teacher leadership in schools.pdf

8/10/2019 Teacher Leadership in Schools.pdf

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Putting the Leader in

Teacher LeadersKaren Rohrs

Director, Professional Development

Courtney Lowe

Director, Curriculum and Assessment

http://bit.ly/Pn992v
http://bit.ly/Pn992vhttp://bit.ly/Pn992v


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Goals for the Session

Participants will ...

1. Explore a conceptual framework for

consideration of teacher leadership

based on research

2. Explore:

definitions of teacher leadership

what it takes to be an effective teacher leader

practices and competencies

ways to develop valued competencies


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As we begin ....

1. What makes leaders in your school successful?2. In your experience, do the best teachers make the best

teacher leaders?

2. How should teacher leadership intersect with the role of the

principal and other administrators?


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WHAT IS TEACHER

LEADERSHIP?


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Assumptions

Source: Crowther, F. Kaagan, S., Ferguson, M, & Hann, L. (2002). Developing Teacher Leaders: How Teacher Leadership Enhances SchoolSuccess. Corwin Press, California. (Page 110)

Teacher leadership isdistinctive.

Teacher leadership is like

the other forms ofleadership.

Teaching and learning are

the focus of teacher

leadership.

Organizational issues are

the focus of teacher

leadership.

All teachers are potential

leaders.

Some teachers are

potential leaders.

Teacher leadership can

be nurtured.

Teacher leadership is

inherent.

Teachers are accountable

for learning outcomes.

Administrators are

accountable for learning

outcomes.


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Assumptions Dialogue

Source: Crowther, F. Kaagan, S., Ferguson, M, & Hann, L. (2002). Developing Teacher Leaders: How Teacher Leadership Enhances SchoolSuccess. Corwin Press, California. (Page 110)

1. Where along the lines

between the contrasting

elements does your present

school situation best fit? In

what ways is this similar toyour personal response?

2. In what ways might the

assumptions facilitate orimpede progress?


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Leadership

1. What are the big ideas from the definitions?

2. What are some things that you anticipated reading, but

were not represented here?

3. What might you take from these for your own situation?


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Leaders

FORMAL teacher leaders - positional"authority"

Department ChairInstructional CoachMentor

INFORMAL teacher leaders -spontaneous, organic. Their influencestems from their expertise and practice.

Wasley (1991) found informal teacher leaders moreinfluential than formal teacher leaders

Wasley, P.A. (1991) Teachers who lead: The rhetoric of reform and the realities of practice. New York: Teachers

College Press.


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Definitions of Teacher Leadership

Through 3 Waves of Practice

1st Wave: TLs served in formal roles, typically as anextension of administration, with the goal of improving

school efficiency

2nd Wave: TLs capitalized on instructional expertise and

served as curriculum leaders, staff developers, and

mentors to new teachers

3rd Wave: TLs central to the process of "reculturing"

schools to maximize instructional expertise. Recognition ofthe fact that promoting improvement requires a

collaborative culture focused on continuous learning, which

necessarily involves teachers as creators of culture.

Source: Silva, D. Y., Gimbert, B. & Nolan, J. (2000) Sliding the doors: Locking and unlocking possibilities for teacher

leadership. Teachers College Record, 102, 779-804 cited in York-Barr, J., & Duke, K. (2004). What do we know aboutteacher leadership? Findings from two decades of scholarship. Review of educational research, 74(3), 255316.


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WHAT DO TEACHER

LEADERS DO?


