I can't feel excited to think about the defined support
roles of teacher leaders in the trenches and yet serving as support to colleagues and Principals.
It should be noted that these studies were not designed to investigate the
particular role of teacher leaders in these teams, indicating that additional research is warranted to examine how teacher leaders affect the interactions within the teams that they participate.
In particular, the study highlights the
key role of teacher leaders, finding direct links between principal - teacher leader collaborations and higher standardized test scores, and increased staff trust in principals — all without the loss of a principal's clout.
Coaching Isn't Just for Athletes:
The Role of Teacher Leaders An article from the Phi Delta Kappan about Boston's change coaching program.
These activities will focus on
the roles of teacher leaders and how to share leadership for improving instruction.
The Oregon Leadership Network has a created a statement of principles and commitments to eliminate school discipline disparities and has a long history of valuing
the role of teacher leaders.
Topics mentioned include:
the role of teacher leaders in helping the principal realize his vision of providing observation and feedback cycles to every teacher, ability of teacher leaders in piloting strategies in the classroom that leads to growth of teachers, and the interest of teacher leaders in school leadership at the administrative level.
If expectations are not shared initially, it is
the role of the teacher leader to introduce them through his / her work with a teacher.
However, the studies did not offer much description on the nature of the leadership provided by teacher leaders in team settings and how
the role of teacher leaders may vary within teams of teachers compared to their role on school leadership teams.
A study by Bliss et al. (1995) found that the particular subject matter influenced
the role of teacher leaders in providing leadership to teams of teachers, in an investigation of department chairs.
In the video posted below, members of Professional Learning Communities from two PICCS schools work together to improve curriculum and instruction and discuss
the roles of teacher leaders in schools.
The role of the teacher leader is to ensure that the discussion focuses on the lesson and whether the mathematical goals were achieved and what evidence did the observers see that would help them answer that question.
This study suggests that
the role of teacher leaders in teacher - teams may vary by subject area, although Bliss et al. (1995) did not discuss the possibilities for this variation among teams in different subject areas.
Teachers know that they will not only receive the support they need to be successful with their students, but they will also have an opportunity along their career path to take on
the role of a teacher leader.
Educators will discuss the common attributes of teacher leaders, how a teacher leader can bolster the effectiveness of his or her peers, and how school systems can support an educator in
the role of teacher leader.
The criteria used as the basis for selection, factors that draw teachers into leadership positions, and who is involved in making selection decisions have clear implications for the performance and
roles of teacher leaders.
The following factors appear to be related to the nature and impact of policy implementation: district size; degree of investment in reforms by district administration; districts» histories with curricular projects / reforms; role of subject area experts (i.e., language arts coordinators) within district; and the presence and
roles of teacher leaders.
Over my 30 years in public education I continue to be amazed at how
the role of teacher leaders remains an under - utilized and under - supported role.