-tiered system of professional development threatens the quality of teaching and learning in schools, particularly those schools that serve this nation's most vulnerable students. It is essential that all students receive the benefits of quality teaching supported by sustained, intellectually demanding professional learning within a collaborative culture that promotes teachers' professional judgment, deepens their understanding of the subjects they teach, expands the number of strategies available to successfully teach a diverse classroom of students, and creates nourishing connections among staff members.

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