GACE Educational Leadership-Tier I (334) cheat sheet

Educational Leadership (Tier I)

• Georgia educator certification is governed by the Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GaPSC); the Educational Leadership Tier I certificate prepares candidates for entry-level building leadership roles such as assistant principal and requires completion of a GaPSC-approved Tier I program and passing the GACE 334 assessment.

• The Georgia Standards of Excellence for Educational Leadership are organized around seven performance standards: Instructional Leadership, School Culture, Performance Management, Human Resources, Teacher and Staff Evaluation, Organizational Management, and Professional Ethics.

• Instructional leadership requires the leader to facilitate the development of a shared vision and mission, monitor curriculum and instruction, use data to inform decisions, and ensure high expectations for all learners.

• School culture standard requires fostering a safe, supportive, and academically focused environment; promoting equity; addressing barriers to learning; and engaging families and community stakeholders.

• Performance management standard requires using multiple data sources (formative, summative, perception, demographic, and achievement data) to identify goals, implement improvement plans, monitor progress, and adjust strategies.

• Human resources standard requires recruiting, selecting, inducting, and retaining high-quality staff; assigning personnel to maximize student learning; and providing professional learning aligned with school goals.

• Teacher and staff evaluation in Georgia uses the Teacher Keys Effectiveness System (TKES) and Leader Keys Effectiveness System (LKES); both include a Teacher/Leader Assessment on Performance Standards (TAPS/LAPS), professional growth, and student/leader effectiveness measures.

• Organizational management standard requires managing operations (scheduling, budgeting, facilities, technology, safety) to create a safe and efficient learning environment while complying with district, state, and federal requirements.

• Professional ethics standard requires modeling integrity, fairness, and transparency; adhering to the Georgia Code of Ethics for Educators; and making decisions that put student welfare first while maintaining confidentiality and avoiding conflicts of interest.

• Georgia's school improvement process requires the development of a School Improvement Plan (SIP) that includes a comprehensive needs assessment, measurable goals, evidence-based strategies, a monitoring plan, and family/community engagement; districts provide support through the District Improvement Plan.

• The Georgia Milestones Assessment System provides summative data in ELA, mathematics, science, and social studies; leaders use these results along with formative and benchmark data to identify achievement gaps and evaluate instructional effectiveness.

• Under ESSA and Georgia's accountability system (College and Career Ready Performance Index, CCRPI), schools are evaluated on content mastery, progress, closing gaps, readiness, and (for high schools) graduation rate; leaders must understand how these indicators are calculated and reported.

• Effective leaders use a continuous improvement cycle: identify problem, analyze root causes, select evidence-based interventions, implement with fidelity, monitor progress, and adjust based on data (often represented as Plan-Do-Study-Act or a similar inquiry cycle).

• Distributed leadership involves sharing decision-making with teacher leaders, instructional coaches, and committees; research (e.g., Spillane) shows distributed leadership positively influences instruction when responsibilities are clearly defined and aligned to school goals.

• Change management requires understanding the stages of concern and levels of use (Concerns-Based Adoption Model) and applying strategies such as building urgency, forming a guiding coalition, communicating a vision, and celebrating short-term wins (Kotter).

• Georgia's Pyramid of Interventions (RTI) is a multi-tiered system of supports: Tier 1 universal instruction, Tier 2 targeted interventions, Tier 3 intensive interventions; leaders ensure fidelity, progress monitoring, and data-based decision-making.

• School budgeting in Georgia follows district and state guidelines; leaders must understand the allotment of funds (e.g., QBE earnings, federal Title I, IDEA, and local funds) and ensure equitable resource allocation aligned to school improvement goals.

• Legal and policy knowledge includes FERPA (student records privacy), IDEA (special education), Title IX (gender equity), Section 504 (accommodations), and Georgia compulsory attendance and discipline laws; leaders must apply these consistently and document actions.

• Educator evaluation in Georgia requires annual professional learning goals and observations; TKES uses five performance domains (Planning, Instructional Delivery, Assessment, Learning Environment, Professionalism) and ten standards; LKES uses similar domains for leaders.

• Family and community engagement requires culturally responsive communication, building partnerships, and creating structures (e.g., PTA, advisory councils, parent-teacher conferences) that support student learning and school improvement.

• Data-driven decision making requires data literacy: understanding validity and reliability, disaggregating data by subgroups, using trend analysis, and avoiding common misinterpretations (e.g., small sample sizes, teaching to the test).

• Professional learning for staff should be job-embedded, collaborative, data-driven, and sustained; leaders align professional learning to school goals and evaluate its impact on teacher practice and student outcomes.

• School safety and crisis management require developing and practicing emergency operations plans, conducting drills, coordinating with law enforcement and mental health services, and maintaining a positive school climate.

• Ethical decision-making frameworks include considering multiple stakeholders, reviewing policies and laws, consulting colleagues, and reflecting on the Georgia Code of Ethics; leaders document decisions and maintain transparency.

• The Tier I leader must demonstrate the ability to collaborate with district office personnel, serve on committees, and support the principal in implementing the school's vision and improvement plan.