NewLeaders_Untapped

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“Why is it, as a nationthat exalts outstandingteachers, do we continueto do a spotty job of preparingteachers and principals to lead inthe classroom and schoolhouse?”—Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education 1“I like the idea of teacher leadership—everybody likes the idea of it, butit often feels like busywork.I wouldn’t mind doing extra work ifit meant I could redesign how wedo PD in my building, if I caninfluence what is going onin my classroom and theclassrooms around me.”—Annie, 2 Teacher Leader1 Remarks at the American Association of Colleges for Teacher EducationConference, February 19, 2010. Retrieved from http://www.ed.gov/news/speeches/preparing-teachers-and-school-leaders-tomorrow-secretary-arne-duncans-remarks-american-association-colleges-teacher-education-conference2 Individual teacher’s name has been changed.
Annie is a seasoned and well-respectedteacher leader in her large, urban schooldistrict, where officials routinely askher to attend conferences and deliverspeeches on values and practice. A highlyeffective fifth-grade teacher, she sits ondistrict committees focused on teacherleadership and development. She mentorsnew teachers at her school, and can splither time between her own classroom andcoaching her colleagues.But she feels “negative and burned out”by it all, she said. No one has ever toldher why she was asked to serve as aleader, much less what effective teacherleadership should entail.“It’s this great idea, teacher leadership,”Annie said. “But a lot of the experiencesI’ve had are random things that I’ve beenrecommended for, and I don’t really knowwhat I’m supposed to do.”The training she’s received during offsitesummer sessions and monthly check-ins“felt totally separate from my work atschool,” she said. “It’s a lot of talking at us.I can’t even remember it enough to explainit. It felt like there was something specificthat should have been happening, butnobody knew what it was.”But during breaks in those meetings,she’s glimpsed a better way: talking withother teacher leaders to reflect on sharedchallenges and trade successful strategiesbased on their diverse experiences. It’scrowd-sourced coaching—and “moremeaningful than any of the PD that mydistrict has provided me with.”“This is just how learning works,” shesaid. “This is how people develop skills forany job. You figure out how to do it, youpractice, you have a mentor who helpswith reflection and practice, and thenyou figure out your mistakes and whatyou are going to do differently next time.Whether you are a teacher, or a principal,or a nurse, that is how anyone learns tomaster any kind of job.”
Page 1 and 2: UNTAPPEDTransforming Teacher Leader
Page 3: TABLE OFCONTENTSBackground: The Nee
Page 7 and 8: We must transform teacher leadershi
Page 9 and 10: FIGURE 1IMPACT ONSTUDENTACHIEVEMENT
Page 11 and 12: FIGURE 3INADEQUATETRAININGFOR TEACH
Page 13 and 14: ELP is a skills-focused, job-embedd
Page 15 and 16: Candidates are recommended to apply
Page 17 and 18: StructureIt’s not just what our p
Page 19 and 20: “It’s different from going and
Page 22 and 23: FIGURE 7ELP PARTICIPANTS’ EFFECT
Page 26: Recommendations for District and Ch
Page 30 and 31: TECHNICAL APPENDIXTo determine whet
Page 32: NATIONAL OFFICENew Leaders30 West 2

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