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Leadership

Model effective practices

Respected by their peers, approachable

Continue to teach, continuous learners

Influence extends beyond their own classroom

Diverse yet distinctive

Can be nurtured (knowledge and skills, dispositions)

Advance "social sustainability"

Collaborative; influential; group skills

Transformational, manage a process ofchange

Further the mission of the school; worktoward shared goals; learning oriented


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Teachers, Teacher Leaders,

Administrators

ADMINISTRATORS

TEACHERS

TEACHER LEADERS


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Administrators

"If educational improvement is going to last, it mustdepend on more than a few leaders...it must not be

built on the capacities of individual leaders but rather

on powerful communities of teacher leadership that

continue to make and sustain change with, andalongside, administrators."-Andy Hargreaves inCrowther (pg. xii)

"Teacher leadership occurs most readily in

supportive organizational environments." (Crowther,page 11)

"Teacher leadership is inseparable from the concept

of empowerment..." - the notion of creating

opportunities, encouraging and then stepping back to


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Teacher Leader Differentiators

great teachers .... great leaders


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Self-Check

In what ways do teachers,teacher leaders and

administrators intersect in

your school?

Who are the teacher leaders

in your school? What do they

do?


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Conceptual Framework


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WHAT MAKES A

GOOD TEACHERLEADER?


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TL CompetenciesIn what ways does the articulation of

competencies help with identification,

recruitment, and evaluation of teacher

leaders?

1. Charlotte Danielson Areas of School

Life

2. CSTP Teacher Leadership Skills

Framework

3. CSETL Capacity Building Rubric

4. Teachers as Leaders Framework

(Crowther)

5. Teacher Leader Model Standards


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HOW CAN WE

DEVELOP TEACHERLEADERS?


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If there are established

competencies, and if leadership

can be nurtured, then there is

room for training and

development. What are some

ways we can develop teacherleaders? What kinds of training

would be helpful?

Defined and articulated

standards

How Can We Train?

Knowledge, Skills and Dispositions

Tools: Self-Assessment example from CSTP


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Administrators create opportunities for

teachers to exercise leadership roles...

1. Create "hybrid" roles for teachers, in which

they can remain in their classroom, but alsoserve as instructional coaches, teacher

facilitators, mentors, etc

2. Promote shared or distributed leadership

structures that provide teachers with input intoschool policies, curriculum and professional

development

3. Provide teachers with common planning

time, job-embedded professional developmentopportunities and released time to collaborate

with peers

4. Recognise the contributions of teacher

leadership to improving student learning.


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Content Emphases for TL Development

1.Continuing to learn about and demonstrate advanced

curricular, instructional, and assessment practices

2.Understanding the school culture and how to initiate

and support change in schools

3.Developing the knowledge and skills necessary to

support the development of colleagues in individual,

small group, and large group interactions (p. 282)

-

Teacher to Teacher Leader what are


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Content emphasis #1: Continuing

to learn about and demonstrate

advanced curricular, instructional,

and assessment practices

- Knowledge of research for teaching

and learning

- Analyse one's own professionalpractice and that of others

- Awareness of effective teachingpractice

- Supporting/leading team to "forgenew ways"; take risks as learners

Source: York-Barr, J., & Duke, K. (2004). What do we know about teacherleadership? Findings from two decades of scholarship. Review of educational

Teacher to Teacher Leader... what are

some areas on which to focus?



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Teacher to Teacher Leader... what aresome areas on which to focus?

Content emphasis #2:

Understanding the school culture

and how to initiate and support

change in schools

-Change orientation-Organizational savvy-Balancing advocacy and inquiry

-Change theory

-Cultural competencies acrosspopulations

-Education policy

Source: York-Barr, J., & Duke, K. (2004). What do we know about teacher leadership?Findings from two decades of scholarship. Review of educational research, 74(3), 255



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Content emphasis #3: Developing

the knowledge and skillsnecessary to support thedevelopment of colleagues inindividual, small group, and largegroup interactions

-Adult learning models-Partnerships with peers andadministrators

-Trust and relationship building-Coaching, observation and mentoringskills - feedback-Facilitation and presentation skills-Professional practices-Communication strategies

Source: York-Barr, J., & Duke, K. (2004). What do we know about teacher

Teacher to Teacher Leader... what aresome areas on which to focus?


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