Norman Weston
Rank: Associate Professor, Educational Leadership Department
Location: North Shore Campus
Office Phone: (224) 233-2000 x2287
Office Fax: (847) 465-5629
Email Address: nweston@nl.edu
EDUCATION
Degree: PhD
Institution: University of Illinois at Chicago
Field: Curriculum Design
PROFESSIONAL STATEMENT
Today educational leaders are being encouraged to transform their schools into learning communities that provide students and staff with a renewed sense of meaning and purpose to their work. Schools can be transformed only by attending to the needs of both teachers and students. In Developing Educational Leaders: A Working Model: The Learning Community in Action (2002, Norris, Barnett, Basom & Yerkes) Linda Lambert defines leadership "as a reciprocal process where a community of learners inspires both individual and group development" (p. vii). NLU’s masters and doctoral degree programs in educational leadership address the above by (1) focusing on district-wide school improvement while working to create a professional ethos and comprehensive learning community; (2) directly linking professional development of teachers to student achievement, and (3) developing opportunities for teacher leadership. 21st Century school leadership is less role-bound, less hierarchical, more reciprocal, more problem-focused, and more community-centered. These characteristics, imbued with the core values of the National College of Education (social justice, multiculturalism, equity and progressive education, set our course.
CURRENT COURSES I TEACH
- EDL610 Entry Portfolio Development for Superintendent Endorsement
- EDL699 Dissertation Completion
- EDL546 Perspectives on and Administration of Educational Policy
- EDL624 Professional Development and School Change
- EDL622 Curriculum Planning, Organization and Evaluation
- EDL510 Leadership and Organizational Development of Schools
- EDL512 Communication and Technological Skills for School Leaders
- EDL552 Administration of the Curriculum
- EDL553 Supervision of Instruction
- ESR508 Research for School Leaders
PUBLICATIONS (RECENT)
Weston, N. (2001). Building a learning community through teacher action research: Honoring teacher wisdom in three Chicago public schools. In Redding, S. & Thomas, L.G., (Eds.). The community of the school (pp. 97-111). Lincoln, IL: The Academic Development Institute.
Fischer, J. & Weston, N. (2000). Action research and school reform: Lessons from Chicago, Curitiba, and Santiago. In Burnaford, G., Fischer, J., & Hobson, D. (Eds.) Teachers doing research: The power of action through inquiry. NJ: Erlbaum.
PRESENTATIONS (RECENT)
Weston, N. & Best, R. (2008, March). Partnering for Change: A Model School-University Partnership Focused on Teacher and Student Learning. Paper presented at the meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), New York.
Weston, N., Caron, W., Dugan, K., Dunleavy, C., Elish, R., Pingitore, S., Purcell, J., & Royer, M. (March, 2008). Writing and Acting with One Voice: The Collaborative Educational Leadership Dissertation and School Change. Paper presented at the meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), New York.
Weston, N., Watkins, O., Tafel, L., & Kahl, M. (March, 2008). The Educational Leadership Dissertation: A Vehicle for Personal Transformation and School Change. In T. Purinton (Chair), Extending the Debate on the Ed.D. in Educational Leadership: Transmission Vs. Transformation. Symposium conducted at the meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA), New York.
Weston, N., Hawthorne, E., Streedain, R., & Best, R. (Feb., 2004). Building a School/University Partnership: Top-Down & Bottom Up. Paper presented at the meeting of the American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education (AACTE), Chicago, IL.
WORK IN SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITY
2003 - 2007 Project Evaluator and Research Coordinator, Pilsen and Little Village Arts and Education Collaborative: To Improve Academic Achievement of At-Risk Children and Youth, Chicago Public Schools
2001 - 2003 Member, Lindop School Dst. 92, Comprehensive School Reform Planning Committee, Broadview, IL
1998 - 2000 Research Advisor, Professional Growth Committee, Glencoe District #35, Glencoe, IL.
1997 - 2000 Action Research Advisor, Illinois Alliance for Achievement Network, Annenberg Small Schools Challenge Grant for Bethune, Spry, and Piccolo Schools, Chicago Public Schools, Chicago, IL.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Curriculum Theory & Design; Teacher Action Research; Teacher Leadership; Professional Development; School/University Partnerships
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
- American Educational Research Association (AERA)
- Co-chair, Classroom Inquiry, Division B: Curriculum Studies 2000-2001
- Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD)
- Institute for Democracy in Education (IDE)
- Illinois Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (IASCD)
