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ducators who understand that schools are complex interdependent social systems can move their organizations forward. Unfortunately, many education leaders today fail to grasp the interconnectedness of these components, resulting in little or no progress. As such, many planned changes address only symptoms, not the underlying root causes, of the problems. Subsequently, meaningful improvements do not occur. On the other hand, a number of outstanding education leaders are slowly moving toward approaches that consider schools as “organic organizations” capable of learning and continuous improvement. “The idea of a school that can learn has become increasingly prominent during the last few years” (Senge et al. 2000, 5). Central to this idea is Peter Senge’s fifth discipline, systems thinking (1990). Often leadership decisions cause many complex and unforeseen reactions. “Systems thinking is the ability to understand (and sometimes to predict) interactions and relationships in complex, dynamic systems: the kinds of systems we [educators] are surrounded by and embedded in” (Senge et al. 2000, 239). Systems thinking encourages leaders to use such concepts as continuous incremental improvement, organizational learning, and feedback loops. Systems thinking requires leaders to see the whole school as a complex organization with many interdependent components. A systems perspective enables educators to make decisions related to improvement of student achievement and understand the impact of each decision on the organization. However, the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) has interrupted the status quo of schools and has forced education leaders to reconsider various methods of organizational change. The act has required all public schools to develop clear definitions of achievement, which provide the basis to evaluate progress. Senge (1990) identifies five disciplines that learning organizations consistently exhibit—personal mastery, mental models, a shared vision, team learning, and systems thinking. The fifth discipline, systems thinking, is especially appropriate for schools that are attempting to improve student achievement. In The Fifth Discipline (1990), Senge presents his model of systems thinking and the allegories that define the laws of systems thinking. These allegories illustrate common pitfalls that prevent systems thinking within organizations: