Common Core Implementation Checklist for Principals
NAESP has developed this checklist to help principals determine the bodies of knowledge and skill sets they will need to prepare in order to lead their schools into using the new standards. This checklist is meant to serve as an information guide on some of the most critical steps to complete in preparation for implementing the CCSS. Principals are to identify areas of strengths and needs by checking tasks that they have completed and making notes about their plans. The checklist will help principals determine areas they have made progress toward Common Core implementation as well as areas to focus on as they move forward with implementation.
This checklist contains many common ideas for elementary school principals and their schools to follow as they implement the CCSS. However, many school leaders and staff have likely moved well beyond this checklist’s reminders, such as “Setting a vision for your school community’s transition to Common Core State Standards,” and “Establishing teacher buy in, leading communications so that teacher leaders are engaged and committed?” Consequently, this resource’s greatest value is in the additional links provided at the end of each major topic. Users will likely need to do some hunting around and are likely to encounter dated links or links to overly very broad home pages. But those links may lead to some useful implementation tools. Like many other web-based resources, evidence of effectiveness is not provided but must be implied. Many of the linked resources including the checklist itself could be helpful not only to elementary schools but to middle and secondary schools as well.