These are some of the things that teachers should be able to control the following in their classrooms

• setting rules / procedures
• discipline
• pacing of lessons to address student needs
• use of scaffolding/ supports for students
• teaching style
• schedules ( ensuring time is given in each subject to meet the program pacing guides) 

Grading and assessment decisions should be left up to the teacher's discretion. They know their students the best and they know what needs they have and what they are capable of. 

Pacing is one of those areas that needs to be left up to the classroom teacher's professional discretion because they know their students best. This is one area where a teacher might have to be at a different place with each class and they usually make these decisions thoughtfully in order to get the best gains for the actual students in the room, not some theoretical class thought up by a curriculum developer or instructional support person.

Pacing and classroom management are two areas where micromanagement can be very contraindicative. In pacing, if you push a teacher to move along a certain pace to check off a box, there will be students left behind who have no grasp of the concept. With classroom management, micromanaging a teacher may result in undermining their authenticity and that will create a difficult classroom dynamic

The micromanagement of teachers by administrators is harmful to their development as teachers. Teachers need the trust of administrators without micromanagement to grow the way we need them to. 

Teachers need to make decisions in their classroom based on the student's data. They need to be able to adjust in real time to what their students need. Teachers need to have some leeway in pacing. Sometimes teachers need to reteach a lesson is students struggled with it. Having a strict pacing plan may not be helpful for students. Also, teachers need a voice in curriculum choice. Many times adopting a program comes from the top down. 

Teachers really need to be able to make the major decisions about the day to day running of their classrooms. If we are going to treat them as professionals and expect them to behave as professionals then we need to allow the to operate without major interference. I do not mean for them to have free reign in the classroom, obviously they must operate within the construct of the norms, but we can not make every decision for them. I firmly believe that the micro-managing approach is the counterproductive. The last thing any of my teachers need is me in their classrooms telling them how to handle every simple problem or classroom management issue. 

In a world where so many are leaving the teaching field, I feel like "professional respect" is needed more now then ever. I feel that clearing a path so they can teach is important by providing the materials, time to plan and collaborate, and believing they are doing what is best for their kiddos. They know what will work best in their class, and I need to allow them to show this. Micromanaging can leads to low teacher morale, toxic school environments, high turnover, and disruption to student learning. 

To be professionals, teachers must be granted the autonomy to write their own lesson plans, use their own resources, establish their own classroom rules and procedures, create/modify assessments, etc. Micromanagement in any of these areas would be counterproductive. 

Some major decisions that teachers should to take the lead on are 1) how best to differentiate instruction for all students; 2) what curriculum & resources to employ; 3) how best to organize units of study; and 4) how best to manage the classroom. Micromanaging classroom management is especially counterproductive because it undermines the teacher's authority, which makes it unsustainable.

It's important just to make sure that the teachers feel supported by doing walkthroughs, and when doing the walk through, they have meaning behind it, that you're providing feedback and that they do not feel that you're micromanaging them. It's important just to make sure that you're building that rapport with the students and the staff members so that they feel safe and feel that your conversations are productive.

Teachers need to decide how to teach their population of students. Material and curriculum should be provided but the actual instruction should be designed by the teacher. I also feel teachers need more choice and decision making in their professional development. If they don't buy into what they are learning, just like students, they will not do anything with the information being presented. 

I thought that a teacher was not teaching the phonics program that the district provided. Nevertheless, with conversations and frequent visits, I realized that the program was incorporated. 

Teachers need to build their own classroom rapport with students and need to be allowed to shape their working process with students. When an administrator tries to demand that the teacher present a particular personality to students, they--the teachers--become inauthentic and the organic flow of a well planned lesson cannot emerge. 

Teachers are professionals and they are the experts in their classrooms. They need to have the ability to make decisions on scaffolding, differentiating, lesson planning, unit planning and behaviour management in their classrooms. During my first year as principal, there were times when I was in the classroom or hallway and would assume the teacher was mismanaging a student's unwanted behaviour. I would make the error of stepping in and undermining the teacher's authority and questioning their professionalism. This is an example of a decision a teacher should be making and my micromanaging. I have learned to have a conversation with the teacher later in the day and ask how I can help or if it is even an issue. 

The decisions that teachers should be encouraged to make for themselves are the development of lessons and the the manner in which they are delivered. Teaching is a creative and performative process that reflect the expression of oneself. Because teaching is an art, creative control should be determined by the artist. 

Teachers should make the following decisions for themselves: classroom procedures, pacing of lessons (assuming they still cover the required curriculum by the end of the year), professional development, modifications and differentiation, and assessments. This list is not exhaustive. Micro-management is counterproductive because it does not allow the teacher to think for themselves. They have no control and resentment might grow. Teachers should not be told how exactly to teach the curriculum. Teachers should not be told that they need to have the students that this particular test on this particular day. 

One of the areas where teachers should be able to make decisions for themselves is having the flexibility to create engaging lessons and having the freedom to utilize a variety of approaches to teaching and learning. Micromanaging that process can cause the teacher to constantly second guess their decisions and be hesitant to try new things. This can stifle creativity and undermine the art of teaching.