Coherence: The Right Drivers in Action for Schools, Districts, and Systems

Coherence focuses on four major components of creating progress, growth, and improvement in a school system. A point to recognize is that the book clearly focuses on coherence as a set of values, a shared purpose, and a framework that moves a system forward. It is not a plug and play strategy to make immediate change. All four of the components–focusing direction, cultivating collaborative cultures, deeping learning, and securing accountability–require leadership and continual focus to make changes. One of the key points I resonated with most is that the focus of the book is not on centralization or decentralization of an initiative. It really focuses on building a trusting workforce through the thoughtful implementation of the work. In the final chapter, the book says, “we are not talking about mere coherence of existing elements, but a radical transformation into deep learning with all of its associated parts” (p. 136). This really sums up the focus of the book from just pulling together all of a school’s existing initiatives into a coherent framework into a focus that is wholly different. Coherence asks the reader to take on the mantle of leadership and guide a system in creating something new. Overall, I enjoyed the book, and I felt like I walked away with a useful framework for approaching change leadership in the future. I think this book fits in well with other literature that highlights the need for a common purpose and common values. Coherence cannot be accomplished alone, and this book does a good job of highlighting that and explaining how to go about creating that collective way forward.

Fullan and Quinn do an excellent job of providing a framework of coherence through culture building and collaboration. Their focus as a whole put an emphasis on focused direction, cultivating collaborative cultures, deepening learning, and securing accountability. They explain that while this framework is a must for positive culture and meaningfulness, the pathways in how to get to a certain destination are going to be different. The framework itself relies on trust and accountability (intrinsic and extrinsic) of work. Throughout the reading, evidence and data are shared about a handful of North America schools that adopted the coherence framework, providing insight to the continuous process of making and remaking the framework to work for you. The idea of this being a continuous learning cycle looks at whole systems, and zeros in on precise pedagogy, leaving you in a state of inspiration to say, "I can do and be a part of this." There are also opportunities for you to read about how the framework was put into action in various schools with data and citing to confirm the work. From large schools in Canada, to rural schools in the U.S.A, this concept and frame is feasible for all schools. Multiple opportunities are broadcasted to learn each part of the framework to see how it all fits together. Once the connection is made for 'deeper learning' a summary and final thoughts conclude each chapter. In the chapter closings, there is an opportunity to see how the framework meshes from one pillar to the next, with connections being made with purpose driven content. If you are looking for a book to help you navigate change leadership, Coherence will help lead you there through the understanding of putting the right drivers in place to lead the movement.

Fullan thoroughly presents his right drivers to achieve success when leading educational organizations. Moreover, he cites numerous examples of schools, districts, and even whole nations where his framework has been successfully tested.

The book Coherence does an excellent job of breaking down the framework into manageable steps schools need to take to develop coherence in their system. The Coherence Framework includes Focusing Direction, Cultivating Collaborative Cultures, Securing Accountability, and Deeping Learning. This book provides a model to guide educators and leaders as they learn and lead their way to become a more effective school. This framework is not going to lead to immediate results. It will take consistency from the leaders within your system to set goals, work collaboratively, monitor progress, and have accountability measures to lead to results. I recommend this book if you want an easy-to-follow guide for changes you can make in your school to improve your coherence to lead to positive results.

Selected this book as a choice read for graduate school. Fullan and Quinn organize the complex topic of making successful progress towards building goals into four avenues for action that leaders can take: focusing direction, cultivating collaborative cultures, deepening learning, and securing accountability. Each area of the framework is explained in depth and is supported with examples of people applying the concepts in the field. Informative graphics allow for clarity of purpose for each framework component as well as ease of sharing information within teams. The combination of clear graphics and straightforward examples makes Coherence more of a resource to return to, rather than a "one and done" type of text. Would recommend this book for leaders hoping to make changes within their buildings.

In this book, the author’s advocate for achieving “simplexity” or the ability to communicate complex concepts in a concise and easy-to-understand way. Their central idea is that meaningful system change can be achieved by addressing four specific “drivers” or key concepts: focusing direction, cultivating collaborative cultures, deepening learning, and securing accountability. They emphasize that these components must be pursued simultaneously and continually to be effective. Despite their stated goal of making the complex simple, I found the book to be conceptually dense and, at times, confusing. Understanding their ideas often required multiple readings. The initial confusion begins early, when they introduce the “original four drivers” from a prior paper, only to quickly pivot to adjusted ones. This shift in terminology early in the book adds unnecessary details that could have been excluded for clarity. Also, each of their four key components is broken down into several sub-points, and many of those sub-points are further divided into additional frameworks - such as the “6 C’s” of deep learning, the “3 R’s” of developing clear strategies, and the four-step approach to talking about current initiatives and related fatigue. These layers of point after sub-point quickly pile up, contradicting the goal of streamlined explanations in my opinion. That said, the book is thoughtfully organized. It includes visuals, figures and clearly labeled headers which make it easier to revisit specific sections when needed. Real-world examples from school districts across North America are another strength. These case studies demonstrate that districts are actively implementing the framework and also show how local autonomy can coexist within their model. The authors back their claims with multiple pages of citations published between 1998 and 2015. A notable portion of the references come from one of the authors himself, which makes a reader pause regarding the diversity of sources they include. However, they consistently incorporate the influential work of John Hattie, which adds credibility and familiarity for educators who have engaged with his research like myself. As a student services professional, I appreciated the inclusion of social-emotional learning and the acknowledgement of student belonging and classroom cultures as prerequisites for academic success. Additionally, the authors address common frustrations within educational systems which simultaneously validate readers’ experiences but ensuring they are not excuses to achieve student learning outcomes. While the book aims to simplify complex change, I do not personally believe it fully achieves “simplexity.” The ideas are layered and at times difficult to internalize initially. Also, the authors’ stated expectation is that all components be implemented simultaneously and continuously which feels unrealistic for schools and districts attempting reform. (It also feels contradictory to a point they emphasize throughout: focusing on two to three related goals). However, the book has practical value. Its clear formatting allows for easy reference and the final “Coherence Assessment Tool” is an especially useful resource. Of all the content, this tool most effectively embodies their goal of “simplexity.” In summary, this book may not dramatically reduce the complexity of system change, but it offers a well-organized framework that committed leaders can return to as they work toward transforming their systems and buildings.

This is a great book and resource for educational leadership. This would be great as a whole staff read and how leaders can collaboratively work with those they are trying to lead. Accountability is also key, and this book nails it spot on! I’m so glad I read this book as it brought to light how to be a more impactful educational leader!

I had to purchase this book for my master's program. It's a good read and gives you a lot to think about. I found it very relatable and easy to read. The visuals within the book do an excellent job of bringing all of the material from each chapter together.

Great book!

In aller Kürze: Wer daran interessiert ist, Schulentwicklung nicht aus einem partikulärem Blickwinkel sehen zu wollen, der MUSS das Buch lesen. In gewisser Weise vieles, was dzt. global state-of-the-art ist (sein sollte!) in a nutshell. Thanks, Michael!

Read in conjunction with works from John Hattie and Lyn Sharratt, this text completes a picture for developing action plans that promote excellence in teaching and learning.

Great read.

Easy to read and implement.