Decision Making For Educational Leaders: Underexamined Dimensions And Issues (s U N Y Series, Educational Leadership)

Decision Making for Educational Leaders underexamined dimensions and issues Bob L. Johnson Jr. and Sharon D. Kruse Decision Making for Educational Leaders S U N Y S E R I E S , E D U C AT I O N A L L E A D E R S H I P Daniel L. Duke, editor Decision Making for Educational Leaders Underexamined Dimensions and Issues BOB L. JOHNSON JR. and SHARON D. KRUSE S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y O F N E W Y O R K P R E S S Published by S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y O F N E W YO R K P R E S S Albany © 2009 State University of New York All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission. No part of this book may be stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means including electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior permission in writing of the publisher. For information, contact State University of New York Press, Albany, NY www.sunypress.edu Production, Laurie Searl Marketing, Anne M. Valentine Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Johnson, Bob L., 1956– Decision making for educational leaders : underexamined dimensions and issues / Bob L. Johnson Jr. and Sharon D. Kruse. p. cm. — (Education leadership) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-4384-2915-1 (hardcover : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-1-4384-2916-8 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. School management and organization—Decision making. 2. Educational leadership. I. Kruse, Sharon D. II. Title. LB2805.J635 2009 371.2’07—dc22 2009008523 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 To my parents, Bob and Marie Johnson, particularly Dad, a wise and seasoned decision maker BLJJ To my parents, Stan and Ruth Youth, who taught me much about decisions and choices SDK Contents List of Tables and Figures ix Preface xi Acknowledgments xiii Part I Decision-Making Theory and Theorizing CHAPTER ONE Introduction: Leadership, Decision Making, and Underexplored Issues in Decision Making 3 CHAPTER TWO Theories, Theorizing, and the Art of Theory-Use in Decision Making 23 Part II Context and Contextual Issues in Decision Making CHAPTER THREE Organization as Context: Decision Making in Educational Organizations 49 CHAPTER FOUR The Political Context of Decision Making in Educational Leadership vii 71 viii Contents Part III The Decision Maker: Logic, Intuition, Data Use, and Skill CHAPTER FIVE The Logic of Decision Making: Problematizing Decision Assumptions and Examining Inferential Leaps 99 CHAPTER SIX The Intuitive Decision Maker in the Information Age 125 CHAPTER SEVEN Data-Driven Decision Making for School Improvement 141 CHAPTER EIGHT Dispositional Aspects of Effective Decision Making and the Competent Decision Maker 167 CHAPTER NINE Making Tough Decisions: Issues and Considerations 187 Part IV Conclusion: Underexamined Issues in Decision Making CHAPTER TEN The Educational Leader as Decision Maker: Themes, Inferences, and Conclusions 205 References 219 Index 233 Tables and Figures Tables Overall Reading Scores, Third Grade TABLE 7.2 Third Grade Subscale Data Overall Reading Scores: Percentage of Students Passing TABLE 7.3A Third Grade Student Performance by Item Type, Overall Reading